There’s a solid new game for wrestling fans on the market for the first time in years. While there have been new contenders to the WWE’s stranglehold in the last few years, there hasn’t been one that directly tried to offer something different to what the WWE 2k series does. When it comes to AEW Fight Forever vs WWE 2k23, the former aims to change that by providing an arcade-like experience that harkens back to retro classics like WWF No Mercy.
It’s hard to understate just how much wrestling fans have wanted a game like Fight Forever. There’s a solid group of fans who would point toward No Mercy as being one of the best wrestling games ever made, so it’s easy to see how much the direction of recent wrestling video games has frustrated those fans.
This contention has led to a lot of comparisons between AEW Fight Forever and WWE 2k23, but much like the discussion on the wrestling promotions themselves, it shouldn’t be a competition between fans. Competition between developers is great, but rivalries between fans are only going to hurt both franchises.
How Competition with AEW Fight Forever Drives Improvement
Competition is not a bad thing when it comes to video games. The fact that AEW Fight Forever could provide actual competition for 2k should hopefully lead to both of these franchises only getting better in an attempt to stand out from one another. This kind of competition can also help both franchises avoid stagnation, something that became a serious problem for the WWE 2k series a few years ago.
WWE 2k20 was a critical disaster for 2k and an absolute disappointment for fans. This disappointment, however, helped light a metaphorical fire for 2k, finally breaking what many fans considered to be years of stagnation from the developer with long-requested new features and amazing improvements. An actual competitor in the realm of wrestling video games would, in theory, help stave off this stagnation in the future.
As for AEW Fight Forever, competition with 2k would give a solid drive to improve as the series continues forward. That isn’t to say that Fight Forever wasn’t great for AEW‘s first video game, but there’s obviously always room to improve with potential sequels and updates. In other words, competition could help drive Fight Forever to be the best version of itself that it can be.
AEW Fight Forever vs WWE 2k23 is Rivalry vs. Competition
Competition could be a great thing for both games, but it’s important that competition doesn’t turn into a rivalry. It’s easy for fans of one promotion to only focus on the positives of their favorite game and the negatives of the competition. AEW Fight Forever and WWE 2k23 are not perfect games. 2k23 still suffers from a lack of polish and Fight Forever feels incredibly content-light, even when compared to non-WWE wrestling games.
The important thing, just like with the wrestling promotions themselves, is that there are more wrestling games on the market. What’s more, there are two distinct wrestling games on the market, offering totally different gameplay styles.
Wrestling fans should aim to see both franchises grow and improve, not see their favorite wrestling game destroy the competition. When fans enter that kind of mentality, it risks bleeding over to the actual developers. From there, the competition becomes less about creating a better wrestling game and more about trying to do what the competition isn’t.
Stone Cold Steve Austin in WWE 2K23
Does this still avoid stagnation? Absolutely. The problem is that it greatly hurts the potential of both games. WWE 2k23 and AEW Fight Forever already have their own identities that couldn’t be further from each other. If the 2k series tries to copy the arcade-like elements of Fight Forever or vice versa, those gameplay types simply won’t mix.
Styles Clash
The risks of rivalry alone are enough to avoid making the discussion about AEW Fight Forever vs WWE 2K23. However, another major issue comes back to just how different these games are. WWE 2k23 is best described as a sports simulation game that aims to recreate the same kinds of wrestling action that you can see on TV.
AEW Fight Forever, however, is far more concerned with creating engaging gameplay that’s easy to pick up and enjoy. That isn’t to say that WWE 2k23 isn’t fun, but it’s for a different kind of player than AEW Fight Forever.
Cody Rhodes in WWE 2k23
While there are certainly some aspects that you could draw comparisons between, it’s far more difficult to call one game “better” than the other. Even looking at them as wrestling games is difficult since they’re taking on very different aspects of professional wrestling.
The Future of Wrestling Games
The future is bright for wrestling fans. For the first time since the Monday Night Wars, there’s genuine competition between two wrestling companies. The future of wrestling has been bright for some time, but now wrestling games are sharing the same optimistic outlook.
So long as AEW Fight Forever and WWE 2k23 continue to improve on what they do best, wrestling fans have more variety in the types of games available to them than ever before. The arcade-inspired gameplay of Fight Forever is perfect for people who want an exciting fighting game to play with friends, while the simulation-heavy gameplay of WWE 2k23 is perfect for people looking to recreate wrestling action of all kinds.
