After a more than two-year wait, wrestling fans are on the cusp of getting a new entry in the WWE 2K series. The studio deviated from its rigorous schedule in 2020, canceling WWE 2K21 following the backlash to 2K20, which was far from polished when it launched. The game 2K has had more than two years to work on instead of the usual one is now almost here as its early access launches next week on March 8.
WWE 2K has gradually been revealing who will be on the game's roster, and there have been some pretty interesting developments in that regard this week. As revealed by Sports Gamers Online's Mike Straw, the game currently includes a lot of wrestlers who are no longer under contract with WWE. There is every chance they are removed before the game launches next week, but it seems unlikely.
Straw has shared a full list of every wrestler who has either been released by WWE or has left the company but is still a part of the 2K22 roster via the Twitter thread you can find below. Some of the most interesting names on the list are those who have been let go and are now plying their trade for WWE's rivals. Keith Lee, Kyle O'Reilly, and Murphy, who now goes by Buddy Matthews, are all currently under contract with AEW.
Impact Wrestling also has a couple of representatives in there too in the form of The Iinspiration. Peyton Royce and Billie Kay, who are currently the Knockouts Tag Team Champions in Impact, are both in the game. Some wrestlers no longer with WWE have been reacting to their inclusion in the game. Mia Yim has shared screenshots, and Isaiah Scott is rather amused that he is still North American Champion in WWE 2K22 despite not even being under the company's employ.
What's strange is some of the names that do appear to have been removed. Adam Cole isn't on the list, and neither is Bray Wyatt. That's despite both being released after Braun Strowman and Nia Jax who are both in the game at the time of typing this. Perhaps it has something to do with WWE owning the rights to certain wrestlers' names but not others. Either way, whether under contract or not, more wrestlers in the game has to be seen as a win for those who plan on picking up a copy.