The infamous WWE 2K20 has not grown on anyone since it was released in October last year, and there is no hope for the game to be fixed after the WWE announced that there is no 2K21 game in development. So with that, WWE fans will unfortunately be stuck with this shameful final installment in the once beloved franchise until the cartoonish WWE 2K Battlegrounds launches in the Fall.
While WWE 2K20 has countless issues ranging from horrifying glitches to wonky gameplay to basically everything, it would still hold its own when stacked up against some previous wrestling games of older generations. Below are ten old wrestling video games that are actually worse than WWE 2K20.
10 WWE Crush Hour (2003)
While Crush Hour was more of a GTA/Mario Kart hybrid than it was a typical wrestling game, it was still created by the WWE and is therefore eligible for scrutiny. The game was Vince McMahon's attempt to compete with other genres of video games in an effort to expand the WWE brand. His attempt came up short, to say the least.
Positive: Gamers were able to choose between 30 different WWE superstars and their specialized vehicles.
Negative: The entire premise of the game is based around vehicles and only a handful of them even made sense for their respective wrestlers, such as Stone Cold's truck or The Undertaker's motorcycle.
9 WWE Aftershock (2005)
This game received terrible reviews right out of the gate when it was released on the handheld N-Gage device back in 2005. The game was a complete mess, and it still stands as one of the worst gaffs during the failed console's short-lived tenure.
The graphics were so bad that it would be a disservice to readers to include a screencap of the game here. Given how limited the graphics capacity of the N-Gage already is, WWE Aftershock's low quality is more than enough to prove just how bad it really is.
8 Hulk Hogan's Main Event (2011)
This Kinect-exclusive title is forgotten by wrestling and video game fans alike for all the right reasons. The most memorable aspect of the game is the fact that the Kinect sensor consistently had a hard time recognizing player movements.
The graphics looked dull and nothing made this game stand out from the rest of the entries, despite being released a full six years after the second newest game on this list. It is clear that creators were attempting to cash in on Hogan's still immense popularity at the time, but there was just too much wrong with the gameplay to overlook.
7 WCW Backstage Assault (2000)
This is actually the final WCW video game in the company's history, and it's arguably the worst of them all. The purpose of the game was strictly to wander around backstage and look to pick fights with other wrestlers on the roster. Yes that's it. No storylines. No campaign mode. Nothing.
The limited replayability mixed with the box-like animation makes this game a truly disappointing finale for the once-great wrestling organization. However, it is quite the fitting ending, seeing how the company fell from prominence so quickly.
6 WWF WrestleMania: Steel Cage Challenge (1992)
One of the earliest entries on this list, WWF WrestleMania: Steel Cage Challenge was originally released on NES in 1992. The game featured only ten playable WWF stars , and none of them had specialized moves that set them apart from one another.
The game was a basic addition to the franchise at the time, and it received overwhelmingly poor reviews as a result. Despite this being the third game of the WrestleMania installment, it was a noticeable step backward for the franchise.
5 Legends of Wrestling II (2002)
While the second installment in the Legends of Wrestling series was ahead of its time in terms of graphics, it lacked a quality physics engine. This led to an incredible amount of wonky mechanics and gameplay that were mentioned in the mercilessly negative reviews. This was especially evident for the Game Boy Advance port, which critics found virtually unplayable.
The gameplay was not the only thing that critics took issue with, as the games' creators were also panned for not incorporating a two-player mode in any version in the game.
4 WWF In Your House (1996)
Named after the pay-per-views that the WWF aired during the mid-late 1990s, WWF: In Your House was undoubtedly one of biggest company flops of the '90s. While the graphics were on par with other games that came out during this time, there were just too many issues with the gameplay to overlook.
The game was inspired by the Mortal Kombat series and included a variety of over-the-top moves as a result. Not only was it full of unrealistic attacks, but critics also took issue with everything from the game's lack of variety (the game included only ten wrestlers) to its lack of innovation or creativity compared to previous titles.
3 WWF European Rampage Tour (1992)
WWF European Rampage Tour was the company's (unsuccessful) attempt to market a video game for Europe. Gamer's options were extremely limited, as they were forced to create a team choosing from only Hulk Hogan, Randy Savage, The Ultimate Warrior, and Bret Hart.
The game was completed after only ten total matches, limiting user's options on where they wanted to take the campaign. The game was a complete mess from start to finish, and it was a clear step back from the WrestleMania game that came out the year before.
2 WCW: The Main Event (1994)
WCW: The Main Event is remembered by many as one of the worst wrestling video games of all time. The game had very limited variety, as not only were there only ten wrestlers to choose from, there were also only a handful of attacks that the gamer could utilize.
Critics also took issue with the outdated graphics and weak sound effects during in-game play, saying that the game had weak hit effects compared to other games that were released around this time.
1 WWF Betrayal (2001)
A common negative for many of the previous games on this list was only having ten playable characters, but WWF Betrayal lowers the bar even more by only having four (The Undertaker, Steve Austin, The Rock, and Triple H). To make everything worse, WWF Betrayal was a boring side-scrolling punch/kick/throw game, where all the wrestlers had the same attacks.
While the graphics were on-par with other handheld games of the time, WWF Betrayal's side-scrolling nature was years behind other wrestling games. The game had extremely limited replayability, as there is only one stale storyline to play. This wound up being the last WWE game released on the Game Boy Color, and this title's terrible reception and performance probably had something to do with that.