WWE 2K18: 10 Things It Can Learn From Past Games

9. Freedom To Roam

Smackdown Here Comes The Pain
THQ

2K17's Backstage Brawl feature felt like a step forward for the 2K series after so many steps backwards. The developers packed a lot of interaction into a dense environment, rather than using wide-open areas that characters could run around in. It's time to expand things.

It's not like the Xbox One or PS4 lack the power to make this happen. Having the freedom to roam around arenas like we did in games like SmackDown: Here Comes The Pain should be mandatory, especially when realising there's really no excuse for 2K to scale down backstage areas. Players want to go everywhere, when and how they wish.

In a Street Fight, it should be possible to fight up the entrance ramp and head backstage. Those blue arrows need to make a long-awaited comeback and allow much more freedom during brawls. Part of the fun in older SmackDown games was in the exploration, rather than playing in the same area over and over again.

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Lifelong wrestling, video game, music and sports obsessive who has been writing about his passions since childhood. Jamie started writing for WhatCulture in 2013, and has contributed thousands of articles and YouTube videos since then. He cut his teeth penning published pieces for top UK and European wrestling read Fighting Spirit Magazine (FSM), and also has extensive experience working within the wrestling biz as a manager and commentator for promotions like ICW on WWE Network and WCPW/Defiant since 2010. Further, Jamie also hosted the old Ministry Of Slam podcast, and has interviewed everyone from Steve Austin and Shawn Michaels to Bret Hart and Trish Stratus.