The WWE games have reached a Madden and FIFA level of importance in recent years. No, that doesn’t mean that they’re always the best games on the market - some say that they’re still not as good as the classic N64 wrestling games - but it does mean that they’ve bled into the culture of their fandom. When a new WWE game comes out, the WWE universe - and wrestling fans across the world - come together. They come together to share a few matches, share their custom characters, and share some funny glitches, but more than anything else, they come to discuss the ratings. In the minds of many, those WWE 2K ratings represent respect towards their favorite wrestler, as well as an honest (sometimes honest) evaluation of where they are really at as performers.
So far as that goes, ratings are rarely perfect. Technically, a wrestler’s rating is based on the average of their individual skills and other abilities. There is a math to it all. However, most fans know that a wrestler’s rating is really determined by the developers (or even the WWE). They represent how the wrestler fits into the grand scheme of the roster. They represent how that wrestler is perceived by management and fans in general. Sometimes, though, they represent just how little of a science these ratings really are. Sometimes, WWE 2K’s ratings are hilariously bad. We’ve scoured the ratings for this year’s game, and found quite a few of those hilariously bad scores. These are 20 Ridiculous Ratings For WWE 2K19.
20 Ric Flair - 91 (Too High)
We’re puzzled by this one. There are three versions of Ric Flair in WWE 2K19. One is Ric Flair ‘88 (who has a 90 rating), one is Ric Flair ‘91 (who also has a 90) and the, mostly, modern version of Ric Flair who has a 91 rating.
How do you possibly justify putting the modern Ric Flair above Ric Flair '88?
Flair was in his in-ring prime that year, and he was one of the biggest draws in the world at that time. It’s absurd that even the Ric Flair we last saw wrestle at WrestleMania XXIV would be placed above Ric Flair in 1988.
19 Asuka - 84 (Too Low)
For context, there are four women on the WWE 2K19 roster that have a higher rating than Asuka; Charlotte Flair, Ronda Rousey, Trish Stratus, and Beth Phoenix (Rousey is the highest at 87). Technically, that means that WWE 2K19 ranks Asuka among the best women wrestlers not only in WWE 2K19 but in the history of WWE. However, Asuka is still ranked too low. At the very least, she is on Charlotte Flair’s level. Honestly, though, from a kayfabe and real-life standpoint, Asuka is arguably the best female wrestler in the world and one of the best of all-time. She deserves to be ranked higher.
18 Kevin Nash - 88 (Too High)
What the…? Ok, let’s provide a little context for this rating. Kevin Nash’s 88 rating (which is a very, very good rating, means that he’s seen as equal to Daniel Bryan, Chris Jericho ‘00, Dusty Rhodes ‘85, Seth Rollins, Shawn Michaels ‘05, and other greats. He’s ahead of guys like Jake the Snake and Ricky “The Dragon” Steamboat. Just...what? Kevin Nash was good, but he isn’t an all-time big man. Kevin Nash is good, but he wasn’t the reason the nWo was successful. Even in his prime, Kevin Nash failed to really draw as WWE Champion.
17 The Undertaker ‘02 - 90 (Too High)
In and of itself, this rating isn’t the worst thing we’ve ever seen. However, you really have to view this rating in the context of the other ratings in the games.
There are three versions of The Undertaker in WWE 2K19 (The Undertaker, The Undertaker ‘91, and The Undertaker ‘02), and this version is the highest rated.
You could make the argument that should be the case, but where is the late ‘90s or mid-2000s Undertaker that was putting on some of the best matches on the planet? In comparison to that Undertaker, “Biker ‘Taker” shouldn’t be this high.
16 Hideo Itami - 76 (Too Low)
To be fair, this does make some sense. Hideo Itami has been injured for quite some time, and he hasn’t really had the chance to prove himself in a WWE ring. However, this rating is absurd. Whatever Itami is, he’s also an incredibly talented performer whose ability to draw across the world inspired WWE to go out of there way to bring him on-board. He is a historically great wrestler who is currently ranked below Jim “The Anvil” Neidhart, Jason Jordan, Peyton Royce, Fandango, and The Godfather. How do you possibly say that Itami is an overall worse talent than those performers?
15 Adam Cole - 81 (Too Low)
This number is actually somewhat fair when you look at it in context of other, similar superstars. Generally speaking, NXT performers are ranked below their main roster counterparts. Cole is actually one of the highest-rated NXT performers. However, this feels at least a few points short when you consider Cole’s overall talent.
He’s a very, very good in-ring performer with personality to spare and a championship win on his resume.
While he hasn’t won the NXT Championship or been promoted to the main roster, Cole has done enough to justify a few extra points.
14 Andrade “Cien” Almas: 81 (Too Low)
If nothing else this rating just makes you wonder exactly what the Adam Cole rating is all about. After all, Andrade “Cien” Almas has an NXT Championship win to his name, he’s on the main roster, and he was one half of the greatest WWE match in modern history. Yet, he’s stuck at an 81.
This rating seems to be based on his role on the main roster, but when the only thing holding a guy back is the way he is booked, you’ve really got to wonder what it is that really determines these final ratings.
13 Baron Corbin - 84 (Too High)
The last year or so has sene Baron Corbin transform from a full-time, underutilized wrestler to more of an authority figure.
The transition has been good for Corbin’s screen time, but it also really shows how little faith WWE has in the guy as a full-time main event (or upper card) performer.
Yet, Corbin is currently ranked higher than some main roster and NXT guys we’d say are easily better performers, and he’s ranked on the same level as performers like Aleister Black, Asuka, and Cesaro. We’re sorry, but there’s no way to justify that.
12 Matt Hardy - 84 (Too High)
There’s technically a science to WWE 2K’s ratings, but the truth of the matter is that most of them are based on intangibles. It’s the only explanation for some of these scores. It’s certainly the only way that you justify putting Matt Hardy at an 84.
We get that people love his character (or at least his TNA character), that he’s a WWE “legend,” and that he’s a pretty good wrestler, but the truth of the matter is that Matt Hardy isn’t selling out stadiums, isn’t putting on the best matches, and doesn’t have much to do. It feels like all of those should matter more.
11 Stephanie McMahon - 77 (Too High)
Are you kidding? Look, we get that she’s a McMahon, and we get that she’s still rated lower than a lot of WWE’s female talent, but let’s get real about some things for a second. The fact that Stephanie is rated above any active female competitor is questionable.
The fact that she’s rated above performers like Sonya Deville is simply absurd.
At the end of the day, ratings affect how someone performs in a WWE 2K ring. Currently, Stephanie is rated as a more capable in-ring performer than Sonya Deville and Sarah Logan. You can’t possibly justify that.
10 Mr. Perfect - 83 (Too Low)
To be fair, this rating is only off by 1-3 points. However, we’re still talking about a few crucial points. Mr. Perfect’s current rating means that he’s one of the lowest true WWE legends on the WWE 2K19 roster. What really blows our mind is that this rating seems to imply that Mr. Perfect is a lesser in-ring performer than a surprising percentage of the WWE 2K19 roster.
While we agree that Perfect shouldn’t be in the upper echelon of legends or active wrestlers, he’s at least worthy of being in the 85 range with more of the legends of his era.
9 Lex Luger - 86 (Too High)
BWHAHAHAHAHA! Okay, that’s rude, but how do you even come close to justifying this rating in relation to the other ratings in this game? The truth about Lex Luger is that he was a big dude, and that’s the best thing he ever had going for him.
He couldn’t put on a decent match unless he was in the ring with a true legend and he couldn’t cut a promo to save his life.
By what metric is Lex Luger being rated an 86 when a guy like British Bulldog (who has a similar story but was better in every way) is at an 81?
8 Johnny Gargano - 80 (Too Low)
This is without a doubt the most ridiculous NXT rating on this list. Right now, Johnny Gargano is the heart and soul of NXT. Actually, he’s more than that. He is - by some distance - the best overall piece of talent in NXT and one of the best overall wrestlers in the world. There is no aspect of his game that he doesn’t excel at.
Such as it stands, though, Gargano is rated lower than the likes of Brutus Beefcake and Jey Uso, and he’s just a single point above Drew Gulak. There’s no way to justify this rating.
7 The Miz - 86 (Too Low)
There are a couple of ways to look at this one. In and of itself, an 86 really isn’t that bad. It’s even better when you factor in how underrated some all-time greats in this game are. What really upsets us about this rating, though, is the fact that The Miz is currently only ranked 2 points higher than the ‘10 version of himself. The truth is that The Miz has improved by leaps and bounds since then, and he’s one of the WWE’s best - and most reliable - guys in just about every aspect of being a professional wrestler. He is at least an 88.
6 John Cena ‘13 - 92 (Too High)
In 2013, John Cena was winning the Royal Rumble, battling The Rock, and coming off of a legendary battle with Brock Lesnar. However, he was also feuding with guys like Ryback, rehabbing, and passing the torch to Daniel Bryan by the summer. That’s what we don’t get about this rating.
Why is the 2013 version of Cena so highly rated?
We agree that some version of Cena deserves this high rating, but why not “Super Cena” of 2007 or 2005-2006 Cena? Even 2011 or 2012 Cena would have made more sense than this one. But of course, he gets a few extra points because he's John Cena.
5 Andre the Giant - 87 (Too Low)
Traditionally, Andre the Giant receives a very high rating in these games. That high rating is usually based on the fact that he’s Andre the Giant (the WWE Hall of Fame was practically created for this legend) but also because his size dictates that he should be very capable in the ring. That’s why this 87 sticks out to us. It’s good enough to ensure that Andre remains theoretically competitive, but it’s not nearly good enough for him to be seen as the kind of larger than life world beater that he was for most of his career.
4 Macho Man ‘92 - 90 (Too High)
Macho Man Randy Savage may be the best professional wrestler of all-time. He had the look, he had the ability, he had presence, he was god-like on the microphone, and he was able to easily shift from heel to face. He had it all and deserves to be rated at least a 90. However, we’re a little confused regarding why ‘92 Macho man gets the highest rating.
Yes, Macho Man won the WWE Championship in ‘92, but he was booked as an afterthought who was past the prime of his career. Why not give this rating to the late ‘80s Macho Man?
3 Sting ‘99 - 91 (Too High)
The last few wrestlers on this list are all ranked incorrectly due to how they compare to other versions of themselves. For instance, there are surprisingly four versions of Sting in WWE 2K19 (Sting, Sting ‘91, Sting ‘98, and Sting ‘99). Of those versions, Sting ‘99 is ranked the highest. Why? We really don’t know.
Not only was that a down year for Sting and WCW, but ‘99 is ranked a full three points above ‘98.
We honestly think that ‘91 should be the highest rated Sting, but even if you go with the late ‘90s version, we’re not sure why they chose ‘99.
2 Kurt Angle ’01 and ‘06: 86 and 89 (Too Low)
This is a bit of a cheat considering that it’s technically two separate characters, but a quick look at WWE 2K19’s ratings leaves you wondering who Kurt Angle upset. While the ‘01 rating is honestly much more absurd, the fact that they couldn’t bother to give any version of Kurt Angle a 90 just feels like a strange intentional slight against the man. We’re talking about someone who is not only one of the greatest legitimate in-ring athletes in the game (a trait that Rousey and Lesnar got way higher ratings for) but someone who knew how to cut a genuinely great promo.
1 The Rock - 93 (Too High)
We love The Rock. We love The Rock in movies, and we love the version of The Rock that we’ve seen in recent WWE matches. However, there are two versions of The Rock in WWE 2K19. There's the ‘01 version of The Rock, and the modern version of The Rock. Given that we’re talking about a professional wrestling video game, we have no idea how you possibly justify giving the current (i.e. not wrestling) version of The Rock a higher rating than The Rock when he was in his absolute wrestling prime. This should have been an easy rating swap.