Gaming

WWE 2K26 lets you live out all the fantasy matches you could want

But you have to play for hours and hours to unlock everyone.

Published

March 23, 2026

Luigi Leonardo

The old SmackDown vs. RAW games were some of the most fun I’ve had as a teenager. Though I didn’t own a PlayStation 2 or 3 then, I had a PlayStation Portable and the series’ corresponding version. Sure, it didn’t have the then-advanced graphics, but the games kept me company for many a day and night. And it all revolved around a simple premise: letting wrestling fans live out their fantasy matches.

Now, with over 400 playable characters on launch, WWE 2K26 hopes to rekindle that magic. Previously, 2K’s take on the wrestling simulator never really captivated me as much as the SvR series did. Though players still had a similarly large roster throughout the years, the series felt too homogenized, too riddled with microtransactions. This year, the series got me thinking again: Can sheer numbers singlehandedly usher a new renaissance for WWE gamers?

The good: Four hundred superstars under one banner

WWE 2K26 touts over four hundred playable characters on launch. With unannounced DLCs still on the horizon, this number will surely balloon further. Even for a dedicated WWE fan, having over four hundred playable characters is insane. Where else can I pit Joe Hendy against Andre the Giant and create my own WrestleMania III moment?

The only catch, however, is that the game did some stat padding to get to this enormous number. Besides having multiple personas for a single wrestler (and CM Punk alone has ten of these), the roster includes a platoon of fictional MyRISE characters, which comes off as distracting if you don’t particularly engage with the MyRISE mode.

Ironically, the game didn’t even need to pad its stats this way. For the first time in the series, the launch roster includes Superstars from the current WWE roster, TNA, AAA, and the Hall of Fame. I could spend hours just feeding a litany of Superstars to TNA legend Abyss. That’s something I could never have done in the old SvR days.

The good: A more fluid fighting system

It also helps that WWE 2K26’s fighting system is the most fluid that the series has been. Wrestlers no longer feel like wooden animatronics skipping from one animation to the next. Each punch flows smoothly into a clothesline, a grapple, a carry, or a finisher.

It is, of course, at the expense of a more complex control scheme where each input combination corresponds to its own move. A stray waggle of the right joystick, for example, can have your wrestler careening towards their opponent in ways you never intended.

It takes some time to get used to. Every time I get a WWE 2K game, I always need a refresher course for the controls. Plus, each entry introduces something different. This year introduces rushing opponents to the corner and carrying opponents in different ways.

Another new addition is the new third-person camera which follows your character, rather than being locked to the ring. To me, this was a welcome feature. The original camera can often betray you by having various elements (other wrestlers, the ring itself) block your view of the action, thus preventing you from reacting correctly to your opponent. The dynamic third-person camera solves this and makes the fight more immersive.

That said, the camera necessarily changes the controls a bit because you need the right joystick to look around. Because of that, I had to revert back to the original camera after a while. Regardless, this is a step in the right direction.

The improved fight scheme is also a step in the right direction. WWE 2K26 is the franchise’s most immersive entry to date because of how fluid the action plays out.

The meh: Iterative game modes

Every yearly sports simulator falls prey to the curse of iteration. Because it’s an annual release, every game needs to add something new for players. At the same time, the same game can’t iterate too much, or it might end up alienating fans of the previous title. Each WWE 2K title has to be the same but also a bit different.

WWE 2K26 goes through the same rigamarole. Most of the game’s different modes don’t offer a lot of improvements from last year. So, if you loved last year’s MyRISE, MyGM, and Universe Mode, you’ll likely find this year’s iteration inoffensive.

“Inoffensive,” however, isn’t the best way to sell a new game. At the very least, MyFACTION gets interesting improvements. For a mode I historically dislike every year, WWE 2K26’s MyFACTION ended up being the one I loved the most this year.

This year, the layout feels more intentional. Though it still lacks the exciting animations of NBA 2K, opening a pack no longer looks like a PowerPoint presentation. There’s also more ways to fight offline with the addition of a challenging World Tour mode. Plus, with intergender support and team chemistry, this feels like the update that MyFACTION needed.

In another twist of fate, Showcase Mode ended up being the loser this year. WWE 2K26 rehashes last year’s schtick of having the star rewrite their history. Last year, this worked with Paul Heyman, a notorious bad guy. It doesn’t really stick with this year’s star, CM Punk, the so-called voice of the voiceless.

Punk could have shined with the traditional style of laying their commentaries over their past matches, especially with his shoot style. Instead, we got a series of what-ifs with practically no commentary. It’s just not what I expected from a firebrand like CM Punk.

The bad: The Ringside Pass

For the first time in the series, WWE 2K26 has a battle pass called the Ringside Pass. Like battle passes in other games, the Ringside Pass unlocks more content as you play through the game. However, unlike today’s standard which revolves mostly on cosmetics, this version locks a treasure trove of playable wrestlers behind an experience gate.

Even if you already paid for the game, WWE 2K26 asks you to play an inordinate number of hours just to unlock the best wrestlers in the game.

To be fair, it’s not all bad. Right out the gate, the game already gives you access to heavy hitters like CM Punk, Shawn Michaels, and John Cena. However, a lot of favorites are still unplayable including Bret Hart and Kurt Angle. This even includes the strongest version of Bray Wyatt, who’s locked under the last tier of the current pass.

Gaining experience isn’t an easy feat, either. After playing for hours and hours, I still haven’t unlocked more than half of the tiers. At the very least, there is no time limit, so I can play the game at my own pace.

Props to WWE 2K26 for making its battle pass have fulfilling rewards, but it’s still unfortunate that significant elements of the game are locked behind hours and hours of playtime.

The gameplay loop is real and repetitive. And it all circles back to how iterative the game modes are. If only the game modes ended up being as exciting as they were last year, then it would have been exciting to play over and over again. Instead, WWE 2K26 prevents you from engaging in greatest strengths: an exciting roster and a fluid fighting system.

Is WWE 2K26 your PlayMatch?

Last year’s WWE 2K25 was an exciting period for the series. Though this year’s version keeps most of what made the previous game so exciting, WWE 2K26 also adds features, especially the Ringside Pass, that ultimately detract from the entire experience. It’s a small step back, which can hopefully be rectified next year, if not in future updates.

WWE 2K26 is a Swipe Left if you didn’t love last year’s game anyway. The game doesn’t add anything that might change your mind.

However, it’s a Swipe Right if you missed the pure joy of creating dream matches. The game’s massive roster allows for so many impossible matchups to happen, even if only in the digital realm. Just get ready to grind for a long time.

Gaming

Nintendo will make it cheaper to buy digital games than physical

Physical releases will have the same price.

Published

March 26, 2026

Luigi Leonardo

The days of lining up for a newly released game are well and truly over. Though some games still experience shortages in brick-and-mortar stores, such as the widely successful Pokémon Pokopia, gamers can get their titles digitally. Now, Nintendo is making digital releases more enticing by offering a tempting discount on the eShop.

Starting in May, Nintendo will start charging different prices for the physical and digital releases of first-party games. While physical releases will still have the same prices going forward, digital releases via the eShop will enjoy a discount.

The discount, of course, will likely depend on the title itself. Nintendo has already given the upcoming Yoshi and the Mysterious Book as the first example. The new platformer will cost US$ 70 from retailers. However, it will cost only US$ 60 on the digital eShop.

The company says that the new pricing scheme “simply reflects the different costs associated with producing and distributing each format.” With the prices of chips skyrocketing, it’s no surprise that the physical release is more expensive than the digital one.

To be more technical about it, Nintendo has started skipping a physical game card for a while now. The physical release of Pokémon Pokopia, for example, has only a game-key card or a code to download the game. In this format, physical releases are just pretty cases you can display on your shelf.

Also, digital releases do carry the added risk of getting delisted on the whims of the developers, the publishers, or Nintendo itself. It is, however, still a cheaper option, especially in a world where getting any discount is a welcome thought.

SEE ALSO: Nintendo sues the United States

Gaming

Razer Blade 16 (2026) packs more cores, faster memory

Razer’s thinnest gaming laptop yet

Published

March 26, 2026

Rodneil Quiteles

Razer has officially unveiled the 2026 version of its Blade 16, doubling down on what it does best: squeezing high-end performance into an ultra-slim chassis.

This year’s refresh focuses on meaningful internal upgrades. That includes a new Intel Core Ultra 9 processor, faster LPDDR5X memory, and NVIDIA’s latest RTX 50 Series laptop GPUs — all while keeping the Blade 16 as the thinnest gaming laptop in Razer’s lineup.

Performance gets a serious bump

At the core of the new Blade 16 is the Intel Core Ultra 9 386H, featuring 16 cores and up to 4.9GHz boost clock. Razer claims a 33% increase in core count versus the previous generation, translating to stronger performance across gaming, content creation, and AI workloads.

There’s also an integrated NPU capable of up to 50 TOPS, enabling faster on-device AI tasks like image generation and live translation.

Memory gets a notable upgrade too. The Blade 16 now supports up to 64GB of LPDDR5X-9600MHz RAM, which Razer positions as the fastest available in a laptop today. The result: quicker responsiveness for heavy multitasking, creative apps, and AI-assisted workflows.

On the graphics side, NVIDIA’s GeForce RTX 50 Series (Blackwell architecture) brings DLSS 4 and enhanced AI capabilities for both gaming and creator use cases.

Display and design stay premium

Razer isn’t fixing what isn’t broken. The Blade 16 retains its signature CNC-milled aluminum chassis, measuring just 14.9mm thick and weighing around 2.14kg.

The display remains a highlight. You get a 16-inch QHD+ OLED panel with a 240Hz refresh rate, now brighter and certified for VESA DisplayHDR TrueBlack 1000. It supports full DCI-P3 coverage, Calman calibration, and NVIDIA G-SYNC, making it just as suited for creators as it is for competitive gaming.

Battery life and efficiency improve

Despite the performance gains, Razer is also pushing efficiency. Thanks to Intel’s newer architecture and system-level optimizations, the Blade 16 can hit up to 13 hours of productivity use and up to 15 hours of video playback under ideal conditions.

That’s a notable improvement for a machine in this class, especially given its slim form factor.

Connectivity and audio step up

The 2026 Blade 16 gets a future-ready connectivity suite, including Thunderbolt 5, Wi-Fi 7, and Bluetooth 6.0. There’s also a full set of ports, from USB-A to HDMI 2.1 and an SD card reader.

Audio gets an upgrade too. The six-speaker system now supports THX Spatial Audio+ with virtual 7.1.4 surround, aiming to deliver more immersive sound both on speakers and headphones.

Price and availability

The Razer Blade 16 configured with an NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5080 (16GB VRAM) and 32GB LPDDR5X-9600MHz RAM is priced at US$3,499.99 / €3,599.99 MSRP.

It is available now, exclusively via Razer.com and select RazerStores worldwide.

Still the Blade, just sharper

At a glance, the 2026 Blade 16 doesn’t reinvent the formula. But under the hood, it pushes performance, memory speed, and efficiency forward in ways that matter.

It’s still the same idea: a no-compromise gaming laptop that looks like it belongs in a minimalist workspace — just faster, smarter, and a bit more future-proof this time around.

Accessories

Razer sharpens its competitive edge with Viper V4 Pro and Gigantus V2 Pro

Ultra-light. Ultra-tuned.

Published

March 26, 2026

GadgetMatch

Razer expands its pro-grade lineup with a lightweight mouse and a highly customizable mouse mat built for different playstyles. The Razer Viper V4 Pro focuses on speed, precision, and responsiveness, while the Razer Gigantus V2 Pro brings tailored surface options that adapt to how players move.

Lighter, faster, and built for control

The Viper V4 Pro weighs approximately 49g in Black and 50g in White, making it around nine percent lighter than its predecessor. Razer achieves this through mechanical refinements like a thinner shell and a more compact PCB, without compromising durability. The structure still feels solid in hand, even with the aggressive weight reduction.

This balance matters in competitive play. A lighter mouse reduces fatigue and allows quicker adjustments, but stability keeps movements consistent. The Viper V4 Pro aims to deliver both.

Plug in, tweak, and play instantly

Razer also streamlines setup and tuning. The optimized hemispherical dongle maintains stable connectivity while providing quick status updates through LED indicators.

Players can adjust settings without installing software using Razer Synapse Web, enabling browser-based customization. Onboard controls allow quick DPI and polling rate changes mid-match, so adjustments happen without breaking focus.

A mouse mat that adapts to your play style

The Gigantus V2 Pro evolves Razer’s mouse mat lineup by introducing five distinct speed ratings paired with corresponding foam firmness. Instead of a one-size-fits-all surface, players can now choose based on how they aim and move.

Developed with esports pros like Nikola “NiKo” Kovač, Faker, and Zellsis, each variant reflects real competitive needs across different roles and playstyles.

The five surface options include:

Max Control for ultra-high friction and precise flicks
Control for consistent micro-adjustments
Balance for a mix of speed and stopping power
Speed for quicker swipes
Max Speed for the fastest possible movements

Each surface is paired with Razer’s GlideCore foam, tuned to match the friction profile. Softer variants provide more stopping power, while firmer ones prioritize speed and responsiveness.

Built for consistency across every match

Razer ensures the Gigantus V2 Pro works seamlessly with modern optical sensors. Lab testing guarantees consistent tracking, whether for fine adjustments or wide flicks.

The mat is also designed for competitive environments. It features stitched edges to prevent fraying, an anti-slip base for stability, and a rollable build that makes it easy to bring to tournaments.

A complete competitive setup

Together, the Viper V4 Pro and Gigantus V2 Pro form a cohesive setup that covers both input and surface. The mouse emphasizes low latency, precision tracking, and a shape validated by pros. The mouse mat complements it with clear, playstyle-based options.

Rather than focusing on a single standout feature, Razer builds a system. One that supports consistent performance, adapts to player preference, and helps turn practice into results when it matters most.