With the announcement of WWE 2K15's rivalry campaigns, developers 2K and Yukes are signalling that the historical single-player content of the last two years will continue. The first of these will be HHH vs. Shawn Michaels, and the other will be John Cena vs. CM Punk. In what 2K is calling the “2K Showcase” mode, these rivalries will weave in videos, highlights, interviews, pictures and text into the selected matches, and the matches themselves will feature all sorts of high spots and cinematic situations, as was done in the Attitude Era and Wrestlemania modes previously.

While these two rivalries will provide a decent arc to play through come October, it's fun to think about what other rivalries might be included as post-launch DLC. There will likely be new wrestlers added to the roster as DLC, but you'd have to believe that only characters on the launch roster will be considered for actual rivalries. Since there is also likely a good deal of effort required to stitch together all of the archival content and context for these modes, it's probable that we'll only see two or three “feuds” available for purchase.

Which rivalries make the most sense?

(1) Steve Austin vs. The Rock

To me, this feud has to be done right at some point in this kind of format. You had two of the best mic workers ever in the business, but you also had two guys who could put on incredibly dramatic and entertaining matches. The Rock was always a great athlete who could really hustle, and Austin was a deceptively good worker who modified his style after a string of injuries. Both got the most out of their careers and created many memorable matches during the late '90s and well past the turn of the millennium. I, for one, want to see the absurd “first-person” stunner recreated from the Backlash '99 pay-per-view. These two had so many unique spots during their matches that I'm sure 2K and Yukes are flush with ideas for recreating this feud in videogame form.

(2) Undertaker vs. Mankind

While it's possible that the developers may go the easier route of Undertaker vs. Kane (or even Undertaker vs. HHH), I think it would be neat to see some of the wacky matches, promos and segments that took place with these two. On top of that, the feud actually lasted over many years, which would lend itself well to telling a story that changed over multiple wrestling eras. There were boiler room brawls, buried alive matches and casket matches, as well as the infamous Hell in a Cell. With all of the wrinkles and stipulations, there have been very few feuds that had this much variety. Just the same, there was Paul Bearer's heel turn, as he became Mankind's manager in the middle of it all. It was a rivalry that helped cement Mankind — and by extension, Mick Foley — as a legitimate star, and it made the Undertaker look beatable for the first time in his career.

(3) Shawn Michaels vs. Chris Jericho

While not the most (in)famous feud involving Shawn Michaels and a Canadian (more on that below), this rivalry would lend itself very well to a DLC pack. Since the whole gimmick of the rivalry was Jericho emulating (and trying to one-up) who Shawn Michaels was, it would be a lot of fun to revisit all of the promos and highlight packages around this one. There weren't as many matches in this feud, but the ones that happened would be awesome. Their initial Wrestlemania match. The no holds barred match. The ladder match. Not to mention, this feud had Jericho punching Michaels' wife and putting HBK through the Jeritron 6000. I'd love to see this all done with polygons for maximum silliness. There would probably need to be a few matches added to this feud to pad it out (involving other wrestlers), but I'd certainly still like to see it.

(4) Bret Hart vs. Shawn Michaels

It's a surprise that the shoot-work angle of Bret and Shawn hasn't been used much in game form up till this point, save for the Montreal Screwjob match in WWE 13. There were so many interesting matches in this feud, including the epic 60-minute iron man match as well as some pretty inspired cage and ladder matches earlier in their careers. I think the developers could have a lot of fun blending in some of the real-life heat that entered into this situation over the years, including the behind the scenes insanity that was that night in Montreal. If it worked, the rivalry could even start with The Rockers vs. The Hart Foundation earlier on, bridging into the singles feud. This would be a captivating rivalry in game form that would be really popular with new and old fans alike.

(5) Randy Orton vs. Triple H

This one's a little more contemporary, and it involves folks who are still on the roster, so I'd be surprised if it didn't show up at some point. Honestly, a lot of the matches involved in this one weren't the greatest, but the feud had lots of entertaining non-match segments, including Orton arriving with all of his lawyers and dcotors and HHH breaking in to Orton's House. The feud also works because Shane and Stephanie McMahon are heavily involved as characters in the feud but also as occasional match participants. Since ol' Triple H helps run the company these days, I'd expect he'd have no trouble greenlighting another rivalry with his name on it.

Which feuds do you think will end up as DLC in WWE 2K15?

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