If you’re new to the series, such a change might not be such an issue, but if you’re double dipping from other platforms you’ll find that muscle memory all but useless. This small adjustment in turn throws off many of the game’s timing-based mechanics, such as nailing reversals or landing a running grapple. One on one matches run relatively smoothly by comparison, but even then the action in the ring moves at a slightly slower pace, as if it’s been dialled down to 75% speed as part of the porting process. Eight wrestlers on screen would probably have made the game card catch fire in your Switch, so count yourselves lucky. It’s so bad the developers straight up removed any of the eight-man match variants present in the other versions of the game. A maximum of six wrestlers can be in the ring at any one time, but by that point you’re basically playing a flipbook version of Monday Night Raw. Having any more than two wrestlers on-screen at one time causes the game to plummet to single frame figures.
Well, prepare to have your enthusiasm laid out by an RKO outta nowhere because the frame-rate problems persist. Okay, so the menus and the entrances are off, but we can skip those, right? It’s the meat and potatoes of the in-ring action that matters. For the most part, the visual downgrade isn’t that much of an issue - especially in handheld mode - but it’s consistently inconsistent, with some models looking not too far removed from their PS4/Xbox One counterparts while others look like they’ve just walked out of a PS2-era locker room. Graphically, we all knew a triple-A game as big as this was going to take a hit in order to fit on Switch, so the reduction in character model details, the absence of many lighting effects and the noticeable lack of activity from the crowd are to be expected. But in practice, WWE 2K18 is a port that simply wasn’t ready for release, one dogged by performance issues that render some modes painful to endure and others simply unplayable. In theory, such an iteration should be revitalised on Switch, by the simple virtue of once again being under the Nintendo banner and offering wrestling action on the go.
#WWE 2K18 REVIEW OFFLINE#
While it offers the biggest launch roster yet and plenty of online and offline modes, it lacks any real innovation to justify the full-fat price tag. On other platforms, the latest addition to Yukes and Visual Concepts’ long-running sports entertainment sim is a comprehensive if ultimately uninspiring instalment.