Game revenue fell 41% year-on-year in the second quarter of 2024, “Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League” caused a commercial disaster, and layoffs were reported, Warner Bros. needed a crackdown. The publisher is reportedly considering giving them a sequel to Hogwarts Legacy. A Warner Bros. Discovery Channel executive said this week that a follow-up to 2023’s best-selling game is one of the studio’s top priorities.
Hogwarts Legacy sequel is ‘one of Warner Bros.’ biggest priorities’
Speaking at a conference on Wednesday (via Variety ), Warner Bros. Discovery CFO Gunnar Wiedenfels said a direct sequel to “Hogwarts Legacy” is a goal for the studio in the next few years.
“Obviously, the successor to ‘Hogwarts Legacy’ is one of the most important priorities over the next few years,” Weidenfels reportedly told the Bank of America 2024 Media, Communications and Entertainment Conference. “So it will definitely contribute significantly to growth. [games] business in our strategic outlook,” he added.
It’s no surprise that Warner Bros. has high hopes for the Hogwarts Legacy sequel. Avalanche Software’s Wizarding World game was the hottest game of 2023, selling more than 22 million copies by the end of the year. Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment president David Haddad claimed earlier this year that the game sold 2 million copies during the Christmas holiday alone.
‘Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League’ is underwhelming
However, Warner Bros. Games has struggled to replicate – or even come close to – this success with subsequent releases. “Suicide Squad: Killing the Justice League” was the studio’s main AAA film this year, but it suffered a major commercial failure, causing the company to lose $200 million. Warner Bros. said in its first-quarter 2024 earnings report: “Game revenue declined significantly due to the success of Hogwarts Legacy last quarter and the release of Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League in the first quarter of this year.”
In the second quarter of this year, Warner Bros. reported a 41% year-over-year decline in game revenue, mainly due to the weak performance of “Suicide Squad.” Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League is a real-time looter shooter that received middling reviews and low player interest from the start. Players have criticized the game’s live service model, especially from developer Rocksteady, known for its high-quality single-player games in the Batman Arkham series.
Weidenfels also reportedly admitted that Suicide Squad was a “failure” in his latest review.
Earlier this week, WB launched Harry Potter: Quidditch Champions , another Wizarding World game focused on the magical sports of the world of Harry Potter, across PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series S/X.
