Latest News and Rumors Surrounding "WWE 2K15" for Sept. 22

After seeing only snippets of WWE 2K15 for so long, fans caught two minutes of gorgeous graphics in the first official trailer for the upcoming video game.

Impressive visuals, a touch of the Attitude Era and a virtual invasion from NXT highlight the good news surrounding WWE 2K15. The latest word on the game points to provocative elements of the past merging with stars of the future.

That merging may become even more pronounced after the Sept. 22 edition of Raw.

There will be an extended wait to experience all the game has to offer, though. 2K Sports has pushed back its release date.

Next-Gen Release Date Changes

2K announced on the WWE 2K website that WWE 2K15 will not come out for the PlayStation 4 and Xbox One until Nov. 18 in North America and Nov. 21 internationally. The dates for the current consoles will remain the same (Oct. 28 in North America, Oct. 31 internationally).

The announcement also included the company's official explanation for the shift: "This delay is in the interest of delivering the best possible WWE experience to you, the fans, and 2K's development teams are working hard to ensure its success."

One can't help but wonder if the CM Punk situation is at least partly to blame for the delay.

GameSpot reported earlier this month that "Legal representatives for pro wrestler CM Punk are engaged with WWE officials to settle a range of disputes."

Among the topics reportedly being discussed was Punk's removal from WWE 2K15. If 2K Sports is forced to pull him, it would greatly affect a game set to feature him in its 2K Showcase mode.

It's more likely, though, that the switch to next-generation consoles has proved to be more complex and time-consuming than the company anticipated.

1st Official Trailer

The first glimpses of the game came in slivers and in sneak peaks courtesy of gamers playing an early version of it at Gamescom in Germany. The real deal is finally available.

IGN (h/t WWE 2K) posted a trailer on Monday:

The first thing one notices is how good the wrestlers look. The virtual version of Triple H, in particular, is impressively realistic. 

The trailer also reveals that there are number of signature moves that will be included. Bray Wyatt's Spider Walk and Roman Reigns' basement dropkick are set to be a part of the action. Several of Cesaro's uppercut variations are included in the clip as well.

In addition, the trailer shows off the animation for a crawling pin, a small detail that will add to the realism of matches.

Infusion of Attitude 

Although WWE 2K15 isn't strictly a tribute to the Attitude Era as WWE '13 was, it apparently won't have a shortage of raunchy material.

The Entertainment Software Rating Board's explanation for how the game earned its "T" rating reveals some interesting elements of the game:

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Female wrestlers are depicted with exaggerated-size breasts or in outfits that expose large amounts of cleavage; some women also make provocative gestures/taunting moves (e.g., pelvic thrusts, shaking buttocks in an opponent's face). During the course of the game, video footage depicts two characters smoking cigars; fan signs and dialogue sometimes references alcohol (e.g., 'Beer Me'; 'Stone Cold loves two things in life—stompin' mudholes and celebrating with cold beer;' 'I don't think he's coming down to share a beer with anybody.'). The word 'a*s' appears in dialogue.

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With Steve Austin in the game, beer drinking is not unexpected in the least. None of the other items are shocking either, but it's clear that the WWE world that exists in this video game will more closely resemble what the company looked like before it moved to a PG-TV rating.

NXT Takes Over

Fans have been wondering for a long while whether NXT was going to play a role in WWE 2K15. It looks as if the developmental brand is going to leave quite the imprint.

Exophase posted a reported list of achievements for the game. That list includes the following references to NXT:

• NXT Takeover: Defeat John Cena using one of the NXT Superstars.
• Next Generation: Who Got NXT—Complete all objectives.
• Foundation of the Future: Who Got NXT—Receive a grade of "A" or better in Proving Ground.

This appears to also reveal that there will be a NXT-centered mode called Who Got NXT. It also seems that Adrian Neville will be a part of the fun. One of the thumbnail images looks to be of Neville.

Further details on this NXT element are likely to be revealed on Monday's Raw. WWE tweeted the following before the Sept. 22 show:

That's either a reference to some NXTers debuting on Raw or an announcement about the video game. The fact that the WWE 2K15 roster reveal event is set to air (subscription required) on the WWE Network following Raw points to the latter.

We could then see how next-gen graphics treat the likes of Neville, Tyler Breeze and Sami Zayn.