There was some concern about WWE’s attempt at bringing WarGames back due to confusion over the rules, which weren’t all that similar to the original idea Dusty Rhodes had for the match when it was popular in WCW. The company went ahead with it in the main event of last night’s (Nov. 18, 2017) TakeOver event in Houston and they absolutely tore the house down with it.
During his Facebook Live chat after the show, Triple H went so far as to say they relaunched the brand:
Cathy Kelley recaps #NXTTakeOver: WarGames with the man behind NXT... Triple H!
Posted by Paul "Triple H" Levesque on Saturday, November 18, 2017
"If you're going to take that mantle, and you're going to take that name, you better deliver. There were some changes to this, there was a lot of speculation about those changes, a lot of back-and-forth, a lot of people very passionate about those changes... what I'm really proud of with the guys that were in that ring tonight is they took something from the past, they didn't stand on anybody else's shoulders, they didn't stand on anybody else's roof, they made it theirs. They brought it into something for today, they brought it into something new, they made it now, they made it the future. You know, WarGames, they relaunched a brand tonight, taking it to a whole nother level. I think that that is the most you can ask for in that situation. That match was incredible."
Later, if it wasn't clear already, he made it known we'll see this gimmick match again:
"I think we've seen a franchise built here tonight. I think WarGames will be back. I think when the time is right we've got a lot of WarGames excitement yet to come."
It doesn’t sound like they’re going to make it an annual event like Hell in a Cell and they’re probably better off for it. A match like this needs the right story and if NXT has taught us anything it’s that they can get us there and pay it off just like they did here.
Until next time.