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The tension in the WWE 2K office the days after the launch of WWE 2K22 must have been palpable. More than two years of working on what was effectively a make-or-break game being sent out into the wild and waiting for people's thoughts, reviews, and opinions to slowly filter through via articles, tweets, and emotionally charged YouTube videos. That tension would have washed away before 2K22's first weekend on the market had come to an end. Feedback was good, the game is good, and 2K appears to have cemented its position as WWE's video game creators for at least a little longer.

Bouncing Back From WWE 2K20

The journey to the launch of WWE 2K22 began in 2019, following the arrival of WWE 2K20. The feedback for that game was not as easy to digest for the 2K team. Labeled the worst wrestling game ever by many, 2K20 was riddled with bugs and glitches at launch. It was so broken that the game effectively became one big meme. Players posting clips of their experiences online as wrestlers would sink into the mat or be seen floating above it. A game so bad that development of WWE 2K21 was canceled so the team could attempt to reverse the damage done to its brand. If 2K22 had been anywhere close to more of the same, it would have been game over for 2K.

RELATED: WWE 2K22 Review: It Hits Different, But Not That Different

Asuka in WWE 2K22

WWE 2K20 shoulders almost all of the blame for the bad press the studio and its wrestling games received after its launch, and that's definitely fair. It wasn't just one bad game that led to all this, though. WWE and 2K had been treading water for a while. Falling into the same trap that other series with annual releases have done as developing games has become a more complex and time-consuming process. One game launches and the 12-month countdown to the next one immediately begins. There's not that much you can get done in that time outside updating the roster and maybe making the game look and play a little better. The reason wrestling games of old are still remembered so fondly is because each was different. Unique from the others even if they were a part of the same series. If you've played them, you know the difference between Here Comes The Pain and Shut Your Mouth, but could you pick 2K16 and 2K17 out of a lineup based on screenshots alone?

Wrestling Games Needed A Revamp

WWE 2K22 is a complete revamp. Better graphics, new controls, and perhaps most important of all, a wider selection of things to do in-game. The additions of MyGM and MyFaction might not be living up to their full potential just yet, but they are important additions. They appeal to groups of fans who might have had wavering interest in WWE's games, or perhaps no interest at all. I've taken all of 2K22's modes for a spin, and while I don't understand the appeal of MyFaction, I know that there is an audience out there who loves it, and so does 2K.

MyGM SmackDown draft
via WWE 2K

The biggest reason WWE 2K22 really did need to hit different is because competition is coming. AEW is hard at work on its first-ever console game, and the promotion has Yuke's helping it do that. Yuke's has worked on almost every WWE game ever created, so it knows a thing or two about what fans want. There was a period when it seemed as if 2K22 would launch at the same time as AEW's first game. That would have made for some fascinating comparisons. Now the AEW game won't be here until September, at the very earliest. An interesting time of year for the game to arrive as that's a window previously reserved for WWE's annual offerings. 2K22 would suggest WWE's chosen time of year will be WrestleMania season from now on. I'm also hopeful 2K doesn't return to forcing out a game every year. 2K22 should prove as evidence that doesn't work for wrestling games.

We might never know if this last point is true, but it feels like 2K22 was 2K's last chance to save the series and make sure its relationship with WWE continued. There were reports around the time of the game's launch that higher-ups in WWE held meetings with EA about potentially taking the video game reigns moving forward. If that did happen, it would appear 2K22 has done enough to keep the contract in 2K's camp for the time being. The studio's next move will be an interesting one. 2K22 is a massive improvement, but the game is by no means perfect. There's a lot of room for improvement, but if it reverts to forcing out a game every year, it seems unlikely any of that room will be utilized.