This has become an annoyance of this week, I’ve written one article stating one thing, and the next day I wind u having to amend and add more information. Today’s news is a part of minutiae that I didn’t notice until after the last piece was published, and apparently, others didn’t know until later either. According to videogameschronicle.com the lead developer of WWE games for the last 19-years will no longer be leading the development on any future titles. Instead, the secondary studio Visual Concept will be stepping up.

Visual Concept may be familiar with many as the developer of 2K’s NBA series, a predominantly American-focused sports game. In recent weeks Visual Concept and 2K have come under fire for said series as it was revealed they have included ads for real products in the load times of the NBA 2K19 release via an update. What has angered many with this ad space revelation has been the fact they are “unskippable,” and that the game will not continue until the ad has finished. One could see this as a worrisome glint of what is to come in the future as 2K hands off the reigns.

2K Sports, a subdivision of 2K Games, had taken over the WWE license back in 2013 following the collapse of THQ in January of that year. In December of 2012, THQ filed for Chapter 11 Bankruptcy, beginning liquidation of assets immediately. However, Japanese developer Yuke’s stayed on for all 2K productions until last year, as it appears. This closes the chapter of 19 years of Yuke’s partnership with WWE and 26 WWE games worth of history. However, this is not the end of Yuke’s relationship with wrestling games.

Back in May, once again thanks to videogameschronicle.com, we know that senior VP and producer, Hiromi Furuta stated there is an entirely new team at Yuke’s creating a rival IP. In the full interview with VGC Furuta states some frustration with developing a full game on a yearly basis with high fan expectation and requiring more resources. Furuta also expressed the relationship between both studios (Yuke’s and Visual Concepts) is part of the frustration, and one could assume that lead to this moment.

As we could assume the new Yuke’s IP is still in its early stages, we may not see it for a year or two. However, this could lead to speculation of what the rival IP is based on, as there are many other wrestling companies out there rivaling WWE. As Yuke’s is a Japanese company one’s first response would be New Japan Pro, however, to strike WWE where it may hurt Yuke’s could be making a deal with All Elite Wrestling. AEW’s Chief Brand Officer and Executive Vice President are both former WWE employees, as are some wrestlers.

After a deal was struck between American TV network TNT and AEW for a two-hour weekly show, CBS sports said, “AEW stands as the first company with major financial backing to take a swing at beginning to compete with WWE on a major level in nearly two decades.” If Yuke’s has struck a deal with either wrestling company it could deal a heavy blow to the WWE releases in the future. However, this is all based on speculation.

2K verified the end of their partnership with Yuke’s to VGC this week. 2K said to VGC: “WWE 2K20 will be developed by Visual Concepts, who have worked with Yuke’s on the development of the series since WWE 2K14.” Going on to state, “As we’ve continued to invest in the WWE 2K franchise, we’ve seen the Visual Concepts team display incredible passion, talent and commitment to the future of the series. We thank Yuke’s for their years of partnership and are excited to see what the Visual Concepts team brings to the franchise moving forward.”

Yuke’s then stated to VGC they plan to, “continue providing support to 2K with regard to the game engine.” With that, we wish all the best to Yuke’s, and we can not wait to see what Visual Concept can do on their own.

Phenixx Gaming is everywhere you are. Follow us on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.