Layoffs have once again hit the video game industry, as Visual Concepts, a longtime developer of 2K's sports titles WWE 2K and NBA 2K, has been hit with an unknown number of layoffs, according to a new report from Insider Gaming. More specifically, it has been reported that teams working on WWE games were hit hardest by the layoffs.
The layoffs come less than three months after WWE 2K26 was released on consoles, and just months away from the highly anticipated release of Grand Theft Auto 6, a title under the overall Take-Two umbrella.
In a follow-up, Mike Straw, a noted Insider Gaming insider, reported that the Ringside Pass format was “a disaster” that led to finger-pointing among developers.
The Ringside Pass, a new introduction for WWE 2K26, was a controversial element that eventually saw a redesign after negative backlash.
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WWE 2K26's Ringside Pass may have been an idea best left on the table
To preface, historically, WWE 2K games have used the Season Pass model, where players get access to all the content they've paid for when it's released. Similarly, those with “Deluxe” or “Ultimate” editions often receive an “Accelerator” upgrade that instantly unlocks all unlockable or grindable content.
But 2K26 did away with it in favor of the Ringside Pass, a version of the Battle Pass system that would only give players access to DLC they paid for AFTER they grinded for it.
Naturally, the players were furious. Elsewhere, others began exploiting the game to try and find the easiest way to fulfill the necessary requirements for content they had already paid for.
2K, however, patched that method, while also reworking some of the Ringside Pass to better hit players. Things didn't get much better when a developer accused players of trying to circumvent the system.
Now all DLC characters are unlocked from the start. However, the damage had already been done in the eyes of most fans, marring what would otherwise have been the best WWE match since the old SmackDown vs. The Raw days.
Flash forward just several weeks, and some of its developers are reportedly out of a job.
- Released
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March 12, 2026
- ESRB
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Teen/Blood, Language, Suggestive Themes, Violence, In-Game Purchases (Includes Random Items), User Interaction
- Developer
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Visual concepts
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