WWE 2K1 Canceled, New Game Coming? Update: New Game On The Way

Update: Looks like there is indeed a new WWE game coming. Click below the jump for details.

As of now, WWE and 2K games has confirmed that there will be no new installment of the WWE 2k franchise this year. This is no surprise as the future of the series was in the air even before the COVID-19 outbreak. WWE 2k20, the most recent installment, was the first developed solely by Visual Concepts, as opposed to co-developing alongside longtime franchise developer Yukes. As such, it launched with sub par graphics, several bugs, and missing features. Things got so bad that at one point Sony issued refunds to anyone who bought the digital version of the game from the PlayStation Network Store, and a bug caused the game to be unplayable on New Years day of this year. Even now, several months later, and after several patches, the game still has unresolved issues that have yet to be addressed. The rumor floating around was that WWE 2k21 will be canceled in favor of a new non-simulation WWE title. At least half of this rumor is true. As for the other half, WWE CFO Frank Riddick announced that they will be sharing details of the franchise’s future this coming Monday at 10 am EST. For now, we’ll see what this will entail. This rumor was confirmed this morning by WWE and 2K games. So while WWE2k will get a year off, we will be getting a new WWE game this year. For now, if 2k wishes to continue working with the WWE license, it’s clear that they will have to go back to the drawing board if and when they produce the next entry in the WWE 2k franchise. In the meantime, fans looking for some non-WWE squared circle gaming can check out Fire Pro Wrestling World on Steam and PS4, Chikara Action Arcade on Steam, and the upcoming Retromania Wrestling coming to Switch, Steam, PS4, and Xbox One this July.


This morning, 2k Games revealed WWE Battlegrounds, an arcade-style grappler on track for this year. Battlegrounds is developed by Saber Interactive, who also developed NBA Playgrounds, an arcade-style basketball game with a similar graphical style. Not much has been revealed about the game, but no doubt we’ll learn more about it throughout the year. I know this wasn’t the No Mercy /Here Comes The Pain remaster people were hoping for, but if the gameplay is on-point, then it will help tide people over until next year, when they hopefully improve the product. Maybe a back to basics approach is what WWE games need at the moment. Last time WWE attempted a non-simulation game was 2011’s WWE All-Stars. A similar style game, WWE Brawl, was in development, but canceled.

As for the main WWE 2k Series, while it will be skipping this year, Visual Concepts and 2k Games have indicated that they plan to go back to the drawing board for next year’s possible installment. To that end, they hired industry veteran Patrick Gilmore to direct the project. Gilmore brings with him over 25 years of experience, beginning with the 16-bit era Disney games Aladdin, Jungle Book, and The Lion King. He has also worked on the games Killer Instinct, Medal of Honor, and the Amazon MMORPG New World. What he can contribute to 2k games and the WWE product remains to be seen. What do you think? Let us know in the comments.