WWE 2K22's five-month delay was reportedly a result of WWE releasing stars the studio had hand-picked for DLC packs.

Later this month will mark two years since the last major release from WWE 2K. No, we're not considering WWE 2K Battlegrounds a major release. WWE 2K20 was met with such backlash that the studio decided to scrap whatever it had planned for WWE 2K21 to give itself extra time to get back on track. Then, over SummerSlam weekend, it was revealed WWE 2K22 won't be here as soon as fans expected.

2K22's Delay

Rather than launching in the fall, which is the norm for WWE 2K, WWE 2K22 will not be here until March. It wasn't specifically labeled a delay, but that seems to be the most likely scenario considering the points at which its teasers and trailers have been revealed.

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Sports Gamers Online has now shed a little light on why the game's release date has been pushed back. According to the site, sources working on WWE 2K22 have revealed some of the wrestlers released earlier this year were part of DLC packs that would have followed the game's launch. Bronson Reed would have been the selling point of the first DLC pack, but the Australian was let go on August 6, 2021.

NXT DLC

While not given more names, SGO was told four of the people released that day were going to be a part of that DLC pack. Other likely candidates who were shown the door include Mercedes Martinez and Leon Ruff. It's now a possibility that the studio will forgo DLC packs altogether and treat WWE 2K22 more like a live service game. That could mean roster changes and new Superstars are added in real-time, or via the next update after a signing happens.

It's hard to imagine WWE's main roster releases haven't affected the game's development too. WWE 2K has been showing off the cameras it has used for 2K22 since the start of the year, using them to capture the likenesses of everyone who will be included in the game individually. Wrestlers like Braun Strowman and Bray Wyatt will have likely undergone that process only for that work to have gone to waste.