WWE 2K22 claims to "hit different" and will no doubt be something special, if not for the fact it had an additional year of development, skipping what would have been WWE 2K21. Though despite the extra year of development, it was granted during a time where the world stopped due to the pandemic that affected businesses globally. Still, until fans get WWE 2K22 in their hands, it's anyone's guess what that extra year of development will yield. One thing that will likely be for certain is the ratings for Superstars to be similar to that of previous years.
In any WWE 2K game, a superstar is measured in a variety of skills and talents that culminate in a total rating. This rating will quickly inform the player at a glance which superstar is better than the others, and what their capabilities are in the ring. Usually what will determine how high a superstar's rating is involves a mixture of the superstar's popularity as well as their in-ring skill. Many times it will be the biggest names currently, as well as the biggest names of wrestling's past that will top the rating chart, but with so many superstars having been cut from the current roster, it is hard to predict who will earn the highest ratings in WWE 2K22.
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Over the years, WWE 2K has seen the rise and fall of a number of superstars' ratings based on how the superstar was doing during WWE Raw and SmackDown. Kofi Kingston for example, a prominent member of The New Day, went from a respectable rating of 84 in WWE 2K19 to a whopping 90 in WWE 2K20. This brought Kofi Kingston in line with very prominent superstars such as The Undertaker '02, Goldberg, and the Ultimate Warrior, just to name a few. This is most likely due to a significant push to the top that Kofi Kingson received in April of 2019, just months before WWE 2K20 was released.
Aside from these outliers, the top superstars and their respective ratings of the last 3 WWE 2K will be averaged out to predict the highest rating superstars of WWE 2K22.
- The Rock
- Brock Lesnar
- Roman Reigns
Analyzing the top superstars in the last three WWE 2K titles and averaging out their combined ratings gives an average for what a superstar's ratings could most likely be in the upcoming WWE 2K22. The Rock has topped the rating charts with these games despite not being an active competitor anymore, though that shouldn't be a surprise. The Rock, much like The Undertaker and Shawn Michaels have reached Legendary status within WWE and as such will most likely sit at the top of the ratings for years to come. This is because these superstars are usually represented during their prime, which is great for fans who want to live out their dream matches.
The Rock and Brock Lesnar have both carried a rating of 93 across the board in WWE 2K20, WWE 2K19, and WWE 2K18 meaning they are likely to continue this trend. Though their ratings could improve or worsen, it's difficult to say as both The Rock and Brock Lesnar have not been seen in WWE for over a year at this point. Roman Reigns on the other hand had a rating of 95 in WWE 2K18 while holding a rating of 92 in 2K19 and 2K20, giving him an average rating of 93. With Roman Reigns being a dominant force on WWE's Friday Night SmackDown, it is very likely that his rating could go back up a point or two.
- Stone Cold Steve Austin
- Hulk Hogan
- The Undertaker
- John Cena
- AJ Styles
- Seth Rollins
More fan favorite WWE Legends will most likely continue to top the rating chart in the upcoming WWE 2K22 due to their popularity. Steve Austin is another huge crowd favorite who carried a rating of 92 across the board, while Hulk Hogan was only in WWE 2K20 and not 2K19 or 2K18 due to career issues. Both Legends rate at 92, and this will likely stay the same unless WWE 2K22 decides to indeed hit differently, changing up how their rating system works.
The Undertaker recently retired for good and may have cemented his rating on average around 91. John Cena, on the other hand, also sports a rating average of 91, and recently made a return to WWE, meaning despite his Legendary status his rating could bump up a point or two come WWE 2K22's release.
It's always pleasing for fans when current superstars are showcased around the Legends of yesteryear, so while Seth Rollins' rating in WWE 2K19 may have dipped from 92 down to 88, his average is still sitting comfortably at 91, alongside AJ Styles. As AJ Styles is currently one-half of the Tag-Team Champions, and Seth Rollins is prominently featured in a storyline with the legendary Edge in this year's Summerslam, fans could easily see these two earn another point or several when WWE 2K22 releases. Perhaps this will be the year for other prominent superstars such as Kevin Owens, Finn Balor, or Baron Corbin to make it into the 90 point rating once and for all.
WWE 2K22 is in development for PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X.
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