WWE 2K Battlegrounds is the 2020 WWE video game, made in place of WWE 2K21 due to the massive backlash WWE 2K20 received (and rightfully so, as it was revealed to be a horrid glitchfest among release, causing it to be known as one of the worst video games of 2019). So, with WWE 2K21 cancelled because of it and the pandemic, WWE 2K Battlegrounds would take its place.
Created by Saber Interactive, the same team behind the NBA 2K Playground games, WWE 2K Battlegrounds takes a more arcade-style approach from WWE 2K's realistic style. One of the main modes this game has to offer is Campaign, a single-player mode where the player controls seven characters made exclusively for this game as Paul Heyman and Stone Cold Steve Austin team up to bring a new era to World Wrestling Entertainment. From New York cyclist Bolo Reynolds to the alligator wrestler Billy Huggins, the story is told by comic pages before and after each match. The mode has branching paths leading to fights that can lead to rewards like power-ups, customization items, and even new Superstars to play as. Another main mode is Battlegrounds Challenge, which allows you take a custom superstar you made and take them through various challenges, with rewards being skills that vary from decreasing damage from certain attacks to getting more of a certain thing.
The game is more of an arcade-like gameplay in the vein of WWE All-Stars, as it has the wrestlers doing ridiculous jumps and slams. To take the concept of the Campaign mode further, arenas have been redone. While we do have some arenas based on actual WWE events, the game also offers fictionalized arenas (or battlegrounds, as they are called), each one having a hazard or two (the Everglades battlegrouns allowing you to throw your opponent into the jaws of a alligator, and the Mexico battleground allowing you to take control of a remote-controlled ram for a while). This basically adds some variety to the gameplay. Also, the game allows you to create your own battleground, which is a nice move.
Sadly, this game is far from perfect. Like most WWE games up to this point, this game does have microtransactions. The game has an in-game currency called Battle Bucks, which is similar to the Baller Bucks of the NBA 2K Playgrounds games, and come in Blue Bucks and Golden Bucks, which are earned by buying them with real-world money, which is optional. However, blue Battle Bucks are gotten through normal gameplay, and that basically makes getting enough to unlock something much of a grind (especially since Legendary Superstars like Hulk Hogan and The Rock cost a whopping 12,000 Blue Battle Bucks, with the optional price of 300 Golden Bucks).
Another problem also comes in the form of the Create modes. While the game allows you to create your own wrestlers and battlegrounds, the main draw is how limited the choices are. There are also some things in both modes that require Battle Bucks to unlock, with the worst of them being in the selection of moves, as they are severly limited (Signatures and Finishers are limited to one default move and three moves from different wrestlers that differs depending on what type your wrestler is, like All-Rounder, Powerhouse, High-Flyer, etc.). Also, it's not a WWE 2K game without glitches (while not as much as 2K20, they are present, from characters being warped to inside the ring when caught in a grapple while on the turnbuckle, or the game suffering slowdowns at certain actions).
