In a new announcement made earlier today, publisher 2K alongside the National Football League (NFL) have published a multi-year partnership to reintroduce a new slew of sports games from the company after more than a decade since the last title release. The video game publisher has released six mainline entries of the series since the turn of the millennium, but the last title launched actually arrive in 2007 with All Pro Football 2K8.
In the press release, 2K discloses that this new agreement between the two parties will spawn “multiple future video games.” Adding on, the post also tells that fan-favorite series will be making a return atop of a new intellectual property that will emerge from this new plan for 2K and the NFL.
President of 2K, David Ismailer shares that fans of the publisher alongside the franchises that will be reappearing from the partnership are surely in for a treat in the coming future.
We’re thrilled to be back in business with the NFL in a partnership that will span multiple video games centered on fun, approachable and social experiences. It’s exciting to bring together 2K’s expertise in creating award-winning sports games with the NFL’s renowned status as a world-class entertainment and sports organization.
In contrast to the new emerging competition that publisher Electronic Arts will face now that 2K is returning to produce new games, the company released a statement on the matter. The press release citing that the new partnership between the NFL and 2K has virtually unphased the current structure for the company’s Madden franchise.
“EA SPORTS is the exclusive publisher of NFL simulation games, and our partnership with the NFL and NFLPA remains unchanged. Our agreements have always allowed for non-exclusive development of non-simulation games on various platforms. Our commitment to NFL fans, which spans almost 30 years, has never been stronger, and we’re having our biggest year yet. Madden NFL 20 is the most successful game ever in the franchise, and new modes like Superstar KO and our Madden NFL esports broadcasts are growing the fan base. We’ll be building on that momentum with more new and different experiences, on more platforms and with new ways to play, in the years to come.”
In other sports-related news, it was reported that Sony Interactive Entertainment and Major League baseball have extended the partnership between both companies. However, in contrast to how the titles were constructed for only the PlayStation platform, the series will instead be arriving to multiple platforms later on.
What are you most excited to see return from 2K?
2K states that the first byproduct of this agreement will arrive sometime in 2021.
Source: 2K Newsroom
