Path of The Warrior DLC Review

OK so first things first I am not reviewing WWE 2K15 the game here, I am reviewing the Path Of The Warrior DLC. Sure it runs on the engine provided by the game so parts of what I will be talking about will to some degree be interchangeable but then others wont. Also I guess you could consider this a spoiler alert if you are young as I will warn you now I will talk about the outcomes of matches etcetera but remember this whole DLC is based on matches which to most of us old timers are ancient history.

So what inspired me to buy this piece of DLC when I have ignored the rest of what is on offer for WWE 2K15? Well a whole mode which tells the story of the Warrior was to some extent appealing on its own but what really swung it was all of the things I could unlock, the arenas, the wrestlers and the managers and the fact that once I had them I could use them in other modes. As a kid I would have never cared about the ability to play as the Honkey Tonk man or Ravishing Rick Rude, to be honest I never really saw how important the villains were but as an adult I can fully appreciate how cool it can be to try things from the other side.

It is amazingly fun to play the 8 matches this DLC is made up of and to see the defining moments of them replayed within the game and when you think of the fact that this DLC cost £8 at £1 per match with at least 1 unlockable character and 1 unlockable arena for proper completion of the match I don't think you can really argue about value. Lets face it some game DLC can be as bad a £4 just for a singe character. My complaints are quiet thin on the ground, It can be frustrating at times when you can loose a whole match or fail on a in match challenge because you missed the press of a single button at a specific time but my feelings about these moments are mixed. In basic you weaken an opponent until it tells you what you need to do to repeat the historical events of the match, so you will weaken someone then it will tell you to throw them to the ropes, once you throw them to the ropes a cool in game cut-scene will kick in showing what happened next, with a quick time button prompt thrown in at some point, the button press will for example cause you to flying press your opponent. It can be annoying but still I wouldn't want to loose these moments and I cant really think of a better way to handle them, in some cases if you fail the damage could be limited by giving you the chance to get your opponent in the same position and try again with a loss of energy or health punishing you slightly for the failure without ruining the match or making you have to start the match again if you want all the unlockables.

I enjoyed playing all of these levels from the perspective of the Warrior but I do think there is room there to implement a play as the villain mode where you can try to deny history, maybe you want to be Rick Rude and win the steel cage match against the warrior. Alternative reality stuff like this has worked well in some of the Dragon Ball Z games and I think it would be really fun in a wrestling game, after all who hasn't watched a wrestling match as a kid and cheered someone on and then felt the bitter sting of defeat when they have lost.

I have to give series credit to the announcing in this DLC not only are the matches themselves well announced but its wonderful to hear them mention other matches at the respective main events, to hear the names of other classic wrestlers thrown in here and there. Add on to this all of the cut-scenes featuring classic promo's ring entrances and you just have one hell of a juicy nostalgia sandwich of gameplay here. Really in terms of completing the matches and unlocking everything you have an evening worth of play but if you lived through these matches and feel for them the way I do it will be a darn good evening. If I had to give this DLC a score I would give it a 8.5 out of 10. It is darn good fun, it is darn good value for money maybe not so much for length but definitely for the amount of content you can unlock. I think there is more they could do though and I hope to one day see something which builds on what they have done here.

The way they ended this with the Warriors hall of fame speech it really brought tears to my eyes. Yes the Warrior did do a few questionable things in his life, said a few things he shouldn't have but I think towards the end he tried to make right all of his wrongs , it is important to remember though that the man did a lot of good. The Warrior inspired a lot of people, made a lot of people happy and made so many people want to be the best they could be.

I hope that WWE make more DLC like this for future games but that they add to it allow you to play both sides of the match, to have fun with history, it is my own personal hope that WWE 2K16 will get its very own Hot Rod Rowdy Roddy Piper DLC to respect the passing of that particular legend and all of his achievements. I hope in a year or so I am writing about how ''The Path of the Piper'' DLC is the greatest DLC for a WWE game ever made.I also would be quiet happy to play DLC based on Dusty Rhodes the American Dream, another legend we have had to say goodbye to recently.

R.I.P Warrior, Piper and Dusty I hope your all kicking ass up there in the great battle royal in the sky.