Suicide Squad: Kill The Justice League Release Deemed a 'Disappointment.' Rocksteady Studios' Game Contributes to Worse Results for Warner Bros. Discovery
Warner Bros. Discovery finally admitted that the release of Suicide Squad: Kill The Justice League was a „disappointment” for the company.
Warner Bros. Discovery representatives confirmed that gaming revenues were lower compared to last year, when Hogwarts Legacy was released, while discussing the financial results for the first quarter of 2024. One of the reasons for the worse results turned out to be the February premiere of Suicide Squad: Kill The Justice League, which, according to information provided by the company, "generated significantly lower revenues" compared to those achieved by Avalanche Software's game in the corresponding three-month period.
Starting with Studios, the $400 million+ year-over-year decline during Q1 was primarily due to the very tough comp we faced in games against the success of Hogwart's Legacy last year in the first quarter, in conjunction with the disappointing Suicide Squad release this past quarter, which we impaired, leading to a $200 million impact to EBITDA during the first quarter - explained the CFO of Warner Bros. Discovery, Gunnar Wiedenfels (via IGN).
During an investor meeting, Warner Bros. Discovery CEO David Zaslav openly labeled the debut of the Suicide Squad game as "disappointing." Interestingly, only a few months ago, company representatives claimed that "the title has fallen short of company's expectations." The difference in the tone of speech is therefore perfectly visible.
The dire situation in which Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League found itself from the very premiere results from many factors. One of them is the overall game concept, where players must fight comic book superheroes with Superman at the forefront. The palyers also didn't like the high price of the console versions of the game, $69.99, and the requirement of being online. The final nail in the coffin for Suicide Squad turned out to be the March update introducing the iconic Prince of Crime - Joker, into the game. The problem was that access to the villain required replaying the story or purchasing the character for 10 bucks.
For now, it's unknown how the failure of Suicide Squad will affect the future of Rocksteady studio. Recent events in the industry show that even teams developing popular titles cannot feel confident.
