WWE and Netflix are partnering together to release a new mobile game later this year.
It was revealed today that a mobile edition of WWE 2K is in the works and will be available to play in fall 2025. The game is being released under the Netflix Games banner.
Netflix produced a video with CM Punk announcing the news:
“Ladies and gentlemen, get ready for the ultimate smackdown from the comfort of your own — phone. WWE 2K is coming to mobile in late 2025 exclusively on Netflix Games,” Punk said. “This isn’t just another mobile game, this is your chance to live the most extreme, the most intense, the most dominant WWE experience right in the palm of your hands. So charge up your phone, prepare to become the champion of Netflix Games with WWE 2K on mobile.”
The only other time a mobile edition of WWE 2K was produced was in 2015. Mobile games from Netflix Games are included with your Netflix subscription, and Netflix touts that they do not include ads, extra fees, or in-app purchases.
WWE and Netflix’s partnership officially began at the start of 2025 with Raw now airing on the streaming service every week.
Roman Reigns was unveiled as the cover star for WWE 2K25 earlier this week. The game has a March 14 release date on Playstation, Xbox, and Steam.
According to a report from Fightful Select, WWE has met with EA Sports regarding the future of its video game licensing.
Recent talks between the two companies were said to have been prompted due to the disastrous response to WWE 2K20 and the similarly poor reviews of WWE 2K Battlegrounds.
WWE’s latest console game, WWE 2K22, is set to be released on March 11th with pre-orders being able to download it starting Tuesday. It is the final game as part of the contract WWE has with 2K Sports and its parent company, Take-Two Interactive. There are options to extend the deal if the game is deemed a success, however. It is being seen as a “make or break” game for the future of the franchise.
WWE has had discussions with EA in the past, including in 2016 before its deal with Take-Two Interactive for the 2K series was extended.
Response to WWE 2K20’s release was so negative that plans for WWE 2K21 were scrapped in favor of allowing more time to create a better game.
“WWE has shown a lot of frustration with the reception and lack of success of recent games,” one source said to Fightful. “The gaming market is a major selling point for them, and they believe they’ve fallen behind the competition.”
While there will be no release of WWE’s annual simulation video game in 2020, a different game is set to come out later this year.
In a statement that was issued by WWE Games this morning, it was announced that an arcade-style video game titled WWE 2K Battlegrounds is scheduled to be released this fall. WWE Games wrote:
We’re thrilled to introduce you to WWE 2K Battlegrounds, a completely new WWE gaming experience that will feature arcade-style action and over-the-top Superstar designs, environments and moves. We’re focusing on social pick-up-and-play fun, but with plenty of depth for those who want to get way into it.
Whether you’re a casual gamer just learning the ropes or a passionate fan ready for all the action, WWE 2K Battlegrounds provides another way to enjoy WWE video game action. The game is being developed by Saber Interactive, the studio behind NBA 2K Playgrounds, who have been hard at work on WWE 2K Battlegrounds and are excited to let you smell what they’re cookin’.
WWE 2K Battlegrounds is scheduled to launch this fall and we look forward to sharing more information about the game in the coming months.
WWE 2K Battlegrounds appears to be similar to the arcade-style WWE All Stars game that was released in 2011. A teaser trailer for WWE 2K Battlegrounds was also uploaded with today’s news:
That there wouldn’t be a new version of the annual WWE 2K game released this year was confirmed when a question was asked about it on last week’s WWE earnings call. The latest game in the series came out in October 2019 and received consistently poor reviews.
WWE Games addressed the status of the annual 2K series in their statement today, writing that there will be a “renewed focus on quality and fun” for the next edition of the game and that they’re extending the production timeline for it:
Next, we want to address WWE 2K20. We’ve heard and appreciate your feedback, and continue to listen to you closely. Since launch, we’ve released five title updates, addressing hundreds of reported concerns, and have released four WWE 2K20 Originals DLC expansions to build on and improve the experience. We’ve also heard your requests to keep the WWE 2K19 servers running; they will remain active for the time being.
All of that being said, we hear you and we know you want more from the franchise, so here’s what we’re going to do: we are applying what we’ve learned to the next WWE 2K simulation game with a renewed focus on quality and fun. As part of that commitment, we are extending the production timeline and will not be releasing a WWE 2K simulation game in 2020 (T2 fiscal year 2021). We want to ensure the development team at Visual Concepts can create a great game that will entertain grizzled WWE 2K veterans, as well as newcomers who want to climb through the ropes and step into the ring for the very first time.
We’ve recruited Patrick Gilmore to serve as our new Executive Producer and lead these efforts at Visual Concepts. Patrick has over 25 years of experience in video games, reaching all the way back to Disney’s Aladdin on Sega Genesis, and including franchises like Killer Instinct, Medal of Honor, and, most recently, Amazon’s New World. He will be overseeing WWE 2K development, and you’ll be hearing more from him and the team in the months to come.
We hope you find this news as exciting as we do. We are confident it will lead to better games in the future.
