Warner Bros. Games continues to face turbulent times. Despite having several massive franchises under its belt, the company’s efforts to establish itself in the gaming industry have been met with more failures than successes. Following speculation about Rocksteady Studios and Monolith Productions, it is the latter that has been severely impacted. WB has confirmed that it has shut down Monolith, and cancelled the Wonder Woman game the studio was working on.
“We have had to make some very difficult decisions to structure our development studios and investments around building the best games possible with our key franchises -– Harry Potter, Mortal Kombat, DC and Game of Thrones. After careful consideration, we are closing three of our development studios – Monolith Productions, Player First Games and Warner Bros. Games San Diego. This is a strategic change in direction and not a reflection of these teams or the talent that consists within them,” the company said in a statement to Kotaku.
“The development of Monolith’s Wonder Woman videogame will not move forward. Our hope was to give players and fans the highest quality experience possible for the iconic character, and unfortunately this is no longer possible within our strategic priorities. This is another tough decision, as we recognize Monolith’s storied history of delivering epic fan experiences through amazing games.”
This undoubtedly unpopular move will only further fuel the negative reactions from fans towards the company, especially as Monolith Productions had delivered excellent experiences with Middle-earth: Shadow of Mordor and Shadow of War, underpinned by the innovative Nemesis system. Player First Games, which is behind MultiVersus, will also be shut down, as will WB San Diego, which had been working on an unannounced AAA free-to-play project.
How Warner Bros. Games will move forward will be something to watch, especially with the renewed focus on the four core franchises. Hopefully, the teams still working can achieve success and not face the same fate of beloved studios like Monolith.
