Game Developer Says Hulk Hogan In WWE 2K14 Was "A Hurdle," Eric Bischoff On What TNA Needs

- As noted yesterday, Eric Bischoff blasted "parasites and morons who run dirt sites" for reports that there has been heat on Hulk Hogan within TNA for booking a licensing deal with 2K Sports to appear in WWE 2K14. According to Bischoff, WWE is simply utilizing existing trademarks and assets that they already own for the game. However, WWE 2K14 Creative Director Cory Ledesma seemed to indicate in a recent interview (which you can watch above) that some sort of deal was made, although it may not have been with Hogan. Ledesma stated that Hogan appearing in the game was "a hurdle."

"We wanted to obviously make sure we had the biggest matches, the most iconic matches [for the 30 Years of WrestleMania mode]," Ledesma said. "The first hurdle we had was Hulk Hogan. Hulk Hogan's not currently with the WWE. We knew that if we couldn't get Hulk Hogan, we weren't going to have a '30 Years of WrestleMania' mode, it's just not possible. Hogan was involved in so many matches and so many moments, that he was critical to the game. We knew once we could overcome that hurdle, and Hulk Hogan was able to get into the game, we knew that it was going to be kinda downhill from there and we'd be able to secure a lot of the talent that might not be with WWE anymore."

- We also posted footage yesterday from the Q&A featuring Hogan and Bischoff during last week's Fan Expo Canada. During the panel, both men were asked what two things TNA needed to be successful. Hogan said that having a lot more resources and giving Bischoff "the keys to the car" would help take the company to the next level.

Bischoff noted that the challenge for any wrestling company is to be competitive in the television environment, not just with WWE.

"For me, the one thing that I think it would need for TNA to really thrive is a network environment, or a television environment in general, that is looking to create a star and looking to put resources behind the product itself," Bischoff said.

Quadkid15 contributed to this article.