A new report citing Warner Bros. Discovery gaming’s J.B. Perrette details how the company is “doubling down” on gaming as a space they see growth potential in, with particular emphasis on core franchises and free to play and mobile titles. This comes as WB’s Multiversus’ has made a return to social media for the first time since the open beta was shut down last year.
Perrette’s statements echo ones made by David Zaslav last fall. The new comments were shared by Gamespot, and his statements are in line with a number of executives’ recent statements on the decision to focus, or refocus, on their core IP, and to make what they consider more of what the audience is asking for or what they’ve had the most success in. Focusing on what sells does make sense, particularly in what WB considers a “volatile” console gaming market.
This comes just after Rocksteady’s Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League was released after several delays and negative reaction to its always-on live service elements led the company tosay it fell short of expectations.
While this doesn’t mean WB is looking to step away from the console game, they’re looking to launch something that has multiple potential layers to it. He cites last year’s Hogwarts Legacy, which became the year’s biggest seller as a bit of a jumping off point.
“Rather than just launching a one-and-done console game, how do we develop a game around, for example, a Hogwarts Legacy or Harry Potter, that is a live-service where people can live and work and build and play in that world in an ongoing basis?”
Warner Bros. does have a number of in-house studios and a slate of well-known IP to draw from, with Harry Potter, DC Comics, Game of Thrones, and Mortal Kombat among those he mentions as having potential here. With this in mind, the company is seeding investment in more of these live service, free to play, and virtual world type experiences with a goal of growth in the next several years.
*taps mic* testing, testing, 1, 2, 3
— MultiVersus (@multiversus) March 5, 2024
This feels relevant in light of the first Multiversus X (Twitter) post happening today, for the first time in eight months. Warner Bros.’ crossover fighting game features characters from across its IP portfolio, from DC, to Game of Thrones, Gremlins, to Rick and Morty, and Tom and Jerry was in open beta when the company announced it would temporarily shut down, with a launch aimed for "early 2024". Well, here we are, WB wants more live service titles, and Multiversus just may be on its way back.
