The WWE 2K series is taking an extra year to rehabilitate the franchise after WWE 2K20 failed to meet the expectations of fans and critics. The development team at Visual Concepts hired a new executive producer and they hosted an AMA on Reddit last weekend to share some plans for the series’ future, including a big leap in gameplay. During a Reddit Q&A, WWE 2K executive producer Patrick Gilmore, who previously worked on games like Killer Instinct and Medal of Honor, answered questions from fans and shared how the developers are approaching gameplay for the next WWE 2K game. “Core gameplay is one of the major investments we’re making in the next installment,” Gilmore says. “We are looking at much-loved previous games like No Mercy or Smackdown: Here Comes the Pain, along with top franchise installments, and more modern wrestling and fighting games to build an all-new philosophical foundation for the game.” [widget path="global/article/imagegallery" parameters="albumSlug=every-ign-wwe-game-review-ever&captions=true"] Gilmore also shared some examples of what those philosophical foundations entail. For example, the team is working on “Accessibility, Depth and Wrestling Experience,” and intends to make the game “a lot smarter about what the player is trying to do given a gameplay situation (in a grapple, on the ropes, against a turnbuckle, etc.)” The goal appears to be a deeper level of gameplay and systems that allow players to anticipate and counter their opponents while new players will be able to “accidentally pull off awesome moves just by playing with and experimenting with controls” before improving. [ignvideo url="https://www.ign.com/videos/2019/10/24/wwe-2k20-review"] In other parts of the AMA Gilmore shared some smaller details like how the dev team is looking into features like mod support and cross-platform play, but could not confirm if those features will make it into the final game. Gilmore also mentioned that WWE 2K20 will not be supported with additional content while the team is developing the next WWE title. WWE 2K20 was the last wrestling sim and was developed by Visual Concepts after 2K split with its longtime wrestling game dev partner Yuke’s. Although there won’t be a new WWE 2K game this year, the company announced WWE 2K Battlegrounds, a more arcade-style take on wrestling that will be released later this year. [poilib element="accentDivider"] Matt Kim is a reporter for IGN.

Good news for fans of The Mandalorian and Star Wars Rebels. Hasbro has revealed several new waves of Star Wars: The Black Series action figures featuring bounty hunter Din Djarin aka the Mandalorian and the entire main cast of Rebels, including fan-favorite heroine Ahsoka Tano. The new Rebels-themed wave comes as part of an ambitious overhaul of the Black Series line. Upcoming waves will feature redesigned packaging with color-coded box art that connects to form a larger collage image. Along with the new Rebels and Mandalorian waves, Hasbro is also teasing another Empire Strikes Back-themed wave as the company continues celebrating the 40th anniversary of that Star Wars sequel. From Ahsoka to Hera Syndulla to Darth Vader, check out the new Black Series figures revealed in the slideshow gallery below: [widget path="global/article/imagegallery" parameters="albumSlug=star-wars-ahsoka-tano-the-mandalorian-and-more-incredible-black-series-figures&captions=true"] While many of the Rebels characters featured here have already had Black Series figures in the past, Zeb Orrelios is a newcomer to the line. Even the returning characters are being upgraded with improved head sculpts using Hasbro's "Photo Real" digital scanning technology. As for Din Djarin, this new figure will be a welcome release for anyone still struggling to find Hasbro's previous Mandalorian figure in stores. This isn't a re-release of that figure, however, but instead a new version featuring the lone gunfighter wearing his upgraded Beskar armor. He'll be accompanied by a new Imperial Remnant Stormtrooper figure, and hopefully we'll continue to see more characters from Season 1 get Black Series figures. All of these figures are slated for release in Fall 2020 and will range in price from $19.99 to $29.99. Earlier this year at ToyFair, Hasbro unveiled its elaborate Baby Yoda animatronic action figure, and it's just as adorable as you'd expect. See it in action in the video below: [ignvideo url="https://www.ign.com/videos/2020/02/20/hasbros-baby-yoda-animatronic-figure-in-action"] In other recent collectibles news, Knights of the Old Republic villains Darth Revan and Darth Malak are getting new Funko Pop! figurines, while Joaquin Phoenix's Joker is being immortalized in the form of an insanely expensive statue. [poilib element="accentDivider"] Jesse is a mild-mannered staff writer for IGN. Allow him to lend a machete to your intellectual thicket by following @jschedeen on Twitter.

We'll get more details on Pokemon Sword and Shield's Expansion Pass tomorrow, June 2 at 6am Pacific / 9am Eastern / 2pm UK / 11pm AEST. Revealed in a tweet by the Japanese Pokemon Twitter account (below), no details were given of what could be revealed. However, with the first expansion for the latest Pokemon games - The Isle of Armor - due to arrive by the end of June, it seems likely we'd get a release date.

6月2日（火）22時より、Nintendo Switchソフト『ポケットモンスター ソード・シールド エキスパンションパス』に関する新情報の公開が決定！ ぜひチェックしてね！https://t.co/6D0tsz56JB #ポケモン剣盾 pic.twitter.com/YRiHwV3c8W

— ポケモン公式ツイッター (@Pokemon_cojp) June 1, 2020

The Pokemon Sword and Shield expansions will include The Isle of Armor and The Crown Tundra (due this Fall), and each will add a new open area to explore. They'll also add new legendary Pokemon, new regular Pokemon, new Galarian forms, and dozens of returning Pokemon that were previously unavailable to catch. It marks a new step for the Pokemon franchise - which has previously preferred to release new versions of the same game, or semi-sequels. We think this is a very good next step. We awarded Pokemon Sword and Shield a 9.3 review, and since named it one of the best Nintendo Switch games. [ignvideo url="https://www.ign.com/videos/2019/11/13/pokemon-sword-and-pokemon-shield-review"] [poilib element="accentDivider"] Joe Skrebels is IGN's Executive Editor of News. Follow him on Twitter.

The Last of Us Part 2 sees Ellie facing off against new human threats as she ventures into Seattle, Washington, but of course the world of Naughty Dog's post-pandemic series is home to plenty of infected enemies as well. And while the familiar forms these foes take return in the sequel, they've changed in some notable ways, as new types have also begun to appear. While you can check out IGN's The Last of Us Part 2 final preview for a breakdown of how the new and improved combat can play out, Part 2 Director Neil Druckmann spoke to IGN about how the development team approached the return of the Clickers, Bloaters, Stalkers, and the new Shamblers. "Like everything we do in The Last of Us, it has to feel grounded and believable in the world we built in the first game. With this game specifically, we wanted to find ways to add greater mechanical depth than any previous Naughty Dog game," Druckmann said. When it came to adding a new type of infected enemy, the Shambler, Druckmann noted that it has to "have a lineage, it has to have the same physiology that we established in the first game," to feel believable as something new in this world. [ignvideo url="https://www.ign.com/videos/2020/06/01/the-last-of-part-2-the-final-preview"] Shamblers have the ability to hurl noxious gas bombs at the player, which explode into a damaging, sight-obscuring cloud of smoke, and the foe does the same thing itself when defeated. Druckmann said this enemy idea played to the team's combat ambitions for the sequel. "One [reason for the Shambler] is it gets you to move, and the corrosive damage is [useful] when we don't want you to just stand still, we want the fights to feel dynamic," he said. "And, two, like any good horror [enemy], it limits your senses, it blocks your vision. So while the mechanic on its own might seem simple on paper, it's when you start combining it with all the other infected that can be coupled with the Shambler, it becomes really interesting. You have this situation where it bursts and you have this cloud you're trying to run away from and you don't quite see where the Shambler is. Now you have a Runner running through that cloud emerging from it; now the Runners become more dangerous." And, given that time has passed between the original and the sequel, and that Naughty Dog has also spent time improving Ellie's suite of moves, with new abilities like jumping and dodging, the returning infected types needed to be altered to present new challenges as well. [widget path="global/article/imagegallery" parameters="albumSlug=the-last-of-us-part-2-new-screenshots&captions=true"] "Because we introduced dodge and now you can dodge Clickers in a way you couldn't in the first game, now with Clickers, we have to find ways to make them more dangerous. Because when they charge at you, with Joel, he'd die; Ellie can dodge out of the way. So now Clickers are faster and more nimble as well to compensate for all the new mechanics that Ellie has," he said. "Likewise because of the tech of the PS4, we can have more infected onscreen. There are scenarios where you could have a whole hoard of Runners chasing you and, when the number is larger, Runners become more dangerous." Perhaps one of the scariest foes Ellie will face is the Stalker infected type, which returns from the original game but marks a chance for Naughty Dog to more deeply explore this type of enemy. "With the first game we introduced the Stalkers, [but] we didn't really get a chance to develop them and develop different setups with them," Druckmann explained. "We can really play to the horror of the infected and instead of just charging at you, they will actually run away from you and hide, and look for opportunities to surprise and lunge at you. Then they'll attack as a pack, which creates a different kind of tension. You know they're around, they're actually more quiet, so listen mode doesn't always reveal where they are." [ignvideo url="https://www.ign.com/videos/the-last-of-us-part-2-state-of-play-impressions-beyond-episode-647"] For more on The Last of Us Part 2's combat, find out what Druckmann told us last year about how enemy dogs lead to tough choices in The Last of Us Part 2, learn about some of the incredible tiny details Naughty Dog is filling the sequel with, and find out when you can read IGN's The Last of Us Part 2 review. [poilib element="accentDivider"] Jonathon Dornbush is IGN's Senior News Editor, host of Podcast Beyond!, IGN's weekly PlayStation podcast. Find him on Twitter @jmdornbush.

Codemasters has secured the official WRC (World Rally Championship) license as part of a new deal that runs through until 2027. This restores the license to Codemasters, who last made an official WRC licensed game in 2002. As reported by GamesIndustry, Codemasters has signed the exclusive five-year deal that not only allows the company to develop and publish official WRC games, but also run associated esports tournaments. [ignvideo url="https://www.ign.com/videos/2020/03/20/wrc-9-announcement-trailer"] The developer’s last game shipped as an official WRC product was 2002’s Colin McRae Rally 3. The license was then passed to Evolution Studios, who began the WRC series in 2001. The official license was picked up by developer Milestone in 2010, and then Kylotonn in 2015. Kyloton and publisher BigBen Interactive will maintain the license until 2023, when it will pass over to Codemasters. With the WRC series, Codemasters will have two rally franchises in-house, as the developer currently has the Dirt series, itself the evolution of the once WRC-official Colin McRae Rally games. Codemasters plans to continue Dirt, and already has another entry planned ahead of the start of their tenure on WRC in 2023. This will also mark the company’s second major license; Codemasters currently develops the official F1 racing video games. [ignvideo url="https://www.ign.com/videos/2020/05/07/dirt-5-announcement-trailer"] The WRC games from Codemasters will be released annually for console, PC, and mobile platforms, with the first game arriving in the 2023/2024 financial year. For more from Codemasters, check out the upcoming F1 2020, and the latest details on Dirt 5, which features voice actor legends Troy Baker and Nolan North. [poilib element="accentDivider"] Matt Purslow is IGN's UK News and Entertainment Writer. You can follow him on Twitter. 

WWE has unveiled a free version of WWE Network, with more than 15,000 action-packed WWE titles available at launch. The company's award-winning digital streaming service has debuted a no-cost version of its content library, which includes new shows, original series and flagship programmes, together with historical WWE PPV's, events and highlights. [ignvideo url="https://www.ign.com/videos/2020/02/10/wrestlemania-37-will-be-held-at-sofi-stadium-los-angeles-in-2021-ign-news"] "The launch of WWE Network's free version is a key component of our company's digitization strategy and a new way for all fans to be able to experience premium WWE content," Jayar Donlan, WWE Executive Vice President of Advanced Media, said in a statement. "As we continue to reimagine WWE Network's offering, the free version will serve as an effective way to reach a broader group of consumers and allow them to experience the history and spectacle of WWE." The free version of WWE Network is not ad-supported at launch. The robust library boasts new shows such as Raw Talk, which will stream on Monday night each week, alongside other originals like Monday Night War, Ride Along and Table for 3. In addition, WWE flagships Monday Night Raw, Friday Night SmackDown and NXT will be available together with a selection of highlight shows, including Top 10 and The Best of WWE. [widget path="global/article/imagegallery" parameters="albumSlug=most-devastating-finishing-moves-in-wwe-history&captions=true"] WWE's 24/7 streaming network launched in 2014, offering wrestling fans exclusive access to live and on-demand programming with some original series and special partnerships. However, earlier this year, the company switched up its strategy by making a large amount of the WWE Network's content available for free ahead of WrestleMania 36; The Hollywood Reporter notes that this move resulted in the streamer's highest weekend of signups. The all-new, free-tiered edition of the sports entertainment giant's digital platform is available via the WWE App on any device, including TVs, gaming consoles, mobile phones, tablets, and computers. [poilib element="accentDivider"] Adele Ankers is a Freelance Entertainment Journalist. You can reach her on Twitter.

PlayStation boss Jim Ryan has revealed that demand for The Last of Us Part 2 "remains strong" despite major story spoilers circulating online. Specifically, the spoilers appear to have had a limited effect on preorders for the game. In an interview with CNET, Ryan acknowledged the unfortunate situation, but mentioned that Sony has "tallied more preorders in Europe for The Last of Us Part 2 than it did for Marvel's Spider-Man at the same point before its launch." Ryan went on to say that he hopes The Last of Us Part 2 will be "a defining game for this generation," and added that while there haven't been any plans revealed for bringing the game to the PS5, The Last of Us Part 2 will run on the new console "without issue." [ignvideo url="https://www.ign.com/videos/2020/05/13/the-last-of-us-part-ii-inside-the-story-video"] Back in late April, major spoilers for the game circulated online, ruining some major moments of the game for fans waiting to play the hotly anticipated sequel. They're still doing the rounds, so please, be careful out there! Not long to go now until June 19, when the game launches worldwide on PS4. For more on The Last of Us Part 2, check out our article covering the game's incredible tiny character details. IGN's review of the game will go live on Friday June 12, at 12:01AM Pacific Time. [poilib element="accentDivider"] Jordan Oloman is a freelance writer for IGN. Follow him on Twitter.

A listing for an unannounced 'Prey VR' has been found on the website of UK retailer ShopTo. The page, which was seemingly taken down after being discovered, suggests that the game would be exclusive to PSVR. Following the original link to the listing now results in a 404, but Twitter user Nibellion managed to grab a screenshot prior to its deletion.

Retailer ShopTo lists Prey VR for PlayStation VRhttps://t.co/BIZJ2jrrHt pic.twitter.com/fSCnS268xU

— Nibel (@Nibellion) June 1, 2020

If the listing wasn't made in error, it's currently unclear what form the supposed game would take. Bethesda has a prolific recent history with VR games, previously porting VR versions of its tentpole games, such as Doom VFR, Fallout 4 VR and Skyrim VR. It may well be that Arkane's Prey is getting a similar treatment. Prey has already had a VR outing in the form of Typhon Hunter, a PC/PSVR spinoff from the main game where you can solve puzzles inside of VR escape rooms and enjoy a multiplayer game mode similar to Prop Hunt from Garry's Mod, where players can mimic inanimate objects. [ignvideo url="https://www.ign.com/videos/2017/02/15/the-first-11-minutes-of-prey"] This Shopto listing appears to be distinct from Typhon Hunter, however, which has stoked a lot of interest from fans of the base game. We reviewed Prey back in 2017, calling the game's space station setting "fantastically explorable." In other Arkane news, footage of the studio's cancelled Half-Life episode, Ravenholm, was recently revealed to the public for the first time. [poilib element="accentDivider"] Jordan Oloman is a freelance writer for IGN. Follow him on Twitter.