At WrestleMania 40, "The American Nightmare" Cody Rhodes will once again attempt to finish the story, main eventing Night 2 against the Undisputed WWE Universal Champion Roman Reigns. There's been a few wrenches tossed into the story this time around, not least of which is the return of The Rock to WWE. The main event of Night 1 is a tag match pitting The Rock and Roman Reigns against Cody Rhodes and World Heavyweight Champion Seth "Freakin" Rollins. If the first team wins, then Night 2 is Bloodline rules - anything, and anyone, goes. If the second team wins, the Bloodline will be barred from ringside...as if that has stopped them before.

One stop on this road to WrestleMania is the recent release of WWE 2K24. Interestingly, 2K recently revealed stats that Cody Rhodes had been played 1.1 million times in the first two weeks of its launch, while Roman Reigns comes in second at 1 million times. That difference is large, yet small at the time. There's only a 100,000 difference in WWE 2K24 with these numbers, and when looking over their ratings in WWE games, their evolution is as close as well.

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WWE 2K24: Cody Rhodes vs. Roman Reigns

Cody Rhodes Game Appearances (and Ratings)

Cody Rhodes has appeared in 16 wrestling games to date, including 6 WWE 2K games.

wwe-ratings-info-graphic-cody-rhodes-game-rant
  1. FIRST APPEARANCE: WWE SmackDown vs. Raw 2009 — 83
  2. WWE SmackDown vs. Raw 2010 — 82
  3. WWE SmackDown vs. Raw 2011 — 81
  4. WWE All Stars — N/A
  5. WWE '12 — 85
  6. WWE WrestleFest — N/A
  7. WWE '13 — 88
  8. WWE 2K14 — 88
  9. WWE SuperCard — N/A
  10. WWE 2K15 — 89
  11. WWE 2K16 (as Stardust) — 86
  12. WWE Champions — N/A
  13. WWE 2K17 (As Stardust) — 74
  14. WWE 2K23 (As The American Nightmare) — 91
  15. AEW Fight Forever — N/A
  16. LATEST APPEARANCE: WWE 2K24 — 93

Roman Reigns Game Appearances (And Ratings)

Roman Reigns has appeared in 15 wrestling games to date, 10 of which are WWE 2K games.

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  1. FIRST APPEARANCE: WWE 2K14 — 88
  2. WWE SuperCard — N/A
  3. WWE 2K15 — 92
  4. WWE Immortals — Tier: Gold
  5. WWE 2K (Mobile Game) — 89
  6. WWE 2K16 — 90
  7. WWE Champions — N/A
  8. WWE 2K17 — 89
  9. WWE 2K18 — 95
  10. WWE 2K19 — 92
  11. WWE 2K20 — 92
  12. WWE 2K Battlegrounds — 94
  13. WWE 2K22 — 95
  14. WWE 2K23 — 99
  15. LATEST APPEARANCE: WWE 2K24 — 97

When looking at just the appearances, it's noteworthy that Rhodes and Reigns are both neck and neck. Rhodes has appeared in 16 wrestling-related games, while Reigns has as well; however, all of Reigns' appearances are in WWE games, while Rhodes appears in AEW Fight Forever. If only looking at WWE game appearances, then Reigns and Rhodes are tied. Reigns has also consistently been in WWE games since WWE 2K14, while Rhodes got an earlier start with WWE Smackdown vs. Raw 2009. Cody Rhodes' departure from WWE also sees to it that he doesn't appear in WWE 2K games after 2K17 before his return in WWE 2K23.

  • Number of WWE Game Appearances: Roman Reigns ties with Cody Rhodes, 15 to 15
  • Number of WWE 2K Game Appearances: Roman Reigns beats Cody Rhodes, 12 to 6

It's also worth noting that Cody Rhodes could have potentially been a WWE 2K22 DLC character, as it came out just before his return to WWE. It would be later than the timing CM Punk's return to WWE and his inclusion as WWE 2K24 DLC, but it could have happened.

According to Rhodes in a 2023 interview, however, he was the driving force behind that not happening, not 2K: "It just takes time, and I was one of the reasons it took so much time. So if anybody had any problems, it was more me than it was 2K, in the sense that I want to make sure it's done correctly."

Interesting Details About The American Nightmare and The Tribal Chief in Video Games

While the sheer number of appearances is one thing to consider, there are plenty of fun insights here too.

For example, Roman Reigns' highest rating is WWE 2K23 at 99 and this beats Cody Rhodes' highest rating of 93 in WWE 2K24. It's worth noting, however, that the 99 overall rating makes Reigns one of the highest rated superstars in the entire franchise, coming second only to the fictional AJ Styles Gold's 100 overall rating in WWE 2K19.

Reigns also debuted at 88, indicative of the heavy push he's received from WWE since day one, while Rhodes debuted at 83. Rhodes would not hit 88 until his 7th game appearance. Moreover, Reign has never been rated lower than an 88, again which was his debut. Rhodes' lowest rating was as Stardust at 74 in WWE 2K17, which was also his last WWE 2K game until WWE 2K23. It's no secret how much Rhodes hated being Stardust, as this was one of many factors that led to his departure, the founding of AEW, and his rise to the greatest babyface in the business. If Stardust appearances are ignored, then Rhodes' lowest appearance as himself is his third appearance: 81 in Smackdown vs. Raw 2011.

There's some fun math to be had here too.

Roman Reigns' Median Score: 88, 89, 89, 90, 92, 92, 92, 94, 95, 95, 97, 99 becomes a median score of 92

Cody Rhodes' Median Score: 74, 81, 82, 83, 85, 86, 88, 88, 89, 91, 93 becomes a median score of 86.

As seen above, it's also interesting to see how consistent Reigns' scores have been, which can be seen as reflective of his booking and push. Even when he was not popular, his in-ring ability was undeniable. For Rhodes, it's a little different. He is also reflective of his booking, but also shows how scattered his roles in the WWE were. From his lowest point serving as Stardust to his rise as The American Nightmare to a superstar worth putting on the WWE 2K24 cover, Rhodes dances all over the 80s, falls to a hard 74, and climbs to a respectable 93.

Interestingly, 2K recently revealed stats that Cody Rhodes had been played 1.1 million times in the first two weeks of its launch, while Roman Reigns comes in second at 1 million times

Looking at these numbers, it seems that even in the game world Reigns tends to edge Rhodes out to be on top. However, that's not reflective of popularity, as the first stat of 1.1m plays vs. 1m plays speaks volumes. What these stats do show, speaking to their growth, is how consistent Roman Reigns has been treated in both television and video games. Rhodes' journey has been more volatile, with many more risks, and that shows too. Reigns has been pushed as "the guy" in WWE and this tracks all the way back to WWE 2K14, whereas Rhodes' booking was more scattered, led to his exit, and reflects what he made himself, not what WWE made him. Their growth is close in terms of numbers, but the consistency vs. volatility is what really shows here.

WWE has always wanted Reigns as the guy, even when the WWE Universe didn't. Rhodes' journey follows a growing phrase with his story: From Undesirable to Undeniable. And hopefully at WrestleMania 40, Undisputed.

WrestleMania 40: The American Nightmare vs. The Tribal Chief

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While this information is fun and interesting, the truth of it is none of it matters come WrestleMania 40. Many fans want Cody Rhodes to win and finish the story, while Reigns and The Rock continue into some sort of feud. This would open up the title to new stories and presumably more title defenses, with superstar Xavier Woods even stating as much in a WWE: Die Woche interview: "There’s absolutely no way [Reigns] walks out of WrestleMania with that championship. If he somehow manages to do so, I’ll have to watch my words, but I’m fully confident he won’t be champion after WrestleMania 40. Then, perhaps, we’ll have a champion who actually shows up and defends the title more regularly. Then, maybe, other contenders will have a genuine shot at winning the Universal Championship.”

Ultimately, there's a lot of anticipation ahead of WrestleMania 40 weekend (April 6-April 7), and it'll be interesting to see who walks out the champion. It's going to define the WWE for the next year at least, and if anything, Rhodes winning would be the biggest shake-up to every show and PLE after WrestleMania. As it stands, according to Bet Massachusetts, Rhodes is the favorite to win: Cody Rhodes (-750) vs Roman Reigns (C) (+450). And that's irrespective of any real-world or in-game statistics.