Warner Bros. Discovery reportedly plans to sell its games division

Based on current information, it appears that Warner Bros. Discovery is encountering ongoing challenges. Top management is pondering over the possibility of offloading certain business units, such as their gaming division. Consequently, the games produced and distributed by Warner Bros. Games could potentially face an unpredictable future.

Warner Bros. Discovery and Warner Bros. Games

The Financial Times released a report indicating that Warner Bros. Discovery is experiencing difficulties due to a decline in their stock prices. To address this issue, David Zaslav, the CEO, and top executives are mulling over several potential solutions, one of which involves potentially offloading the company’s game development sector.

Since the merger between Warner Bros. and Discovery in 2022, there have been whispers about their financial difficulties. Some speculate that they might separate Warner Bros. and Discovery as a way to boost their stock prices. However, this move could lead to complex legal issues, particularly regarding the ownership of intellectual properties.

Considering a possible sale of Warner Bros. Games could lower the company’s costs, simplify the process of separation, and potentially reduce the financial impact if further actions are taken to divide the business.

Titles by Warner Bros. Games

Warner Bros. Games houses multiple studios responsible for numerous games, including hits like Hogwarts Legacy and the Batman: Arkham series. Recent speculation revolves around the development of their current projects: Mortal Kombat 1 and MultiVersus.

It appears that Mortal Kombat 1 is struggling to keep up with the other major fighting games, Tekken 8 and Street Fighter 6, based on attendance numbers at events like EVO 2024. There were 4,651 registrants for Tekken 8 compared to just 642 for Mortal Kombat 1, suggesting a significant difference in popularity.

As a long-time fan of the Mortal Kombat series, I have to admit that the recent announcement about the upcoming content for Mortal Kombat 1 has left me both excited and a bit concerned. On one hand, I can’t wait to see what new characters, stages, and gameplay mechanics they’ll be introducing in this next installment. However, I can’t help but feel a sense of unease after the company decided to shut down Mortal Kombat: Onslaught, their mobile game, and lay off the entire mobile division back in July 2024.

Recently, MultiVersus launched its second season, and it appears the game remains active. However, its development has been unsteady, leaving uncertainty about the success of its free-to-play model. There seems to be minimal esports backing for the game, and the upcoming Mortal Kombat 1 Final Kombat event is yet to surface.