With the news yesterday that video game publishing giant THQ had bottomed out and was in the process of selling off all of its assets, the Internet exploded, with many wondering which franchises would end up where. While most big projects have already been picked up, many were left guessing where the lucurative WWE license might end up, and though the ink isn’t quite dried on the contracts yet, it’s widely anticipated that Take Two Entertainment’s acquisition of the license will be completed in the next few days.
What does this spell for WWE games to come? It’s a confusing time as no official statements have been made yet; will Yukes continue development on their next WWE game, WWE 14, or will this year’s title be quickly cobbled together by the superb team at 2K Games, who develop titles under the Take Two banner? Or strangely enough, will there perhaps be a “fallow year” without a WWE game for the first time in well over a decade?
Here are 10 implications from THQ’s impending sale of the WWE license to Take Two.
10. Yukes Will Probably Still Make WWE 14
The main question on everyone’s lips is whether Yukes will continue to develop WWE games despite their publisher, THQ, now being a smouldering husk. Of course, a publisher dying has little to no reflection on the developer itself, so it’s quite possible that Take Two, not wanting to upset the status quo, will continue to work with them on future wrestling games. Possible, but nowhere near definite, as there are also other avenues they might decide to pursue.
As for the immediate future, given that Yukes have likely already sunk significant development time into WWE 14, one can expect that if Take Two were smart, they would publish a Yukes-developed WWE 14 under their own label, giving them a “buffer year” so to speak, in the likely event that they want to take the license away from Yukes afterwards and award it to their own 2K Games.
Rather than risk rushing out a WWE game by November from scratch, or in fact not even releasing a game at all this year, why not yet Yukes take one last crack at the series they’ve dutifully overseen for years?
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6 Comments
Point 1 doesn’t matter. It was reported by the Wrestling Observer that WWE had actually already pulled out of their THQ contract BEFORE the auction, and had themselves sold the license to 2K. What this means is that THQ never had the chance to sell the license, WWE took it upon themselves to make sure 2K had the license. And EA was trying VERY hard to get it too.
I’d be thrilled if 2K started making WWE games cause I’ve commented on a couple of articles on this site and some others stating that I would like a better single player mode that closely resembled NBA 2K13′s.
2K can possibly bring that wrestling feel! They can add camera men at ringside (better graphics). They can change the gameplay into something new and visually more realistic. The crowd can make louder noises and clearer chants for extended times (Cena sucks). Tons of customization match types. Customizable in game superstars (threads do not satisfy). New backstage gameplay, and the ability to travel backstage during falls count anywhere! New locations added backstage such as outside the arena, in a junk yard, times square, in a pool hall, or street! Customizable titles, arena’s with the option of actually “removing” the ramp, instead of pretending it doesn’t exist when we create an arena from the past. And i just feel they can bring so much more, heck even better character model’s! WWE 13 Hunter Hearst Helmsley looked as if he shaved his entire facial hair, and dyed his hair blonde. Same for Shawn Michaels!
Point 2 won’t happen no profits to be made off of PC Wrestling game. However it will be interesting to see 2k and the future of the WWE games. GM mode is dead and gone witch is great but the Road to WrestleMania needs to be longer. Last year WWE’13 was set around the Attitude Area maybe this year we skip a WWE game and let 2K revamp with the New Concoles coming out and have WWE 2K’15 the folling year based on the Federation Years, Ruthless Aggression, and Current ERA..
My comments are that i have been a wrestling fan long before Hulk slammed Andre. Brought and played every wwe game since day 1, what i have a problem with is it just seems like over the years the makers of these some times very entertaining games just don’t care enough about the buyer to inhance it. Part of wwe’s magic is the drama leading up to its matches the games have little or none of this and why would anyone want to visit a universe where none of the wrestlers speak this 2013 not 1913. There need to be some really big changes made or i see the franchise going the way of THQ in a very short amount of time which would surely be a shame for it is a wonderful place to spend some time. Hopefully it will be even more so in the near future.
Why not add all superstar in the game. Like Gold Burge, Hulk Hoggen, Andre The Ghint, rob van dam, and many more…