WWE 2K19 Review: 5 Ups & 3 Downs

2. The Lack Of A True WWE Superstar Story Mode

WWE 2K19 AJ Styles
2K Games

The 'ups' section will examine how 2K bowing to fan pressure and bringing back some old story elements has made 2K19 a better game. This isn't the 'ups' however, it's the 'downs', and that means we must take the developers to take for one infuriating exclusion.

No, it's not NXT Champ Tommaso Ciampa.

He might have been included though had 2K not decreed that a game based on WWE didn't need a fully-fledged story mode centred around actual WWE Superstars. Yes, MyCareer (which, again, we'll get to) does have room for everyone from Triple H and Braun Strowman to Matt Hardy and Bray Wyatt, and yet they're not the focal point.

Your CAW is, and therein lies the problem. It wouldn't be too difficult for 2K to develop a story mode like the old SmackDown series had. That was an absolute joy to play through, and it rocked to step into the shoes of real on-screen heroes and march them through a year or two of feuds and storylines.

2K19, for all its plus points, is a poorer title without that sort of vicarious experience.

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Contributor

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.