Chatting Heightened Immersion, AAA Involvement, And Monetisation With WWE 2K26’s Development Team

The breadth of content in modern WWE 2K games makes the runtime of any given WrestleMania feel brief. If the multitude of match types isn’t keeping you busy, you can get around the story-focused MyRise mode, walk through a wrestler’s career with Showcase, or take a stab at booking your own show with MyGM. So you can forgive me for not being able to cover every square inch of WWE 2K26 during my recent hands-on preview. While my four hours with the game did answer plenty of my questions, like how easily I would lose to Seth Rollins in an Inferno Match (very), I came away with a few more burner queries. Thankfully, I was able to have a chat with Showcase Lead Designer Dino Zucconi and Gameplay Designer Cornell Gunter from Visual Concepts, and pick their brains about design choices, innovation, and the future of monetisation within the WWE 2K series.

WellPlayed: The WWE 2K series has been moving closer and closer to emulating a real wrestling match mechanically. What aspects of a wrestling match have been particularly difficult to replicate?

Visual Concepts: There are so many factors that combine to make an immersive, realistic WWE experience. From Superstars’ appearances and unique movements, to every aspect of the presentation, including lighting, pyrotechnics, entrance themes and tron videos, realistic commentary and crowd reactions, and so much more. Frankly, it’s all difficult, but important, to try and get just right. Each year, we strive to bring the WWE 2K experience closer to the real thing and we’re confident players will appreciate the attention to detail in WWE 2K26 as we added and upgraded many features including a roster of 400+ playable characters, four new match types, new animations, expanded customisation options, new weapons, interactive environments, an updated commentary team, and much more.

WP: The series has introduced new match types with each iteration, and this year’s entry offers four new ways to play. What does the selection process look like for the team when deciding on which new match types to include? Is it fun first, or look at what’s recent?

VC: We aim to strike a balance between what our players have requested, which match types feel the most unique and fun to play, and which match types have historical significance, while also being realistic about our capabilities. Some match types have taken longer to tackle than others, and we wouldn’t add a new match type to the game unless we felt it was up to our quality standards. We look forward to seeing our community’s reaction to playing I Quit, Inferno, Dumpster and Three Stages of Hell matches in WWE 2K26.

WP: CM Punk has been back with WWE since 2023. What made WWE 2K26 the right game to feature the Second City Saint as the focus for the Showcase Mode, and what does that decision-making process look like?

VC: CM Punk is truly the “Best in the World” right now, as the current World Heavyweight Champion. He’s had an amazing run since his return to WWE, and we felt it was the right time to take a look back at some of the most memorable moments of his storied WWE career, as well as fantasy warfare matchups that we can only dream of seeing outside of WWE 2K26.

WP: In recent years, WWE has created working relationships with promotions like TNA and even acquired Mexican outfit AAA. How do these partnerships and acquisitions alter the development process? Should we expect TNA and AAA matches, wrestlers, or even storylines in MyRise, for instance?

As we just revealed, AAA will indeed be represented in WWE 2K26 via the first season of Ringside Pass, including El Hijo del Vikingo, Mr. Iguana, Psycho Clown and Lady Flammer! We can’t give away all of our secrets just yet, but stay tuned as there are more surprises on the way!

WP: One of the biggest talking points in every WWE 2K release is the wrestlers’ ratings. Seeing as wrestling isn’t as clear-cut as other sports when it comes to ratings and rankings, how does the team go about assigning a rating to each Superstar?

VC: Several considerations go into assigning a Superstar’s OVR rating, ranging from their current status and presentation on WWE programming, whether they have held or currently hold a championship, how often they seem to win, lose or be positioned as a credible threat, and other factors. For Legends, we look at the sum of their career accomplishments, but we also have to consider which historical version of these iconic Superstars we’re rating. Could peak John Cena beat Hulk Hogan in his prime? You can play or simulate that fantasy matchup and many more in WWE 2K26 to find out once and for all.

WP: What was the main deciding factor in changing how DLC is rolled out to players? And in terms of gameplay time, how long will it take players who have purchased the Ringside Pass to unlock everything?

We are trying something new with our approach to post-launch content with the Ringside Pass model, which offers players additional incentive to play, and more rewards throughout the year. 120 total rewards will be available across 40 free tiers and 40 premium tiers, and each Ringside Pass season won’t expire, so players can continue to unlock previous seasons’ content after a new season launches. The premium tier is available for the same price as DLC packs in the previous model, and we’re now able to give players access to not only new Superstars, but also a steady flow of additional rewards, including cosmetic items and Creation parts, Island taunts, Persona cards that offer alternate versions of Superstars, and more. We’ll keep an eye on progression speeds and will consider tuning to ensure the RXP earn rate feels generous and rewarding, while still providing a satisfying challenge to players.

We recently went hands-on with WWE 2K26 during a hands-on preview event, where we tested out the new modes, sampled the Showcase mode, dabbled in this year’s MyRise campaign, and more. Head over to the full preview to read more.

WWE 2K26 releases on PS5, Xbox Series X|S, Switch 2, and PC on March 13.