WWE 2K19 Behind the Scenes: Learning How Developers Determine Superstar Ratings

WWE 2K19, like all previous video games in the WWE 2K franchise, rates its 200-plus characters on a 99-point scale. And though the individual attributes that determine those ratings are evident, their weight and measurement—and how they correlate to the performers' real-life ability—are less so.

This year, Jason Vandiver, senior designer at Visual Concepts, gave us a small, fascinating peek behind the curtain.

B/R: When rating a wrestler, what factors go into that decision? And have those factors—and how much each proportionately counts—changed from game to game?

Jason Vandiver: A WWE Superstar's overall rating (OVR) is still largely determined by the Superstar's individual attributes, though we use many additional criteria to help determine how high or low to set each of the attributes. Ultimately, our goal is to have a Superstar's rating reflect how he or she has been portrayed for the past year in WWE, as well as how the Superstar is perceived by fans.

To that end, every attribute is weighted differently based on its importance to the overall gameplay experience. For example, chain wrestling attributes have a lower effect on the OVR rating because chain wrestling is something that only happens at the beginning of a match and only occurs in specific match types. Durability, on the other hand, directly modifies (lowers) the damage from a move in every match type and for that reason has a much greater influence on the OVR score.

Regarding the OVR formula itself, we make adjustments every year, as new attributes may be added to the game or existing attributes may be tweaked in a way that would increase or decrease their importance to the gameplay experience.

B/R: What would make the team reconsider a wrestler's rating from last year versus this year?

JV: As long as a Superstar is still actively competing, we look at his or her entire body of work for the year to determine new ratings. The criteria we use includes:

• Wins and losses.
• TV and PPV (pay-per-view) appearances: Those who appear more frequently on TV and in PPVs will generally have higher ratings than those who do not.
• Title contention: Has the Superstar actively competed for a title or has he/she done so in the recent past? 
• Injuries: Superstars who are injured for most of the year might see a decrease in certain attributes (e.g. an injury to the shoulder or arm might cause one's strength or strike-power attributes to be lowered a bit).
• Fan response: Do the fans love or hate this Superstar? Fan perception is reality and influences ratings to some degree.
• Brand change: Superstars who are called from NXT to the main roster may see a significant adjustment to their ratings and will generally have a higher potential.

B/R: Does the WWE Performance Center help determine the rankings of newer characters? Do you ask the coaches to give the ratings some context?

JV: We work closely with WWE to determine who is on the roster, but the heavy lifting of rating the Superstars is entirely up to us. Generally, we watch all WWE programming to make our decisions but may occasionally look to some Superstars' independent work as well to help better inform us of their strengths and weaknesses.

B/R: What about rating a WWE Legend? When someone's legacy is outsized, how do you achieve a consistency across the board and be "fair"?

JV: WWE Legends can be tricky, but one benefit is they are largely no longer competing, so it's easier to look at a collective body of work to derive final ratings based on their careers. Legends tend to get rated against other Legends and not necessarily the active Superstars.

B/R: How do you rate the same wrestler from two different eras of his career (John Cena vs. 2003 John Cena, for example)?

JV: We watch extensive footage from the respective eras we're trying to represent and look for major career milestones—title wins, rivalries, changes to move set, injuries, fan perception, etc.—to help with the process. It's easiest when there are significant periods of time in between the specific eras, as Superstars tend to progress and become better as they get older.

We also look for major career achievements or character changes to help distinguish the Legends (e.g. long championship title reigns).

WWE 2K19 is already out on PlayStation 4, Xbox One and Microsoft Windows for players who bought the Deluxe edition. It releases worldwide Oct. 9.