‘WWE 2K18’ First In-Ring Gameplay Features Upgraded Visuals And The Usual Awful Commentary

08/22/2017 08:07 pm EDT

Since unveiling WWE 2K18 earlier this year, the game's developers have been promising fans improved visuals, in-ring gameplay, and commentary. Of course, we've heard promises like this before. The handful of official screenshots and video snippets we've seen confirm the graphics have been kicked up a notch, but we'd need to see in-ring gameplay before we could say anything about actual wrestling or commentary.

Well, surprise, we have some in-ring WWE 2K18 gameplay for you! This doesn't come from 2K Games themselves, but YouTuber Delzinski, who got some b-roll footage while attending a recent event. So, how's the game looking between the ropes? You can see for yourself, above.

There's no doubt WWE 2K18 looks better than last year's entry – the lighting effects and shaders being used are much improved, giving the wrestlers (John Cena and Randy Orton in this case) a much more realistic look. Honestly, we're almost venturing into Uncanny Valley territory. The animations seem to be a bit smoother, and the gameplay is a touch faster and less obsessed with various button-fiddling minigames. We also get a look at the Elimination Chamber and a few more characters near the end of the video (Baron Corbin isn't nearly ugly enough). 2K hasn't reinvented the wheel, but things are slowly changing for the better.

Unfortunately, one thing that hasn't changed is the awful-as-always commentary. This year Corey Graves steps in to replace Jerry Lawler, but it hasn't helped much – the commentators still sound robotic, and constantly drop lines that make no sense given what's happening in the ring. Graves shouldn't be fearing for John Cena's career after he takes a single move.

While we're at it, here's a couple more character entrances from WWE 2K18:

WWE 2K18 unleashes its ruthless aggression on the Xbox One, PS4, and Nintendo Switch on October 17.

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