As Warner Bros. Discovery continues to cut content, two other company-owned entertainment properties are bearing the brunt: adult swim games and rooster teeth.
Warner Bros. Discovery (WBD) contacted studios this week with notices saying it would be pulling Adult Swim Games from its online store due to business changes, according to multiple developers.
The removal will take at least 18 games offline as developers scramble to gain control of their IP.
News of WBD’s plans came to light on Wednesday, as indie developer Owen Deery of Fire Face Corp. announced the hyper-realistic adventure puzzle game for PC and PlayStation. small radio big tv, will retire in 60 days. Deery later made the game available as a free PC download on the Fire Face website.
Another indie developer, Team2Bit’s Matt Kain, reviewed the fighting game released by the studio’s Adult Swim Games in an article for Ars Technica fist punch Will also retire. The studio asked WBD to transfer the game to its Steam publisher account, but the mass media group rejected the request.
The company claimed a “lack of resources” to accomplish such a task, leading to the widespread decision not to move the game back to its original studio.
“The transfer process actually takes a minute to start, but their representatives claim they just made a general decision not to transfer the game to the original creator,” Kane wrote on Steam.
“I’m not entirely sure what would happen if the game was taken down, but the thought of a purchased game potentially being removed from the user library makes me sick. Our community and players have over 10 years of discussions, screenshots, gameplay footage, Leaderboards, player progress, unlocked characters, Steam achievements, Steam cards, etc., these can all be lost. We had Kickstarter backers who helped fund Fist Puncher (and some even made cameos in the game), but they ended up Will no longer be able to play this game.”
Kane said the studio “continues to urge” WBD to transfer Riot back, and if it doesn’t, the studio may re-release it under its own account since it still owns the game and IP.
In an interview with Polygon, WBD told Michael Molinari of Studio Bean, another developer in the same situation, that an ownership transfer was impossible due to “logistical and resource constraints.”A Molinari representative interviewed said that Studio Bean is welcome to re-release its rhythm-action barrage hybrid game Sound source+ on Steam; however, the developer says that doing so will “remove all my wishlists, reviews, community guides, and forum discussions, and will not allow new and existing owners of the game to compare achievements and trading cards.”
WBD also informed Molinari that if the game is re-released, the studio is required by law to remove any mention of Adult Swim Games from the credits, including the names of Adult Swim Games team members.
“I’m a big proponent of game preservation, and this is a direct blow to properly valuing game developers,” Molinari said.
Whether WBD will eventually shut down Adult Swim is unknown; however, since it hasn’t released a game since 2020, it’s possible, especially considering the multimedia company continues to cancel games and remove games from its streams Popular shows and animated products are removed from media services. In 2022, the company will batgirl Despite a production cost of US$90 million, the film was scrapped that year. Scooby-Doo! :Holiday Haunted.
In late 2023, WBD decided not to release its $70 million live-action hybrid Coyote VS Acme. Starring John Cena and Will Forte, the studio allowed the filmmakers to buy the film, but the company ultimately rejected offers from Amazon, Netflix and Paramount.
That trend continued this week when news broke red and blue studio rooster teeth Closing doors.
The company was founded in 2003 and has expanded over the years from live-action films to animation, games, podcasts and other media ventures. The company has changed hands several times since its founding, later partnering with Warner Bros. Discovery, and has faced controversy over accusations of sexual harassment, discriminatory behavior and fostering a culture of overtime.
After news of the studio’s fate surfaced, the Rooster Teeth website posted a memo written by general manager Jordan Levin, noting “challenges facing digital media” as well as “consumer behavior, cross-platform monetization , advertising and sponsorship” ultimately led to the studio’s bankruptcy. to close.
WBD is seeking outside interest to acquire various Rooster Teeth assets and the Roost Podcast Network.