With the removal of the older WWE 2K games, the only WWE games available on Steam right now is this year’s release, WWE 2K22, along with WWE 2K Battlegrounds.

The removal of these games is likely related to 2K’s licensing agreements with WWE. With the professional wrestling company going through massive roster overhauls on an almost-yearly basis, it is likely that several of the de-listed games’ roster members are no longer covered under the licensing agreements between 2K and WWE.

WWE 2K22 has been the most well-liked game in the franchise for a while now, and for more details, you can check out our review where we gave the game a score of 8 out of 10. The game is currently going through its post-release cycle with regular DLC releases and game updates.

Big Rigs: Over The Road Racing

2003’s Big Rigs: Over The Road Racing is regarded as one of the worst games in the history of the medium, with good reason. The Stellar Stone developed title involves players making their way through the US in an effort to get cargo goods delivered within time. In actuality, however, playing it is an exercise in pain as you try to wrestle with the game’s multitude of bugs and other technical inefficiencies that will make you want to throw your controller in the air.

Destiny 2’s Armor Synthesis

Bungie is no stranger to cash-grab attempts with its Destiny franchise, utilizing FOMO and other tactics to push its seasonal content and microtransactions. Armor Synthesis aka transmog is the most recent example. Since it allows for having the cosmetic appearance of different armor while maintaining one’s stats, transmog is an oft-sought feature in looters and action RPGs. Fans clamored for a long time to see it in Destiny and Bungie finally delivered. See, Armor Synthesis doesn’t simply let you equip any armor piece’s appearance like, say, an ornament. No, you needed to earn Synthstrand first, which is acquired by killing enemies (and was actually revealed to be influenced more by time – regardless of whether you killed one foe or a dozen, you’d earn the same amount each minute). This is then turned into Ada-1 to purchase bounties, which must then be completed to earn Synthchord. When you get Synthchord, you’re permitted transmog currency for ONE armor piece with a cap of 10 pieces or two full armor sets every season. Of course, you could break that cap…by spending real money.

It’s fairly obvious that the Armor Synthesis grind is a means to inflate playtime and turn a quality of life feature into a chore. But capping the amount of Synthchord, simply for the purpose of selling more to earn a quick buck, is just a cash grab, plain and simple. Bungie is removing the Synthstrand requirement when the next season launches in August so it’s somewhat less awful at least.

It’s been a rough couple of weeks, if not months, due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Many are stuck at home, either through layoffs or self quarantine working remotely from home. While for some it’s little comfort, there are a lot of free and cheap games right now to at least keep you entertained. And now you can both do that and help out with the efforts to combat the virus.

It was announced via 2K’s official Twitter account that they will team with Humble Bundle for what they’re calling the Game Together bundle. It will include three tiers. For just a $1 you can get Spec Ops: The Line, Sid Meier’s Pirates!, The Darkness 2 and Carnival Games VR. If you donate more than the average you’ll also get BioShock: The Collection, Civilization III: Complete, The Golf Club 2019 and NBA 2K Playgrounds 2. If you go all the way and donate at least $20 (or more than that), you get all of that and WWE 2K20, NBA 2K20, XCOM: Enemy Unknown Complete Edition, Borderlands: Game of the Year Enhanced and Borderlands: The Handsome Collection.

However much you spend, it will go to support the International Medical Corps, which is one of the leading organizations working with the World Health Organisation to combat COVID-19. And you get a pretty good batch of games to help fill the time.

2K is partnering with Humble Bundle to offer a selection of titles as part of the @Humble 2K’s #GameTogether Bundle, with a portion of 2K’s revenue going to support @IMC_Worldwide in its COVID-19 relief efforts.

Get it here: https://t.co/XMR2CifUvu pic.twitter.com/EIP5fabQsM

— 2K (@2K) April 14, 2020

The WWE 2K series has always been known for its glitches and technical issues. There’s entire Twitters and YouTube channels dedicated to breaking the games in hilarious ways. But WWE 2K20 was something else entirely with its issues. The game was a legendary technical mess, in some ways barely functional (and yes, it really is that bad). It seems that was reflected in both the game’s sales and reception.

In Take-Two Interactive’s latest financial results call, CEO Strauss Zelnick touched on the game’s poor performance. He said that the game was a disappointment both in its quality as well as its overall sales. Zelnick commented that publisher 2K (an imprint publishing hand of Take-Two that publishes the WWE 2K games) and developer Visual Concepts were working together to improve the property.

“While we’re disappointed that WWE 2K20 did not meet our expectations, both in terms of sales and quality, 2K is actively working with Visual Concepts to ensure that these issues are addressed in the future, and they’ll have more to share on their plans soon,” said Zelnick. “The WWE brand continues to expand worldwide, and there remains a substantial long-term opportunity to grow our WWE 2K series by improving the quality of the game.”

The Creative Director of WWE 2K20 described a tense environment between Visual Concepts and long-term WWE partner Yuke’s. The split most likely contributed to the quality of the title. Hopefully, next time around, they can pull the nose up on this just a bit. We’ll have to wait and see.

Payback moves will help you through some rather tough situations in WWE 2K20. They consist of reversals, playing possum or even spraying mist into an opponent’s eyes. How do you activate them, especially the new ones that have been added?

First, your Payback meter needs to be full. Pay attention to its level since different moves may require a level 2 meter. You might also need to activate the Dirty Move timer or Charged Fury timer with R2 + Triangle (on PS4) to pull off a Payback move. Also, note that your Payback Level 1 and Level 2 moves have to be selected before a match begins. Without further ado, let’s get into it.

Payback Level 1

• Auto Reversal: Right before an opponent hits you, press R2 + Triangle to immediately reverse it.
• Possum: When against the ropes or in the corner, hold R2. This will put you in Possum mode and you can then press Circle to pin your opponent or Triangle to hit them.
• Speed Boost: To increase your speed and ability to reverse strikes, hold R2 and press Triangle to get a Speed Boost.
• Instant Recovery: To recover instantly when downed, hold R2 and then press Triangle. Just remember that you have to be in a downed state to use it).
• Reversal: To gain a Reversal Stock, hold R2 and press Triangle.

Payback Level 2

• Adrenaline Boost: For a boost to your speed while carrying weights and to lift more, hold R2 and press Triangle for a boost of Adrenaline.
• Beast Mode: For more damage and faster grappling, hold R2 and Triangle to enter Beast Mode.
• Blackout: Want to pull off the classic ECW surprise entrance with the lights going out? First, ensure that you and your opponent are in the ring. Press R2 + Triangle. This will cause the lights to go out and cause you to appear behind your foe for an advantage.
• Charged Fury: First, activate the Charged Fury timer. Hold Square to charge a strike and then press Square again to unleash it against an opponent.
• Electrifying: To increase the regeneration rate of momentum, hold R2 and press Triangle.
• Finisher: To earn a finisher, hold R2 and Triangle. Only one can be “earned” during a match though.
• Fortify: To increase your damage and weight with a barrier, hold R2 and press Triangle.
• Hands of Fate: Underworld minions (seriously) will emerge and grab your opponent after holding R2 and pressing Triangle.
• Low Blow: First, ensure the Dirty Move timer is active. Press R2 and Triangle to hit a Low Blow.
• Move Thief: To use your opponent’s moves on them, press R2 + Triangle.
• Poison Mist: Enable the Dirty Move timer. Wait for the right opportunity – since there’s a chance of disqualification – and press R2 + Triangle to spray Poison Mist in an opponent’s face.
• Power of the Punch: Punch your opponent with Brass Knuckles at the risk of getting disqualified by first activating the Dirty Move timer and then pressing R2 + Triangle.
• Resiliency: When caught in a pin, elimination situation or submission, press R2 + Triangle to escape.
• Run-In: If you’re down and need help, hold R2 and press Triangle to call in backup. This can only be used in 1v1 matches and only when you’re inside the ring.
• Rush: Use Rush to take away an opponent’s finisher. First press R2 + Triangle to activate it. Then hold L2 to attack them – do this successfully and their finisher will be gone.
• Tank Buff: To gain increased defense but reduced mobility, hold R2 and press Triangle.

Visual Concepts’ WWE 2K20 has a boatload of moves to use, whether it’s submissions or high impact finishers. Knowing how to perform all of them is important, especially when creating your own wrestler. Fortunately, you can check out all the moves and how to perform them courtesy of Pulse’s guide on YouTube.

It’s important to remember the situations that some moves can be used in. Avalanche moves are always performed from the top rope but if your opponent isn’t sufficiently weak enough, they’ll wiggle free. Submissions will be more effective if you’ve targeted a specific body part for a long enough period of time. Psychology is important, after all.

For more information on WWE 2K20 like unlocking all the different wrestlers, arenas and championships, head here. The title is available for Xbox One, PS4 and PC. You can also read our official review for the game here. Spoilers: It’s quite the messy experience but the development team is working on fixes.

While the WWE 2K series has always had a bit of a reputation for their buggy releases (there’s whole Twitters and YouTube channels dedicated to them), WWE 2K20 took that to a whole other level, being out and out unplayable for some (and yes, it can be that bad). The developer even responded to the issues, and the first major patch to address things is now here.

The patch was announced to be ready and live via the official WWE 2K20 Twitter. The patch notes are accessible through there, but they are broad, saying they’ll hit everything from controls to graphics to…well basically all aspects of the game to some degree. Ironically, the link in the original Twitter announcement post was actually broken and didn’t work, though it’s now fixed. You just can’t make that kind of stuff up.

WWE 2K20 is available now for PlayStation 4, Xbox One and PC. The patch (update 1.02) is live now across all platforms.

Link fixed.

— #WWE2K24 (@WWEgames) November 1, 2019

Visual Concepts’ WWE 2K20 isn’t the most polished wrestling game on the planet but it has lots to unlock for the ardent WWE fan. That includes wrestlers, arenas and championships from all the different eras. And no, ’98 Kane is not available after all so stop asking. How do you go about unlocking everything though?

Most things require Virtual Currency to unlock. You’ll receive VC from playing matches and selling items you don’t need. Check the video below from BTR on all the different VC unlockables along with their costs.

However, there are a number of different unlockables to be earned from just playing the game. These are as follows:

Wrestlers

Requires DLC

• Aleister Black “Wicked”, Bray Wyatt “The Swampfather”, Finn Bálor “Demon King”, Franken Strowman, Randy Orton “Unleashed”: Complete “The Demon Within” Showcase Episode.
• Bray Wyatt “The Fiend”: Complete the “Fear is Power” Story Tower.
• Cesaro (Zombie), Kassius Ohno (Zombie), Robert Roode (Zombie), Sheamus “Fed-Up”, Sami Zayn (Zombie): Complete “All Fed-Up” Story Tower.
• Sasha Banks (Zombie): Complete the “Bash at the Banks” Story Tower.

Unlocked in 2K Showcase:

• Bayley ‘15, Bayley ‘17
• Sasha Banks ‘15, Sasha Banks ‘16, Sasha Banks ‘17
• Charlotte ‘14, Charlotte ‘15, Charlotte Flair ‘17, Charlotte Flair ’18
• Natalya ‘14, Natalya ‘16
• Nia Jax ’17
• Becky Lynch ‘15, Becky Lynch ‘17
• Nikki Bella ‘15, Nikki Bella ‘16

Unlocked in MyCareer Mode

• Brooklyn Von Braun, Cole Quinn, El Mago Jr, Josie Jane, Reilly Flash, Ribbie

Misc.

• Rusev “Pilgrim”: Complete the “ThanksRusev Day” Story Tower.

Arenas

Unlocked in 2K Showcase

• WrestleMania 32, WrestleMania 33, WrestleMania 34
• Backlash ‘16
• Elimination Chamber ‘17
• Evolution
• Fastlane ‘17
• Hell In A Cell ‘16
• Night Of The Champions ‘19
• NXT Takeover ‘14, NXT Takeover: Brooklyn ‘15, NXT Takeover: Rival 2015
• RAW ‘17

Unlocked in MyCareer Mode

• WrestleMania 34, WrestleMania 2029
• Winter Fest (Snow Arena)
• Reilly Flash’s Wrestling Academy
• New Day Arena
• High School Gym , High School Gym Run-Down
• Hell’s Colosseum
• Baseball Stadium

Championships

Unlocked in 2K Showcase

• NXT Women’s Championship ’13-‘17
• WWE Divas Championship

WWE 2K games have always been somewhat infamous for their glitches. From refs having twisty arms to models clipping through ropes, they’ve always been Twitter and YouTube fodder for a laugh. But the newest entry, WWE 2K20, took that from funny to outright ridiculous. The game is broken to the point of being near unplayable, which you can see in our review here. It’s so bad, apparently Sony is allowing refunds for those who purchased digitally on the PS4.

Sony has always been pretty stingy with its refund policy, so it goes to show just how much of a technical mess 2K20 is that they seem to be letting refund requests go through without a lot of fuss. As Eurogamer reported, a lot players are going to PlayStation’s Support and managing to get refunds quickly and with no hassle. It should be noted that not all refunds are being honored, but there’s enough people out there who are getting their’s that it’s worth trying out if you are having issues with the game.

Apparently a patch is coming in the next few weeks to address some of this, but that’s a still a bit away and a lot of the damage is probably already done. 2K and Visual Concepts split with longtime WWE developer Yuke’s, so it’s likely that this had some kind of impact on the game’s development.