Wrestling video game WWE 2K26 is the culmination of a long refinement process at Visual Concepts and 2K. Each year, the game’s development team have improved on what’s come before, to the point where new releases arrive very well-polished.
In this latest entry, we once again have a wonderfully smooth, multi-faceted wrestling game experience, complete with an overwhelming variety of modes in which to manage your wrestlers, grapple with opponents and experience various fantasy stories.
Getting hands-on with WWE 2K26 in a recent preview session, I focused on the arrival of the new Showcase Mode, which spotlights the career of CM Punk, one of WWE’s most acerbic, compelling wrestlers.
WWE 2K26 preview – quick links
How WWE 2K26 deals with CM Punk’s long and varied career
As a long-time, on-and-off fan of CM Punk, I was particularly keen to see how his career was represented in WWE 2K26. Diving in, I found that while the new Showcase Mode presented an array of well-deserving matches, there was an equal number of notable omissions, leaping over some of the complications of his career.
To get the first thing out of the way: WWE 2K26 does not dwell on 2014, the year in which CM Punk walked out of WWE, allegedly seriously hurt, and absolutely frustrated. The entire Showcase Mode is narrated by Punk in live-action cutscenes, and the action simply transitions from Punk’s match with Brock Lesnar and John Cena in 2013 to his modern era run.
That’s an understandable omission, given the long-term impact of this walkout, and the rift it caused between Punk and WWE at the time.
It’s also understandable that some of Punk’s most iconic matches are missing, as his opponents are no longer under contract to WWE and therefore unable to appear in 2K26.
His famous feud with Jeff Hardy is completely skipped over, despite being such a memorable part of his career and persona. The Straight Edge Society – one of Punk’s most iconic factions – is not mentioned either, and therefore one of his most iconic matches (against Rey Mysterio at Over the Limit 2010) is replaced by a lesser 2008 bout.
Also missing is his Over the Limit 2012 match against Daniel Bryan, which remains an incredible, underrated match.
Weirdly, CM Punk’s most famous match – the one that earned a rare five-star rating from wrestling critic Dave Meltzer – is also not represented in WWE 2K26. Instead, CM Punk and John Cena’s highly-acclaimed 2013 match on Raw takes its place in the Showcase Mode timeline.
It’s an odd choice. While it’s still a worthy match, it’s hardly the critical part of this generational feud. You could argue that its appearance in the earlier WWE 2K15 means the ground isn’t worth retreading, but it does mean this Showcase Mode isn’t quite a rich, fully-featured deep dive into CM Punk’s complete career.
A neat twist to WWE 2K26’s Showcase Mode
Even with the omissions here, Showcase Mode is largely a success, as it provides some neat twists on the formula. What you’re actually playing here isn’t necessarily meant to be a complete rundown of CM Punk’s career, but rather a combination of real and alternative history-making.
Punk has always been known for spinning stories. Here, that’s delivered in a Showcase Mode where Punk always wins, regardless of the reality of his career. Some of the matches presented are canon Punk victories, such as his bouts against JBL and Rey Mysterio. Others are fantasy victories that are great ‘what if?’ scenarios, analysing potential outcomes in which Punk won all his biggest bouts.
Showcase Mode is essentially disguised criticism of WWE’s booking decisions with Punk – which were part of the frustrations that inspired the star’s 2014 exit. Each fantasy bout is positioned as ‘wouldn’t it be nice if WWE had treated Punk seriously while he was in his prime?’ complete with Punk himself there to smirk and jibe at each early-career scenario.
While the later half of his career is presented with a bit more reality, there are sparks of wild humour and criticism in the star’s early years, which make Showcase Mode feel surprisingly sharp-witted and fun. For Punk fans, it’s certainly a treat, and particularly for those fans who agree booking decisions in the 2010s were wild and unfortunate.
Fan service goes a long way in WWE 2K26
It would be fair to describe WWE 2K26‘s Showcase Mode as fan service. It’s an indulgence, for the most part, with its loose basis in reality allowing more light-hearted matches. Punk is also a great advocate for this fantasy, dotting each part of the showcase with his own personal tidbits in live-action, buoyed by his skills as an actor and orator.
Punk’s always been one of WWE’s best talkers. Here, he’s given a platform to do what he does best: talk himself up and elevate his own star profile. While that may be too much for fans who’ve tired of his rhetoric, it’s a brilliant inclusion for those who have followed his career closely over the years, through many highs and some painful lows.
The best of the rest
While my preview time with WWE 2K26 was largely focused on the many matches of Showcase Mode, I also took the time to experiment in single player mode – and while this hasn’t significantly changed from years past, there are some new additions and improvements worth noting.
For one thing, there’s a notable improvement to the game’s hair physics and overall appearance. Each year, the biggest issue with replicating wrestler likenesses has been ensuring hair accuracy, with some models having stringy, spaghetti hair that bounces and bobs unnaturally. This year, stars including Seth Rollins and Rhea Ripley have much better hair, leading to cleaner, better-looking models.
There is also a more cinematic feel overall, with the match camera feeling better-controlled, and in-game lighting allowing for bouts that feel more akin to their live-action source material.
Of course, there are also new match types – in this case Inferno, I Quit, Dumpster, and 3 Stages of Hell – that should spice up the variety if you’re keen to try something new.
Overall, I’m pretty impressed by this year’s WWE 2K iteration. It’s not a whole lot different from its predecessors but the small improvements and compelling, layered Showcase Mode make it one of the most interesting modern releases yet.
I’ll have much more to say about WWE 2K26 and its many, many modes in the near future, so stay tuned to ScreenHub.
