As WWE is a company with a seemingly revolving door of talent coming in and leaving each year, it makes sense that some talent might get featured in a WWE video game once or twice that might have been forgotten by the fans. A title being released every single year helps with that fact as many names seem like they could have the potential to be huge for the company, but end up gone by the next year.
10 Best Wrestling Video Games Ever, Ranked By Their Gameplay
While different gamers have their own personal favorite, these wrestling video games are considered the best of the best in terms of gameplay!
Looking back on every WWE title that has been released, here are a few wrestlers who made a single appearance in a video game that fans either forgot about or never even knew was playable at one point.
Vance Archer Long Before He Was All Elite
Worked In WWE From 2009 To 2010
- Appears In SmackDown Vs. Raw 2011.
- He Had An 81 Overall Rating.
- Wouldn’t Appear In Another Video Game Until AEW Fight Forever.
SmackDown Vs. Raw 2011 had a fairly decent roster with many names making long-awaited returns or debuts to the franchise. One name that stood out, however, was that of Vance Archer. Looking back on public opinion of the roster around the 2010 release date shows that a handful of fans weren’t even familiar with Archer and had no clue why he was selected to be in the title.
That opinion still stands as he was only in the company for about a year and mostly worked on ECW or Superstars, with a few matches on SmackDown. Archer would revamp his character and become a bigger talent when he joined New Japan Pro-Wrestling and AEW later in his career.
Isaiah “Swerve” Scott Would Be All Elite As Well
Worked In WWE From 2019 To 2021
- Appears In WWE 2K22.
- Had An 80 Overall Rating.
- Got Drafted To SmackDown In The 2021 Draft.
Another name that would later on become All Elite was Isaiah Scott, better known now as Swerve Strickland. His time in WWE saw him debut without getting the chance to appear in WWE 2K20 and having to wait until 2K22 to make his first video game appearance due to the decision by 2K to scrap a 2K21 title.
Fans were excited to finally have Swerve in the games, but that excitement wouldn’t continue as he and the rest of Hit Row at the time were drafted to SmackDown before being released shortly after. Luckily for fans, Swerve is making his second video game appearance as he is a downloadable character for AEW Fight Forever.
Aksana Was A Part Of A Very Thin Women’s Roster
Worked In WWE From 2009 To 2014
- Appears In WWE 2K14.
- Had A 78 Overall Rating.
- Was Released On June 12th, 2014.
As fun as those final THQ titles were for fans, no one can argue that the women’s roster was severely lacking for quite some time. WWE 2K14 goes down as one of the most acclaimed titles in WWE’s franchise and has a weak roster featuring only ten women after the DLC was released.
Not a slight towards Aksana, but names like Eve Torres, Naomi, Cameron, Tamina, and more were not included in 2K14 in any fashion, while Aksana got to make her debut. Then again, WWE was far from caring about their women’s division, as multiple PPV events around this time didn’t even feature a Divas Championship match or a match from the division in general.
Shannon Moore Made One Appearance Throughout Two Runs
Worked In WWE From 2001 To 2005; And From 2006 To 2008
- Appears In WWE Raw 2.
- Had Two Runs In The WWE.
- Was Also Featured In A TNA & WCW Video Game.
The MF’er that was Shannon Moore, had a decent-length career in the WWE starting with his original 2001 to 2005 run and his 2006 return that ended in 2008. Despite the length and decent amount of popularity Moore had, this only resulted in one video game appearance, coming from the critically panned Raw 2.
Every WWE Video Game For The PS2, Ranked
The PS2 was one of the best consoles ever, featuring a great selection of WWE video games for wrestling fans and gamers to enjoy!
This marked the second video game appearance for Moore, however, as he was featured in WCW Backstage Assault and would be included in the mobile version of TNA Wrestling Impact during his tenure with that promotion.
Mason Ryan Made His Video Game Debut Rather Quickly
Worked In WWE From 2009 To 2014
- Appears In WWE 12.
- Has An 82 Overall Rating.
- Made His Main Roster Debut In January 2011.
It took little to no time for WWE and THQ to decide to include the members of CM Punk’s New Nexus in the latest WWE video game at that time. Ryan made his main roster debut on January 17th, 2011, with WWE 12 releasing that November.
It would be his only video game appearance as he would be injured quite often afterward before being sent back down to NXT in the middle of 2012. Ryan would be gone from the company by early 2014 and eventually retired from the business the following year.
Many Fans Forget Marcus Cor Von Even Worked For WWE
Worked In WWE From 2006 To 2007
- Appears In SmackDown Vs. Raw 2008.
- Has An 89 Overall Rating.
- Better Known For His Tenure In TNA.
Marcus Cor Von, previously known as Monty Brown in TNA, had a short blink-and-you’ll-miss-it career in the WWE with the revived ECW brand. Only lasting a year and not seeing much of note come from it besides an appearance in SmackDown vs. Raw 2008.
Impressively, Cor Von would have an 89 overall, beating out names like Kane, Mr. Kennedy, and Ric Flair. Cor Von would leave the WWE in 2007 due to some family concerns at the time and was subsequently released from his contract shortly after.
Marc Mero Was Featured In Mostly WCW Video Games
Worked In WWE From 1996 To 1999
- Appears In WWF Attitude.
- Was Featured In WCW Main Event & WCW Superbrawl
- Marc Mero Was Previously Known As Johnny B. Badd In WCW.
Marc Mero always seemed to be a much bigger deal in WCW than he was in the WWE, despite capturing the Intercontinental Championship. This can be showcased by the company’s willingness to include him in any video games, as WCW featured him in two titles on the Super Nintendo Entertainment System and the Nintendo Game Boy, while WWE included him in WWF Attitude and nothing else.
This also marked the in-game debut of Mero’s ex-wife, Sable, who would go on to appear in Here Comes The Pain and SmackDown Vs. Raw later on.
Former WWE Cruiserweight Champion Rich Swann
Worked In WWE From 2015 To 2018
- Appears In WWE 2K18.
- Also Made An Appearance In WWE Supercard.
- Has A 78 Overall Rating.
Former Combat Zone Wrestling and Pro Wrestling Guerrilla alumni, Rich Swann, finally got his big break when he was signed to the WWE in 2015. It wouldn’t be long into his run that he was participating in the Cruiserweight Classic and eventually holding the purple strap.
12 Wrestlers That Were Cut From WWE Video Games
WWE constantly has new wrestlers coming in while others leave the company. Thus, it’s not surprising many wrestlers have been cut from video games.
With the cruiserweight division making its return to WWE television in 2016, it only made sense that the wrestlers occupying it were included in a 2K title. Swann would make his debut appearance in WWE 2K18, around the same time he was serving a suspension from WWE. This suspension ended with his release, as WWE and Swann mutually agreed on a deal.
The Blue Meanie Was In An AKI Game
Worked In WWE From 1998 To 2000
- Appears In WWF WrestleMania 2000.
- Has Appeared In Two Other Wrestling Titles.
- The Blue Meanie Formed A Partnership With Goldust In 1999.
Besides the infamous moment with JBL and The Blue Meanie at ECW One Night Stand 2005, most fans might not even recall that The Blue Meanie worked for the company years prior. Joining WWE in 1998 and becoming a member of the J.O.B. Squad, The Blue Meanie got to make his first video game appearance around this time.
Appearing in WWF WrestleMania 2000 on the Nintendo 64, this marked the first and only video game appearance for The Blue Meanie until his inclusion in RetroMania Wrestling decades later.
Jimmy Wang Yang Is Severely Underrated
Worked In WWE From 2003 To 2010
- Appears In SmackDown Vs. Raw 2009.
- Has An 86 Overall Rating.
- Also Appears In WWE Legends Of WrestleMania As All The SVR 09 Roster Does.
Jimmy Wang Yang, or Akio in his first WWE stint, was a solid worker who never got much recognition in the WWE. The redneck Korean finally got included in a WWE video game with his SmackDown Vs. Raw 2009 appearance. It would mark the technical last, not including Legends of WrestleMania, as Yang was released from his WWE contract right after WrestleMania 26 in 2010.
Yang did have a short return to WWE in 2021 as he was a backstage producer, but that role would only last a few months as he was let go that December.
