During Warner Bros Games’ third quarter 2023 earnings call, WB Discover CEO David Zaslav explained that the publisher behind games like Batman: Arkham Knight and suicide squad will focus on creating more always-online, free-to-play, live service games.
WB Games, the video game publishing arm of media conglomerate WB Discovery, has had a pretty solid few years, with big hits like Hogwarts Legacy, Mortal Kombat 1, and LEGO Star Wars: The Skywalker Saga. But its big DC Comics live-service co-op action game, GRAMotham knights, failure. AND Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice Leagueis close online cooperative game also set in the DC universe (and which also seems to be something else from the live service), has seen numerous delays while the fans have reacted negatively to its characteristics. Despite this, WB Games plans to make further games like Gotham Knights and suicide squad in the future.
During the November 8 earnings call, Zaslav opened with a summary of the company’s ongoing projects, finances, and plans in film, television, and gaming. Zaslav called WB Games’ library of popular franchises a true “growth opportunity” and a key asset in its “arsenal.” He also made it clear that single-player games like Arkham City They are not really on the menu anymore.
“Our goal is to transform our biggest franchises, based primarily on consoles and PCs with three- to four-year release schedules, to include more always-available games through live services, cross-platform extensions and free-to-play,” Zaslav explained. “The goal [is to] make more players spend more time on more platforms.”
Additionally, the CEO of WB Discover told investors that this push to create more always-online, live-service video games would help “drive engagement and monetization,” adding that these types of games provide a “significant opportunity for generate greater post-purchase income. .”
In other words, Zaslav wants to release more live service games, like the upcoming suicide squad, because the company can make more money from microtransactions in the long term. And looking how expensive cosmetics are in mortal kombat 1I’m not excited about future WB games and their game stores.
I imagine a lot of people reading this aren’t fans of more games going the live service route, but I don’t think Zaslav cares about that either. has made a habit of making bad decisions that make people angry in recent years.
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