2K Games finally revealed the details for WWE 2K15’s single-player story mode, which is called 2K Showcase, for the upcoming pro wrestling game. 2K Showcase entails highlighting major, classic rivalries in WWE history. Players will be able to relive signature matches and moments from the rivalries and complete preset objectives to unlock bonus and unlockable features. The first two rivalries confirmed for the 2K Showcase are CM Punk vs. John Cena and…Triple H vs. Shawn Michaels. I am probably not in a minority of fans who finds the announcement of the inclusion of a Triple H vs. Shawn Michaels feud rather puzzling. The two did have some good matches, but few would consider their feud to be one of the greatest in WWE history.
For starters, the good news is that 2K Games confirmed that additional rivalries will be added to 2K Showcase later on through downloadable content. So that means more signature feuds can be incorporated later. It would have been a major disappointment if these ended up being the only two rivalries for 2K Showcase. The other good thing about this: At least we know CM Punk will be in the game, and he will play a major part. Earlier this year, CM Punk had a major falling out with the WWE. For all intents and purposes, he is retired from the wrestling business and will not return in the foreseeable future. However, fans should know enough about this business to never say never for a Punk return. All of the development and work for Punk in the game was probably already done before he quit; hence why there was not enough time to phase him out of the game.
However, Triple H vs. Shawn Michaels is not a feud deserving enough to be incorporated into this game. Triple H and Shawn Michaels’ best match was really their unsanctioned street fight at Summerslam 2002. After that, they had a number of matches of varying gimmicks, but none that really measured up to the quality of that Summerslam match. The feud between the two essentially climaxed at Bad Blood 2004, where they faced off in a Hell in a Cell match. Triple H won in a match that was way too long, slow, dull and boring.
The other major problem: A big segment of their feud took place across WrestleMania 20 and Backlash 2004, which involved triple threat title matches with Chris Benoit. For obvious reasons, those parts of the feud cannot be included in the 2K Showcase mode. Of all the classic feuds in the modern WWE era, choosing this one in particular is especially questionable.
WWE 2K15 hits the PlayStation 4, Xbox One, PlayStation 3, and Xbox 360 on October 28.