The Rise of the New Super Publishers
With Disney’s acquisition of Marvel, the amount of quality intellectual property that Disney owns is just staggering. Marvel is a force to be reckoned with in most forms of media, with a stable of recognizable characters at their disposal – they also have a notably strong presence in the video game environment, something Disney has typically shied away from. But maybe what we’re seeing here is Disney taking the first steps toward moving head on into the interactive media marketplace.
Think of it like this: SEGA has the rights to develop games based on Iron Man, Thor, Captain America, and The Hulk. Activision has the rights to the X-Men and Wolverine characters as well as the popular Ultimate Alliance series. Capcom just re-released Marvel Vs Capcom 2 for XBLA and PSN. THQ has the rights for the kids-based Marvel Super Hero Squad. Video games are undeniably a big thing for Marvel.
Disney has said they’ll allow these deals to continue. And why not? Disney/Marvel doesn’t need to really invest all that much money (maybe for marketing and making sure the licenses are handled with care) while the publishers and developers of these games take advantage of the characters and their popularity. Up until recently Disney Interactive has been mostly a publisher of Disney licensed property tie-ins by their own internal development studios, but there is reason to believe this might change.
Studios like Avalanche Software, Fall Line Studios, and Propaganda Games have all worked on tie-ins to big Disney movie properties like Hanna Montana and Meet the Robinsons, pushing out these timed tie-ins to their movie counterparts. However, two of Disney’s other studios, Black Rock Studios and Junction Point, are working on more substantial offerings. Black Rock is working on the high octane racer,Split/Second and Junction Point, the new company headed by Warren Spector ofDeux Ex and System Shock fame, is working on a unannounced but often rumored Steampunk game with Disney characters, referred to as “Epic Mickey.”
Disney will stop making licensed based games off its mainstay properties. But what is more conceivable is that one or two of these studios will be moved to work on Marvel-based games after the existing contracts expire with the various publishers involved. Junction Point seems to be the most likely candidate, considering that Warren Spector, the studio head, had experience working on some of the pen and paper role playing game books for Marvel characters.
Disney will have the benefit of being able to move into this space and pick up where many developers have left off, creating sequels or spin offs to the franchises that others have built. That is, if they don’t outright buy the developers working on these games. Now, I’m not saying there is a high risk that Disney is going to buy Vicarious Visions to get them to keep doing Ultimate Alliance titles – but stranger things have happened. What seems more likely is that Disney will keep purchasing up-and-coming developers; this trend is already starting, with the recent buyout of Wideload Games. Wideload Games was created by ex-Bungie alum Alexander Seropian in 2003, and is apparently now working on original game properties for the House of Mouse. It doesn’t take a rocket scientist to figure out that there will probably be more acquisitions in the future, as Disney picks and chooses who to buy as they bolster their talent working on original and licensed properties.
It seems like this may have been a good move for Disney all around, but it’s definitely a power play in the video game space and part of a larger trend of major movie studios moving in as publishers for their own properties rather than licensing them out. The move to buy Marvel was designed to provide an expansion on the groups of licenses Disney could profit from.
A similar story can be found in the recent growth of Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment. Recently, Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment has partnered up with developers to bring a lot of the classic movie licenses back into the public consciousness as video games. Look at the recent Top Gun iPhone game, or the forthcoming The Warriors XBLA title, or even the Grease Wii game. It isn’t a stretch to think that Warner Bros. would love to go out and buy DC comics just to have access to the array of characters there and the ability to take part in DC’s movie and game spaces.
Furthermore, WBIE is doing the same thing that Disney appears to be trying to do. They have an array of properties and developers exploiting them (Harry Potter, Lord of the Rings, Tomb Raider) while others are working on original properties and trying to grow those into mass market titles (Scribblenauts, Mini Ninjas, Condemed, F.E.A.R.). WBIE was even able to pull some of Midway’s properties out of the fire, like This is Vegas and Mortal Kombat. Only time will tell if they can make such a diverse portfolio successful.
The main thing that WBIE appears to be missing is internal development studios that would allow them to maintain a tighter grip on the direction of their properties. This was a problem with games like Justice League Heroes, Watchmen: The End is Nigh, and Wanted: Weapons of Fate; but with partners like EA working on the Harry Potterand Lego Rock Band games, Mini Ninjas at IO interactive, and Scribblenauts at 5thCell, maybe the shaky times at WBIE are over. Purchasing IO Interactive and 5th Cell would be wise decisions – if not that, then WBIE should just enter into long-term development agreements with the developers.
It’s also worth noting that WBIE has WB Chicago (formerly Midway Chicago). While Midway was ineffectively managed before, maybe this migration to WBIE will help them approach games with a new resolve. God knows the last Mortal Kombat game was a travesty – maybe WB will make a new movie and tie the game into it – maybe they’ll approach their properties with new vigor. Again, stranger things have happened.
With movies being more and more expensive, why wouldn’t movie studios want to cash in on the video game market? It’s not like games are cheap to make, but it seems like many of these movie studios come game publishers are getting that video games need more time and can’t be rushed, just to make a tie in date.
What’s even more interesting is that these recently dormant players are moving up into the higher echelons of the publishing industry. They’re just as committed to original games as they are to titles based on existing properties. My guess is that you should expect to see more in the coming months from both Disney Interactive and Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment. Given enough time, maybe they’ll even give Activision and EA a run for their money.
