Warner Bros Discovery announced that its gaming revenue fell 41% year-on-year in the second quarter, partly due to sales of Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League.
According to the company's fourth-quarter 2024 results released Wednesday, all major segments, including cinema, television and video games, saw revenue decline compared to the second quarter of 2023.
“Game revenue, excluding FX, declined 41%, primarily due to the weak performance of Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League this year compared to the strong performance of Hogwarts Legacy last year,” the studio said.
Suicide Squad: Kill The Justice League was the company's biggest video game release in recent memory. Developed by Rocksteady, the creators of the Arkham series, the game received mixed reviews and failed to gain a consistent player base.
At the last earnings call in May 2024, Warner Bros Discovery CEO David Zaslav said the difference between the performance of Suicide Squad and that of Hogwarts Legacy last year resulted in “a $200 million impact on EBIDTA [earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortisation] in the first quarter”.
According to Bloomberg, many Rocksteady developers are currently working on a new version of Hogwarts Legacy. After the Batman Arkham studio's difficulties in the live service area, Rocksteady's management is also said to be planning to offer a new single-player title to Warner Bros. Games.
Warner will release another Harry Potter title next month. Harry Potter: Quidditch Champions will be released on September 3, 2024. It will be released for PS5, PS4, Xbox Series X/S, Xbox One, Nintendo Switch, and PC via Steam and the Epic Games Store.
Quidditch Champions has been in development for several years by Los Angeles-based Unbroken Studios, which also worked on the console versions of Rocksteady Studios' Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League.