"With the noobs satisfied, let's get to brass tacks and geek out over what THQ is adding this time around. The biggest change -- at least in my eyes – is WWE Universe. Basically, this shoves everything you do in exhibition, all of the championships, all of the stables and rivalries system, and whatever else into one mode that's always active. When WWE Universe is on, it's going to give you an event – Raw, Superstars, SmackDown or a pay-per-view – and an event card. This isn't generated at random. This is a card based on the feuds and friendships that exist on your system as well as rankings. Now, if you don't like the matches, you're free to change them however you like – different people, different stipulations, etc. – and the game will react, remember, and craft the story around it.
It's career mode without having a career mode. It's a constant WWE at your fingertips where you can pull the strings (you still get to choose who are champs as well as who are friends and who are rivals if you want). If you don't like the look of a particular card, you can change it or sim past it to the next show, which leads into the next event, which leads into the PPV, and so on. When this is happening, the folks in the federation are building friendships and creating enemies. The game notices this and modifies the WWE relationships, and this then leads to one of 100 random cutscenes before, during and after your matches. This is stuff like your foe attacking you during your entrance, a match changing on the fly, and so on.
All of this actually matters, as well. There's a ranking system in WWE Universe that shows where certain Superstars stand in the federation. As you play – and keep in mind, you can play as whomever you want or as many people as you want – your character or characters start to move in the rankings and vie for number one contender spots and championships. You need to earn your ticket to the top… or at least jump in and edit it so that you're the champ."