Ar WrestleMania 37, a teaser trailer was revealed for Visual Concept's WWE 2K22. The latest entry in the series is coming after the developer swore to take a step back and reevaluate the franchise. The last entry, WWE 2K20, was met with near-universal criticism due to a variety of technical issues and bugs. The developer has stated it's looking to focus more on WWE 2K22's quality after the negative reception to the last iteration in the series. From the brief teaser trailer shown, the new game could be taking a shot at WWE 2K20.
Instead of releasing a new WWE 2K game in 2020, Saber Interactive developed WWE 2K Battlegrounds, which was released in September 2020. The game had an arcade feel and launched at a lower price point, but it was still met by critics coolly. It was rumored in January that 2K Games was at the Royal Rumble event, conducting work on the next WWE 2K game. In April, the first teaser for WWE 2K22 was revealed and while it was brief, it indicated a change from WWE 2K20.
The Focus on Graphics
Although it was brief, the WWE 2K22 teaser at WrestleMania 37 indicated a greater focus on the game's visuals compared to its predecessor. The short gameplay clip showed off part of Rey Mysterio's entrance and him hitting his finisher, the 619, on fellow superstar, Cesaro. This snippet showed off greatly enhanced facial expressions and animations when compared with the last game of the franchise. Considering how the visual quality of WWE 2K20 was one of the biggest gripes among reviewers, the new game seems to be making up for this previous shortcoming in a big way.
It's Likely an Early Teaser
The new trailer could very likely be an early teaser for the game. If 2K is following the same routine with the series it usually is, it would mean that a more complete reveal won't take place until WWE's SummerSlam event in August. The visual quality of the game already looks as though it will exceed the previous title, even at this early stage. With several months left to go before the traditional reveal window, Visual Concepts have plenty of time to refine it even further. Fans are hoping to see some improvements in WWE 2K22, and judging from this early look, the developer might be able to deliver a much improved WWE 2K title.
"It Hits Different"
The slogan for the new WWE game has been revealed to be "It Hits Different." While purely speculative, some fans have thought that this could be a reference to the last game, WWE 2K20. The slogan could be a reference to the new game focusing on higher quality, especially compared to WWE 2K22 and its technical issues. With the promise that WWE 2K22's development is honing in on quality, this could be a way for Visual Concepts to say that it's aware of the issues with the past game, and it's working to avoid the same problems cropping up.
While the teaser trailer was quite short, it seems to focus on the graphical fidelity of WWE 2K22. The game is likely still in the early stages of development, but even at this point, many fans have found its visuals to be impressive. The new title seems to be improving on one of the most criticized aspects of WWE 2K20, which should be pleasing news for a lot of fans. Rumors have been circulating that WWE 2K22 is skipping next-generation consoles, which makes the graphics shown off so far even more impressive.
WWE 2K22 is currently in development for unspecified platforms.