WWE 2K20 was disastrous enough that WWE reportedly entertained the idea of partnering with another company for its future video games, and so the decision was made to give the developers extra time to make WWE 2K22 as good as it could be and get the franchise back on track. WWE 2K22 was the reinvention that the series desperately needed, but it was unclear if WWE 2K23 could keep the momentum going strong after switching back to an annual release schedule.

WWE 2K23 isn't a complete reinvention in the way WWE 2K22 was, but instead takes what was established in last year's installment and improves on it. Basically, every game mode and feature in WWE 2K22 is back in WWE 2K23 but expanded with more options. The result is a deeper, more content-rich wrestling game that is the best the series has been in years.

This is readily apparent in the returning MyGM mode, a clear step up from last year's bare-bones iteration. Prospective general managers have more options when it comes to what kind of matches they can book, and there are actually mid-card titles this time around. Additionally, WWE 2K23 has expanded MyGM to allow for four players, with one of the brand options being none other than WCW, though WCW's integration leaves something to be desired.

It's cool that WWE 2K23 MyGM lets players run WCW as Eric Bischoff, but it doesn't feel like authentic WCW. Instead of iconic WCW pay-per-views, players have to book for WWE premium live events. Instead of the actual WCW Women's Championship, the game uses a tweaked version of the old WWE Women's Championship with WCW plates slapped onto it. The Big Gold Belt, aka the WWE World Heavyweight Championship, isn't even used as the promotion's world title like it was at the peak of its popularity. It's a bit disappointing, though it's still nice that WCW is one of the brands players can choose from in MyGM sessions.

Having Raw, SmackDown, NXT, NXT 2.0, and WCW to choose from for 4-player multiplayer sessions is great, but the downside is that WWE 2K23 MyGM has no online capabilities, so one will need to organize a local multiplayer session if they want to play with their friends. Getting through a season of MyGM will take a significant chunk of time, especially with four people, but it's fun enough that the hours will fly by.

The biggest problem with WWE 2K22's take on MyGM was that it ended after a single season. This oversight has been addressed in WWE 2K23, which lets players re-draft their roster at the end of each season. It will take multiple seasons for players to earn enough Hall of Fame trophies to ultimately "win" MyGM mode, with players having new objectives to shoot for to help keep things a little more interesting.

WWE 2K23 MyGM mode is a massive step forward compared to last year's version of the mode, though it's still lacking in key areas. While it's nice to have challenges to complete, Triple H still asks players to make absurd booking decisions that make zero sense, yet refusing to do them penalizes the player. One can't effectively role-play as a legitimate WWE general manager if they are being forced to book a Hell in a Cell match on a random episode of Raw two weeks in with no actual rivalries established.

Future iterations of MyGM may be better off ditching these bizarre asks from Triple H, and there are other improvements that could be made for subsequent entries to recapture the magic of General Manager mode from the SmackDown vs. Raw games as well. It would be better if it followed a full calendar year of WWE TV like older versions of the mode, from Backlash to WrestleMania, instead of what's there now which seemingly consists of random PLEs. MyGM is also sorely missing the fun special brand vs. brand events like the Royal Rumble. In SmackDown vs. Raw 2008, fans looked forward to these events in General Manager mode as they offered unique match types where each brand could select their own representatives. It was always fun seeing which wrestler from which brand would win the Royal Rumble match, and it's a shame WWE 2K23 MyGM doesn't offer something similar.

Of course, some WWE 2K23 players will be completely uninterested in a management sim and will want to focus more on the in-ring action. Luckily for them, WWE 2K23 has no shortage of options when it comes to battling it out in the squared circle, with Showcase, Universe, MyRise, online multiplayer, and more are all readily available.

This year's Showcase is a unique twist on the fan-favorite mode. Typically, WWE 2K Showcase modes lets players relive a specific wrestler's most memorable victories, but the WWE 2K23 Showcase actually highlights their failures. In this year's iteration of Showcase, players find themselves in the boots of some of John Cena's greatest opponents, recreating the legendary wrestler's biggest losses throughout his career.

WWE 2K23 Showcase seamlessly transitions from in-game action to live-action footage as players complete specific objectives to recreate the most memorable spots from each match. By letting players take on the role of Cena's opponents instead of Cena himself, there's a lot more variety than in past years, with players getting to take control of everyone from ECW legend Rob Van Dam to today's biggest star, Roman Reigns. The objectives serve as a great way for one to learn the ins and outs of the game, giving players a better understanding of the controls and everything they can do in the ring.

WWE 2K23's John Cena Showcase is one of the best iterations of the mode thanks to the variety of wrestlers players to get play as if nothing else, though there are a couple of issues to take into account. While it was completely out of the developers' control, there are some glaring omissions from the John Cena Showcase matches, with his famous bouts against AEW wrestlers CM Punk and Bryan Danielson completely absent from the lineup. Players may also find the censored referee faces in the live-action footage to be distracting.

When players are done reliving John Cena's greatest losses, they can move on to MyRise. MyRise has always been an acquired taste, and that's no different this year, though WWE 2K23 MyRise still represents a big improvement over what's come before. The voice acting still leaves a lot to be desired, but the cutscenes and dialogue aren't nearly as cringy, and it does a better job of getting players into the action instead of boring them with excessively long cutscenes.

This year, there are two MyRise stories for players to choose from, one focused on a female wrestler and another focused on a male wrestler. Players are free to create a character from scratch in the mode itself or import characters that they already created, a much-appreciated quality-of-life feature that was missing from last year's game. In MyRise, players can make important decisions that change the course of the story, encouraging players to go back through and see how things can change if they take different paths.

MyRise in WWE 2K23 offers plenty of optional activities players can participate in as well, which often reward them with attribute points they can use to upgrade their wrestler. One can safely ignore the optional content and barrel their way through the main story if they'd prefer, and while they'll be missing out on some XP, players are unlikely to ever feel like they're at a major disadvantage.

One thing about MyRise that the mode could have done without are the in-match objectives. These objectives are fine for Showcase mode, but they bog down MyRise by restricting player freedom and dictating how one plays the game.

Those that want more freedom can always stick to Universe mode, of course, or simply play random matches against their friends or AI-controlled opponents. The actual wrestling in WWE 2K23 is very similar to last year, which is great because WWE 2K22 nailed it. Instead of reinventing the wheel, WWE 2K23 makes slight tweaks to improve the in-ring experience, like shifting to a new kick out scheme where players flick the right stick up at the correct time. The little kick out mini-game may seem like an inconsequential change, but it helps create exciting moments when players manage to kick out at the last possible second.

All the usual match types are present and accounted for in WWE 2K23, with the big new addition being WarGames. Originating in the NWA and perhaps best known for its use in World Championship Wrestling, WarGames is a unique match type where two rings are surrounded by a cage. The match starts with two wrestlers from opposing teams facing off, and every few minutes another wrestler joins the fray, one at a time. The team that gets the advantage has multiple chances to outnumber their enemies, and those coming in can even add weapons to the mix.

WarGames matches can only end when all wrestlers have entered the match, at which point they end by pinfall or submission. WarGames translates brilliantly to the video game space, and it should make for a great gimmick match type that players will frequent alongside Hell in a Cell and Elimination Chamber.

Besides WarGames and the previously mentioned game modes, players can also spend time in the microtransaction-filled MyFaction mode or utilize WWE 2K23's expanded creation tools. The community got a great deal of mileage out of WWE 2K22's creation options, and it's likely that WWE 2K23 will be no different. While there are DLC wrestlers to look forward in WWE 2K23, community creations should be more than enough to keep players engaged with the game for the long-term. If WWE 2K22 is any indication of what to expect from WWE 2K23's community creations, fans will likely be able to download nearly any fictional character they can think of as a wrestler, not to mention custom belts, arenas, and more.

Even discounting the upcoming community creations, WWE 2K23 has so much content baked in that fans should be able to play for hours on end without even scratching the surface of everything the game has to offer. Whereas WWE 2K22 was a rebuilding year for the franchise, WWE 2K23 is all about building on that foundation, offering players more bang for their buck and taking everything a step forward. There is still plenty of room for improvement for sure, but WWE 2K23 is easily one of the best WWE games of the past decade.

WWE 2K23 launches March 17 for PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X. Game Rant was provided with a PS5 code for this review.