I hope different because why else put out a new release. I really thought that they were pretty much done too. Heck I've been playing these games for years.

Just when I thought the franchise was finished, WWE comes out with the news of a September release. I wonder how different this game will be from the others? https://thesportsrush.com/wwe-news-wwe-2k-battlegrounds-confirmed-superstars-release-date-and-story-mode-explained/

I stopped buying the WWE games a few years back, just for that reason. It does not surprise me that they are releasing every couple of years.

I'm pretty surprised by the announcement too, @Knox. I thought WWE 2K21 was already in the works. What bugged me about WWE 2K20 was that they got rid of so many options that I loved in previous versions. Every release has been full of glitches though.

With the last two versions it seemed like the developers were rushed to get them out, which is why they were so buggy. The lag while playing online was just terrible. I'm sure there'll be other WWE centric games in the future, but they're smart to slow down the number of releases.

I finally played WWE 2K20 which was enjoyable, but a bit underwhelming. I waited so long in hopes that they'd fix the glitches so maybe that's why I found it underwhelming. I built it up in my head. What did you think of the game? There's usually a new release of the WWE's gaming franchise every year, but it looks like there won't be one coming up in 2021. That's pretty surprising. Do you think the franchise is done for good?

I got this yesterday and have been giving it a bit of a go around. One nice surprise was having Joey Styles on commentary (alone) for the Austin v Whipwreck match.

Argos has this on sale right now; £10.00 for last-gen and £15.00 for current-gen consoles. Unfortunately, all the local ones are sold out and reading online, there appears to be a number of people who have bought multiple copies (some even going into double figures), which is ruining it for others.

Yeah, I agree. I was a different time, a different WWE, a different generation of consoles... Hell it was 15 years ago - wrestling games have moved on a hell of a lot since then, some of it for the good, some of it for worse but they've moved on.

As good as No Mercy was, it's past time to let it go.

Matthew has posted his thoughts on the game below, he wasn't as impressed as Matt: WWE 2K16: Musings of a No Mercy fan

Got this last night and have been playing it since. A lot of emphasis both in the achievements and the way the game is laid out if now on the MyCareer and Showcase modes and less on just having random matches and the online multiplayer which is a good thing given previous titles. There is a tonne to unlock, the graphics by and large on the One version are quality although Renee Young looks a bit, well, wrong in the face (poor Renee). The commentary is a bit better, with relevant titbits on superstars but by and large, like most wrestling games, it is the weakest part of the game. The creation suite is extensive, the NXT part of the career mode longer and it encourages you and enables you to pick rivals once your outside of the tutorial part and complete your first one. Some of the moves as well, damn it has a good move list for CAW and the appearance side is excellent as well. There is a lot more replay value in this title then there has been in the past - I've not even gone that deep into the Showcase mode yet or touched the Universe mode either but it just feels deep. Also the game plays in a more balanced and less arcade manner then before and blows the later Smackdown v Raw games out of the water.

Rusev (w/ Lana) v Rick Rude and they've got the full and proper "Ravishing" entrance this time.

WWE 2K16 will have a smartphone app that allows you to take pictures of anything and upload them straight to a server for use in the Creation Suite.

This is a great video.

Matt got to play a little: WWE 2K16: Hands-on preview

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QOz-OWBiw5M Looks like the Creation Suite is going to be MUCH better than last year.

Are WWE games good anymore? I used to play years ago but they started to decline so haven't played one properly for a while

Some surprising names on the DLC. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6snM3kIfJ5U

A follow-up to the earlier posts regarding the omission of Sasha Banks, Bayley, Charlotte and Becky Lynch. Here’s 2K’s Weaksauce Excuse For Not Including The Four Horsewomen In WWE 2K16 BY: DANIELLE MATHESON 10.02.15 The Four Horsewomen are leading the charge in the so-called ‘Divas Revolution,’ a movement that humanizes female performers (a thing that shouldn't ever be in question, realistically) and tries to equalize them as talented, legitimate wrestlers. Though the attempts on WWE’s part are stumbling, but ultimately well-meaning (you would hope), 2K apparently didn’t get the memo. A few weeks ago, 2K confirmed that while it would have two iterations of The Terminator, it had no plans to put Bayley, Sasha Banks, Becky Lynch, or Charlotte into the game, nor would they be released as DLCs. These women have been LYNCHPINS [get it? Because Becky… pins… wrestling… jokes… shut up] of NXT, yet the Vaudevillains get a fully animated entrance, and the women who helped put NXT on the map and establish its women’s division as a place with unparalleled character work and great wrestling in WWE get… weak excuses and shrug emojis. To wit: Here’s 2K’s Bryan Vore helpfully explaining why it’s just not possible for them to be in the game, despite them all having previously been scanned for gameplay: When we travel to do scanning sessions we scan everyone that we can get into our scan booth. WWE Superstars and Divas are very busy so we take every opportunity to scan them regardless of whether or not we are using the scans for the upcoming game. We want to have as many scanned as possible because the scan is the starting point for us adding someone to the game. It is true that it only takes around 5-10 minutes to scan the SS and Divas but that is step 1 in a long process. After they are scanned it takes our team about 2 months to complete modeling work from start to finish. The kicker is that the model is only part of the work required to add a SS or Diva into the game. Entrances, moves, taunts, attire, entrance attire, music and roster images all need to get developed. In addition, we need to record commentary for each SS and Diva which is a large undertaking all on its own. So, as you can see, scanning a SS or Diva is the least amount of work involved in getting someone into the game. Oh man, this is almost as weak as when Disney executives insisted that women were just too hard to animate because of their emotions. I'm sorry, I super don’t but it. You’re going to tell me that every male NXT wrestler created for the game was more vitally important than anyone in the women’s division at the time, and now it’s just too much work to make up for their mistake? Alright, well, remember that when you’re busy entering your new “Stone Cold, but this time he has a hat” DLC into a Royal Rumble with three Undertakers, Zack Ryder, and a naked Arnold Schwarzenegger.

Confirmed matches for Showcase Mode (although the article does state this is not all of the matches that will feature). 1) vs. Pillman – Clash of the Champions XXV 2) vs. Steamboat – Bash at the Beach ’94 3) vs. Whipwreck – November to Remember ’95 4) vs. Savio Vega – WrestleMania XII or In Your House: Beware of Dog 5) vs. Roberts – King of the Ring ’96 6) vs. Hart – Survivor Series ’96 (Bret’s attire) 7) vs. Vader vs. Hart vs. Undertaker – In Your House: Final Four 8) vs. Hart – WrestleMania 13 (likely reason for Shamrock’s inclusion) 9) vs. Rock – D-Generation X: In Your House 10) vs. Michaels – WrestleMania XIV 11) vs. Undertaker – Rock Bottom ’98 12) vs. McMahon – St. Valentine’s Day Massacre ’99 13) vs. Rock – WrestleMania 15 14) vs. Rock – Backlash ’99 15) vs. Undertaker – Fully Loaded ’99 16) Royal Rumble 2001 17) vs. Triple H – No Way Out 2001 18) vs. Rock – WrestleMania X-SEVEN

After being suckered in and totally disappointed last year, it sounds / looks like 2K have learned their lesson and MyCareer could be a stand-out this time. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hBuDQUINZBY More gameplay footage. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qUVh6bGCj24

I never trust what game developers say anyway, I grew up being lied to by Molyneux, Meyer, Romero and the like in my childhood. Its a cut throat business, run by the need and want for money which is why it is has become a never ending cycle of sequels, reboots and broken promises with the odd gem standing out (like the film industry really). Trust me, they have something up their sleeve because game developers always do.

I agree that they have had plenty of time to have The Four Horsewomen into the game (I mean, they've all been in NXT for the entire gaming cycle between 2K15 and 2K16), it's just a strange marketing strategy to state outright something is not going to happen if it is. If they do that, then they will never be believed in the future when they announce / deny something.

I feel it's a swerve, tell the public that aren't going to do it, knowing they want it and saying it's not possible in this version then boom! They make it happen, the public love them and buy that DLC like mad. Like I said before they already where incorporating NXT and much of its roster already, it would make no sense to me not to include what is such an integral and popular part of the company or at least that brand or at least not plan to later down the road.