WWE 2K25 goes open-world in surprise announcement

2K has announced the latest annual release of its WWE 2K series and this year, it comes with a surprise mode we never saw coming.

As with WWE 2K24, three editions will be available at launch, each with its own cover star. This year, those are the “OTC” Roman Reigns, two versions of the Bloodline factions, and legendary WWE Hall of Famer The Undertaker.

Check out the WWE 2K25 trailer below!

In my review of WWE 2K24, I said, “What we have here is essentially a near-perfect pro wrestling game. It looks gorgeous, has a stacked roster, tons of fun modes and so much replay value that it might not even warrant purchasing next year's game.”

As for what you can pick up at launch, the standard edition of WWE 2K25 comes with the pre-order bonus Wyatt Sicks Pack, featuring the newly formed faction led by Uncle Howdy aka Bo Dallas - the brother of the late, great Bray Wyatt.

This free DLC pack also includes fellow members Dexter Lumis, Nikki Cross, Joe Gacy and Erick Rowan, and it’s available with all versions of WWE 2K25. It will also come with the bonus Uncle Howdy and Nikki Cross mask cosmetic items for a new open-world inspired mode. More on that later.

WWE 2K25 'Wyatt Sicks Pack'

Celebrating 35 years of The Undertaker, the ‘Deadman Edition’ comes with exclusive content, the Mattel Elite “Greatest Hits” Taker, and the original 1990 version of the character. It also includes other DLC such as an Urn that can be used as a weapon, additional MyFACTION goodies, and the season pass that includes five post-launch packs.

The final version is the ‘Bloodline Edition’ which includes everything above, as well as The Rock Nation of Domination Pack, Mattel Elite series Jey Uso and Roman Reigns playable characters, the Superstars Mega-Boost pack, and more.

But let's get down to business. The surprise open-world inspired mode I mentioned is called The Island, a nod to the popular Roman Reigns saying, “The Island of Relevancy”.

“The Island [is] an interactive, online WWE-themed world that provides an immersive experience allowing players the option of focusing on a single-player experience, with the ultimate goal of earning a position in The Bloodline, or interacting and competing with other players they encounter,” reads the press release from 2K.

WWE 2K25 'Bloodline'

The Island will let players explore and interact with a series of areas inspired by various WWE themes. What all those themes are at this time is unclear, but I hope we get Bray Wyatt’s ‘Firefly Funhouse’ in some form. I assume The Island won’t be a massive open-world, it will likely be an open sandbox that encourages player exploration.

The Island is a live-service mode that will benefit from regularly updated events, unlockable items, WWE Superstar upgrades, and more. Sadly, however, The Island is exclusive to PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X/S with no mention of PC.

What’s more, WWE 2K25 will have the biggest roster of playable characters ever in the series, surpassing last year's 200-plus Superstars.

WWE 2K25 Cody Rhodes

WWE 2K25 will feature a whopping 300-plus playable characters from current Superstars (CM Punk, John Cena, Cody Rhodes, Rhea Ripley, Bianca Belair, and more) to those of legendary status (“Stone Cold” Steve Austin, “Macho Man” Randy Savage, Trish Stratus), with some NXT upcomers thrown in.

In terms of other modes, this year's single-player Showcase is called ‘The Bloodline’s Dynasty’ inspired by the legendary Anoa’i pro wrestling family. We can also expect improvements made to MyFACTION, MyRISE, MyGM, Universe (despite some rumours fearing Universe has been ditched this year) and the ever-evolving Creation Suite.

Elsewhere, for the first time in the WWE 2K series, intergender wrestling is now an option and chain wrestling mechanics have returned. New backstage areas have been added including the WWE Archives and the dreaded NXT Parking Lot (if you know, you know) which may or may not have randomised run-ins.

New match types have also been introduced with Bloodline Rules and Underground. From what I learned via a Q&A with the devs, in Bloodline Rules, players will have the option of three run-ins to call upon the services of other Superstars in what will be a hardcore match that in some ways was compared to War Games.

WWE 2K5 Liv Morgan

As for Underground, this is a match that takes place in the ring but without the barrier of ropes and ring posts. In WWE, the winner of that match is determined via tap-out or knock-out. The developers said that it was a challenge to develop a match without barriers, especially regarding the mechanics of when a player is at the edge of the ring.

Further details on all the modes and features of WWE 2K25 will be provided at a later date.

WWE 2K25 will be released on 14 March 2025 for the standard edition or 7 March for the Deadman and Bloodline Editions on PC, PlayStation and Xbox.