A recent video of WWE 2K17 making the rounds includes a botched line of dialogue from announcer Jerry Lawler. While this is funny by itself, it really highlights how much the WWE 2K series needs an overhaul.
Hahaha 2K doesn't care they didn't even bother to edit Lawler flubbing and rereading thishttps://t.co/69VmUFmJvz pic.twitter.com/jkAkc5R6SN
— It's KFG! (@KungFu_Grip) February 21, 2017
The video gets a little confusing to describe, since it features multiple uses of the same person. As we all know, wrestler Charles Wright has portrayed different characters, including Papa Shango and The Godfather. The match in the video is between two of these characters, because videogames are cool like that.
During the clip, you hear Lawler talk about how The Godfather won the World Tag Team titles with Right to Censor. Halfway through the line, however, you hear Lawler abruptly stop talking, followed by some mumbling and “oh, you’re right.” The line then starts back up again, except referencing the character The Goodfather instead.
While this is a funny clip, and probably something that few players would even hear in the first place, it really highlights many of the issues plaguing the WWE 2K series. As noted in our review, WWE 2K17 feels like it could be from 2014 or 2015, given how outdated it is. If just a little more attention went into development, an unedited botch like this wouldn’t be able to slip through the cracks.
While it’s understandable that real-world changes can take a long time to get working in a video game, it seems like more care could be used to get the franchise back up to where it needs to be. One major issue is with the announce team. The announcers are Michael Cole, JBL and Lawler. Those three haven’t worked together in years. Where are Corey Graves and Mauro Ranallo’s voices? Heck, I’d even take Byron Saxton over listening to the same tired Lawler one-liners from three games ago.
I might prefer dated Lawler commentary to David Otunga though.
So what do you think? Did you chuckle over the botched line? Would you like to see an updated WWE 2K18 for this year? Let us know your thoughts in the comments section below.
