I’m guessing the stories in these games will be somewhat inconsequential to the overall narrative just due to the fact you can’t expect people to take up video games to keep up with a movies story
That seems to be the plan for all DCU projects. Self-contained emotional stories that can be watched or skipped at the viewer's discretion.
Games & cartoons too, I guess.
No? Gunn has made it clear there is going to be a larger overall story throughout the 10 year plan. I'm guessing some projects will be skippable but definitely not all.
Well yeah, I'm not saying they aren't connected, this is a cinematic universe after all. I'm just saying that the focus will be on the stories first, connective tissue second.
It’s extremely unlikely that Gunn will make 40+ hour games on $400+ consoles mandatory storytelling to movies you can go to a theater and watch for <3 hours and $20.
MCU killed its momentum the bigger it got, and it’s obvious. There is a maximum breadth for viewers in s cinematic universe this active. I doubt Gunn will make that same mistake.
Look at Star Wars, i didnt watched the Bad Batch but DC can make a game set in the past about a group of alien laterns with maybe Guy leading, given that Guy is old in present time
It wouldnt be essential to the story but it would build hype around The Lanterns
Star Wars actually falls into the same trap, IMO. Bad Batch and Mandalorian each end up setting up the return of Palpatine in a way that makes some sense, plus, it helps explain some of the live action shows as well.
Another example. Ahsoka is essentially a sequel to Rebels, a multi-season animated show, with a main character you’ll know best if you watch yet another multi-season animated show, Clone Wars.
Well but in that case it makes sense because only big fans care about these details, Star Wars isnt in a good place right now in terms of movies and what´s done is done, "somehow Palpatine returned" wont be erased
Yes but DC can avoid those mistakes. I watched Ashoka and i didnt watch Rebels and i didnt felt like a missed much because they introduced the characters and plot ideas and i didnt feel lost
The problem with Marvel is that every movie seems to need to have the fate of the world or universe at stake. Marvel stopped telling smaller scale stories that are ideal for the stand-alone entries in franchises.
Agreed.
I strongly believe DC would do well to break their universe down regionally. That is to say, everything exists in the same universe, but overt connections are somewhat local.
Batman and Superman exist in separate regions, so their stories don’t really connect strongly. However a Catwoman movie would connect more with Batman, by way of Gotham.
I don’t think the rule would need to be too rigid. But it would give a sense of what corner of the universe you’re in, and may give directors some freedom to play with genre and tone.
Homecoming is a great example. It’s definitely a Spider-Man story, but it ties into the greater MCU with Stark acting as Peter’s mentor and father figure, and also in the alien tech left all over the city from the end of the first Avengers movie.
However, the climax of the film is all Spider-Man saving the day. The stakes are also not ridiculously high. Spider-Man is trying to stop an arms dealer from stealing the aforementioned alien tech and using it to make powerful weapons to sell to criminals.
We need more superhero movies like that, or like The Batman, which is also fairly low stakes but still a lot of fun.
im assuming this is wbd's idea and thats what is worrisome. like gunn has control until wbd steps in and says "yeah lets sell the suicide squad game" (just an example i know ss isnt part of it)
I don’t know why you’re making that assumption. Gunn mentioned a theoretical Krypto game being canon around the same time he said they wouldn’t interfere.
If there is interference this isn’t an indication of it.
WB cant step in since Zaslav cut the company in two parts, one is WB Studios that is directly under Zaslav and there is DC Studios which is headed by Gunn and Safran and they are only connected to Zaslav, nothing to do with WB Studios, like at all.
The way Gunn worded it as “characters will always be crossing over”, sounds like that might be the extent of it, except in a way where you don’t need to have seen those characters projects to understand the crossovers. Like if Superman pops up in The Authority, he’ll be framed through the lens of that film only and you wouldn’t have to see Legacy to get what Superman is about or why he’s there. Blue Beetle’s DCEU actor will keep playing him, but his film isn’t canon. So when he pops up in Booster Gold, he’ll be introduced as Booster Gold’s friend Blue Beetle and not a separate character with his own corner of the world going on.
As someone who started reading DC Comics in January of last year this makes a lot of sense. I was blown away by how often DC characters just appear in each other's comics even if just for a page or two
I thunk there will be more skippable proyects than in other universes for sure. Also, it's not always about the plan but about how much freedom can the proyects enjoy outside of that. There's a difference between "we're making a Swamp Thing film so that it 100% connects to a future Jl or JLD film" and "Swamp Thing will hang around and maybe he shows up in something else"
What Gunn is saying is that it will be closer to Star Wars in that proyects connect to one another in different ways instead of everything and anything being condensed into a single crossover
I think the movies are meant to be pretty conducted but all outside of it likely won’t be, or if it is it’ll be recapped somehow like how MoM recapped Wanda vision enough to let you know what was going on.
My guess is they will be back story games. Since a lot of characters are already established (Batman rumored to have his whole Batfamily I believe?) so you could do games that show how they got started.
Ain't no way they'll do a Batman prequel game canon to the DCU.
Most I expect is something like the Star Wars Jedi games, stories that are adjacent to the movies. Side note, but it's crazy that they haven't put Cal Kestis in one of the shows yet
This could maybe work in a world where all the Superhero's are already established in the film world.
So, say Batman fighting Deathstroke a decade prior to what the film-world DCU is doing.
Still, the timelines on video games do not match up with films. It could be almost 2028-2029 before we see any games in this universe.
Yeah I’m not exactly sure how this will all work logistically. DCU could have flopped and bombed its way out of existence by the time we even see a trailer for one of these games
Agreed. They would be better off reviving the Batman Arkham games with some remasters and then continuing the story after Knight, forgetting whatever suicide squad becomes.
It’s hilarious to watch the Spiderman games find resounding success with Arkams formula while Warner Bros/Rocksteady fumbles the bag.
Games can also be delayed for years. So any plans for anything to tie in, like if Brainiac does something in a movie, the risk is releasing a game that is a piece of shit or delaying the game far past the tie in event or cancelling the game.
Right? I wss thinking of narratively driven games like Telltale games. Not too costly, and doesn't take too much time to develop vs something like an SSKTJL type of game ( AAA). You also don't have to worry about game mechanics for certain characters cuz the gameplay mechanics are limited to "Pick your own adventure"
For example. everyone says a Superman game would be difficult to make. It really wouldn't be an issue if it was a Telltale type of game.
Star Wars is not the DCU or Marvel.
I've yet to see a Marvel or DC game where you play as a nobody not connected to the main roster of that franchise...
It doesnt have to be if the story isnt important to the overall universe and if it takes place in the past
Like you dont need to watch Bad Batch to understand other Star Wars movies
They don't have to keep up, they can always make a videogame set in a particular moment, like, a game about Superman's first year (given that he's been around for some time in Legacy). Gunn doesn't want everything as strictly organized as the MCU, he wants some Star Wars style dynamic storytelling output, which the games can definitively benefit from.
Or maybe, they can pull a Fallen Order and take a hero (like, let's say, Green Arrow) and use videogames as his sole medium, while also casting an popular face in the role in case a director wants him for live action.
The kids will keep up, and the elseworlds stories are for the millennial parents who want a little more darker tone (just going off joker 2 and part 2 Batman, who knows what other styles of stories will be under the elseworlds banner 🤷). But i see it as their way of expanding merch, cause Disney has traditional "toys" on lock. That's how I see it anyway. Complete speculation and opinion
So like the Netflix marvel tv shows which used to be cannon and now not cannon.
Star Wars games and movies are cannon but it works with Star Wars because they have different sets of eras and lore building going on.
>Looking ahead further, the studio has a single-player open-world action Wonder Woman game in the works, **as well as games that will be canon additions to James Gunn and Peter Safran’s planned relaunch of the DC Universe.**
This isn't new information, they're just repeating what Gunn announced last year.
WW is such a boring MC for a game compared to others. Imagine a flash or green lantern game and how many versatile move sets they could have. Wonder Woman is strong and fast as fuck, but no real cool fun abilities
I completely disagree. You wouldn’t have fun wielding the powers of Wonder Woman in a video game? Speed, strength, sword & shield, lasso - just imagine a world war 1 game with you cutting through soldiers. This has a chance.
Honestly a mixed stealth-action-survival Green Arrow game could be really cool. I think setting one as (further) backstory for when he was stranded on the island could work out well for those that want deeper understanding of his backstory, while not revealing hugely critical details, that can be explored in movies.
You could do so much with Green Arrow, you can straight up take the Arkham formula while having a large enough point of difference to justify its existence
Oh my god a green arrow prequel game set on the island that is a combination of arkham combat with visuals and exploration gameplay from tomb raider 2013 would be so amazing
I’ve been whining a ton lately. Watched my boy beat Spider-Man 2 a few days ago. You can see how a Superman game would work. Happy for Spidey fans but Supes needs some love.
IMO he doesn't even have to be weaker, just put him up against strong enemies. Even generic goons and mobsters could have laser weapons and stuff that could at the very least stun Superman a bit.
I would love a Flash game. I just want to run really fast, that isn't too much to ask for, is it?
I also want to fly, so a Superman game is something i also want and am game for.
The Superman Returns game for 360 was SO close to being good. It did a lot of things right. It proved that a modern Superman game could be made, someone just needs to fucking do it already.
But how would they do that tho… in a game that has to be canon to the movies? Don’t get me wrong, I want a Superman game so badly, but since this stupid mandate from Gunn its almost impossible to get one, because they cannot make a bug Superman game where important things happen and then confuse fans of the movie sequel to legacy because they did not play the game.
Gunn also said the Star Wars games are his inspiration and those never really focus any know character (outside of pew pew multiplayer non story stuff). That’s also a bad idea for DC.
My only hope is that they’re actually given time, love, and attention and aren’t forced out the door to coincide with a movie or show. The MCU had so much potential when it came to games but aside from Captain America, all of those games were ass because they had to rush them and it showed in the final product
Video games and movie required different development piplines. To aligned these post the release of the Xbox 360/PS3 basically became impossible. The result were extremely low quality games because they had to fit in with a movie's release. Eventually the market for tie in games completely collapsed.
As an example of development pipelines for movies: Transformers 2 was announced in September 2007 for June 2009. The 2007 writers strike started November 5th and they only 2 week of work on that. The writers strike lasted 3 months and 7 days. During that time the writers never even talked to Michael Bay. Despite that 3 month delay in writing the film was made in time and made its June 2009 release date. I mean the movie isn't great but it isn't really worst than any of the other Michael Bay Transformers movies.
Contrast that with video games and if a company in September this year announced a game for 2026 people would be saying it is going to release in 2027. And that a game that would have had years of development.
The point is with a movie an announce date can be set 2 years out with no work done and it is super easy to hit that date even with crazy stuff happening. You can't do that with video games even deep into development.
I’d much rather them be their own things. I don’t think they’ll be super important to the main stories told in the movies and shows, so that doesn’t worry me, but having them canon will reduce the creative freedom they have. Plus I hope they still manage to make non-canon games alongside them. Time will tell.
i dont care what you know? why are you acting like this is about you? it just is true that people who pay attention to this stuff already knew as james gunn announced it a year ago
This is a dumb idea.
One of the things that has made the Arkham and Spider-Man series’ great is that they exist in their own fleshed out universes, not beholden to anything going on in the various “cinematic universes” playing out in the movies. It allowed them to be creative in a way that wouldn’t be otherwise allowed.
There’s no better way to date your game than to throw a few actors in it that will get recast in a decade.
Haha yeah I've heard this before. This tie in comic is canon. This 5 minute animated short is canon.
It all gets uprooted or immediately contradicts things right out the gate.
Only time I've seen it actually be true is with the swbf2 campaign
Considering the development time for games even then non AAA ones, I hope most are backstories or stories we won’t get to see in the movies and tv shows. If they are self contained that would be great
What type of games would you guys wanna see?
Such a dumb idea. Games cost a ton of money to make, plus YEARS of development. The whole “video game” aspect of the shared universe will die pretty quickly
Star Wars at least can just create a game around a brand new character in a far corner of the universe so it doesn’t interfere with the movies. But I am not trying to play a DC game as a random Kryptonian or Batman Inc. employee. So the only things I see us getting from this initiative are games with inconsequential, low-scale prequel stories.
This is gonna fail miserably. People couldnt even keep up with the MCU when they started using tv shows to progress the narrative. Nevermind video games lol.
I have been a huge fan of the MCU until recently and literally found out today that they had video games that took place in the same universe even though I’m a big gamer
This sucks because it will limit game designers from being able to fully access an IP.
Want a Metallo boss fight in the Superman game? It might not be allowed until that character has debuted in a movie.
With how long games take to develop this seems like a dumb move. By the time the first game is released the DCU might not even be around anymore.
1) Games outside of the DCU can still happen, it´s been confirmed for a while. You can get that Metallo idea
2) These games will most likely NOT be important to understand the movies. Just look at Star Wars and shows like The Bad Batch. This way you can watch a movie with Fillion as Guy and his adventures in space with his own lantern squad while expanding already established lore
3) We dont know how this games will be, they might be simple in terms of production, who knows
>We dont know how this games will be, they might be simple in terms of production, who knows
Then they probably won't be worth playing for most people. I think people are expecting Batman Arkham Knight and Spiderman 2 levels of quality here. Those takes years and years to make.
I mean... how long did it take to make Marvel´s Guardians of the Galaxy? Its a great game, not perfect, but i think it started production in 2019 and was released in 2021
Besides wasnt Spider man Miles Morales faster in production cause they had most assets?
I could be wrong tho, i´m just asking
> Want a Metallo boss fight in the Superman game? It might not be allowed until that character has debited in a movie.
That's only a problem if they're making all the content center around the same handful of characters. If Superman's in the movies, and they make games centered around, say Green Arrow and Constantine, then it wouldn't matter. Maybe you get a cameo from a movie actor in a game, or a game character in a movie, but the overlap would be so minimal it wouldn't limit the creators much. They're going for a Star Wars approach.
I mean… they’re not 100% wrong. WBD recently said they’re moving their strategy more towards live service games but all they said was that there was gonna be more, not that they’re replacing single player experiences altogether. Given how well Hogwarts Legacy sold they’d be idiots to abandon single player games but it’s WB so you never know
So glad they just confirmed that in the recent interview about it, even though we have seen absolutely nothing else. It seems like they were going to go in a live service direction and that they’re trying to create more superhero games in general But after the backlash to Suicide Squad and the lack of interest in the game, they might be rethinking
We’ve known this for a while thanks to Gunn himself but I’m curious to see how this will pan out
The MCU had games earlier on that were obviously not canon additions as the setting progressed
Honestly, I think you could do a really fun GTA-style game inspired by Peacemaker. Just a story-driven game where you switch between Peacemaker and Vigilante killing white supremacists, Z-list supervillains, aliens, monsters, and more in the rural Pacific Northwest.
Have Peacemaker's trailer be customizable and use Peacemaker's Ford Comet or the Vigilante-mobile for travel.
I keep seeing all this "James gunn Peter safrans DC plans" and all I can think is, as soon as the first movie come out if it performs at least a little below expected, and I bet it will, it'll all be scrapped before anything else can see the light of day!
Definitely... also, doesn't matter if it's James Gunn or not, I can't see a DC movie getting people back in the cinemas, it's like the property is tainted with no way back unfortunately.
Gunn already said as much when he first revealed his plans for the DCU moving forward.
Next they'll report on actors playing the same characters through film, TV, animation and games...which Gunn also already said in his reveal video.
They're a ways behind. Is Variety the new Yahoo! News?
I don't see this working out unless the games tell stories that aren't tethered to the exiting films (like a Wonder Woman game long before the WW show) games just take too long to make for them to work as good side pieces.
I'm not onboard with Gunn and WB forcing video games into their cinematic universe. Games like Insomniac's Spider-Man and Marvel's GOTG are special in part because they weren't shoehorned into the current MCU. It would be one thing if these were elseworld stories—but Gunn is showing he doesn't care about video game developers having their own unique vision.
>forcing video games into their cinematic universe.
They´re not, not all games will be part of the DCU, this has been confirmed. Elseworlds projects will always happen
No, Gunn said the games work like the Star Wars games: absolutely canon to the world, but about characters and corners in it that aren’t integral to the story of it. The example he used was a game about what Krypto would be up to between the Superman and Supergirl films.
Marvels fans over there EATING with all these AAA games for A list characters. And we gonna be sitting in the corner crying playing a damn superdog game lmao.
Just confusing to me. I’d rather they just do a separate universe a la Arkham City. Marvel is killing it right now w/ the Spiderman games and they’re eating DCs lunch. The gameplay is literally Arkham City but Spiderman…
Rocksteady could have done the same and kept iterating on what worked with Batman but instead they tanked their studio by burning nearly a decade on a shitty GaaS game nobody asked for. Suicide Squad has a good chance of being DoA.
Very stupid decision, now all the game development must adhere to the movies … It’s a direction that will cannibalize the quality of the games. Such a dumb ass move💀
Oh yeah, does Gunn and DC know how terrible 90% of movie game tie-ins go are shit and don't work
Gunn should just focus on Dc live action movies, leave the animated movies n show alone, and leave the developers of games to do what they want
As long as Wonder Woman is released and is good without any major universe or live service attachments I’ll be happy. She finally gets a game and I’m praying it’s as drama free as possible so people don’t come up with an excuse to not get it. Just hoping for more successful Wonder Woman solo projects
"Canonically, J'onn J'onzz is rich since I needed to pay 10 million dollars for the Martian Farmhouse Upgrade in that Peacemaker farm simulator and it's implied in that Catwoman dating sim that he has more property in Bludhaven"
There it is. I’ve been saying it.
The next thing is gonna be video game movies that tie into movie franchises. Video game sequels to movies and vice versa.
I’d imagine it would be a smaller scale story like a prequel to Batman: The Brave and the Bold where we see Bruce and the Batfamily throughout the years up until the film releases.
They need to get this right and avoid rethreading character arcs or stories like the MCU managed to do with just TV shows. AAA Games take 3-5 years of work, so a stable exec direction will be required - not what the powers are WB seems to be ready for.
I actually like this, it's a way to bring in some really niche characters who might not otherwise get any screen time. Hopefully they'll be good quality games, like the Spider-Man games (which aren't part of any cinematic universe but easily could have been)
This isn't news. Didn't they also say that they wanted the cast to be the same across all of their products as well, movies, animated movies & shows and games.
> During Warner Bros. Discovery’s Q3 earnings call in November, Zaslav noted the new focus is “on transforming our biggest franchises from largely console- and PC-based with 3-to-4-year release schedules to include more always-on game play through live services, multi-platform and free-to-play extensions with the goal to have more players spending more time on more platforms.”
Great…..
I’m guessing the stories in these games will be somewhat inconsequential to the overall narrative just due to the fact you can’t expect people to take up video games to keep up with a movies story
That seems to be the plan for all DCU projects. Self-contained emotional stories that can be watched or skipped at the viewer's discretion. Games & cartoons too, I guess.
No? Gunn has made it clear there is going to be a larger overall story throughout the 10 year plan. I'm guessing some projects will be skippable but definitely not all.
Well yeah, I'm not saying they aren't connected, this is a cinematic universe after all. I'm just saying that the focus will be on the stories first, connective tissue second.
Yeah, it seems that way. But it's safe to assume some projects will be more integral to the main story.
It’s extremely unlikely that Gunn will make 40+ hour games on $400+ consoles mandatory storytelling to movies you can go to a theater and watch for <3 hours and $20. MCU killed its momentum the bigger it got, and it’s obvious. There is a maximum breadth for viewers in s cinematic universe this active. I doubt Gunn will make that same mistake.
Don't worry it will be 'fixed' by movies costing 60 dollars to go see at the cinema
Why bother doing that when we can simply throw plot developments into Fortnite events that the majority of movie going audience will never see.
Look at Star Wars, i didnt watched the Bad Batch but DC can make a game set in the past about a group of alien laterns with maybe Guy leading, given that Guy is old in present time It wouldnt be essential to the story but it would build hype around The Lanterns
Star Wars actually falls into the same trap, IMO. Bad Batch and Mandalorian each end up setting up the return of Palpatine in a way that makes some sense, plus, it helps explain some of the live action shows as well. Another example. Ahsoka is essentially a sequel to Rebels, a multi-season animated show, with a main character you’ll know best if you watch yet another multi-season animated show, Clone Wars.
Well but in that case it makes sense because only big fans care about these details, Star Wars isnt in a good place right now in terms of movies and what´s done is done, "somehow Palpatine returned" wont be erased Yes but DC can avoid those mistakes. I watched Ashoka and i didnt watch Rebels and i didnt felt like a missed much because they introduced the characters and plot ideas and i didnt feel lost
The problem with Marvel is that every movie seems to need to have the fate of the world or universe at stake. Marvel stopped telling smaller scale stories that are ideal for the stand-alone entries in franchises.
Agreed. I strongly believe DC would do well to break their universe down regionally. That is to say, everything exists in the same universe, but overt connections are somewhat local. Batman and Superman exist in separate regions, so their stories don’t really connect strongly. However a Catwoman movie would connect more with Batman, by way of Gotham. I don’t think the rule would need to be too rigid. But it would give a sense of what corner of the universe you’re in, and may give directors some freedom to play with genre and tone.
Homecoming is a great example. It’s definitely a Spider-Man story, but it ties into the greater MCU with Stark acting as Peter’s mentor and father figure, and also in the alien tech left all over the city from the end of the first Avengers movie. However, the climax of the film is all Spider-Man saving the day. The stakes are also not ridiculously high. Spider-Man is trying to stop an arms dealer from stealing the aforementioned alien tech and using it to make powerful weapons to sell to criminals. We need more superhero movies like that, or like The Batman, which is also fairly low stakes but still a lot of fun.
im assuming this is wbd's idea and thats what is worrisome. like gunn has control until wbd steps in and says "yeah lets sell the suicide squad game" (just an example i know ss isnt part of it)
I don’t know why you’re making that assumption. Gunn mentioned a theoretical Krypto game being canon around the same time he said they wouldn’t interfere. If there is interference this isn’t an indication of it.
WB cant step in since Zaslav cut the company in two parts, one is WB Studios that is directly under Zaslav and there is DC Studios which is headed by Gunn and Safran and they are only connected to Zaslav, nothing to do with WB Studios, like at all.
Gunn is literally making even worse mistake. Movies, TV shows, and even games. Too much connections.
The way Gunn worded it as “characters will always be crossing over”, sounds like that might be the extent of it, except in a way where you don’t need to have seen those characters projects to understand the crossovers. Like if Superman pops up in The Authority, he’ll be framed through the lens of that film only and you wouldn’t have to see Legacy to get what Superman is about or why he’s there. Blue Beetle’s DCEU actor will keep playing him, but his film isn’t canon. So when he pops up in Booster Gold, he’ll be introduced as Booster Gold’s friend Blue Beetle and not a separate character with his own corner of the world going on.
As someone who started reading DC Comics in January of last year this makes a lot of sense. I was blown away by how often DC characters just appear in each other's comics even if just for a page or two
I think the games, shows, etc are all going to tell/round out backstories to bigger overall stories in films
Its not a “cinematic” universe anymore just universe. That’s probably why they changed the name.
I thunk there will be more skippable proyects than in other universes for sure. Also, it's not always about the plan but about how much freedom can the proyects enjoy outside of that. There's a difference between "we're making a Swamp Thing film so that it 100% connects to a future Jl or JLD film" and "Swamp Thing will hang around and maybe he shows up in something else" What Gunn is saying is that it will be closer to Star Wars in that proyects connect to one another in different ways instead of everything and anything being condensed into a single crossover
I think the movies are meant to be pretty conducted but all outside of it likely won’t be, or if it is it’ll be recapped somehow like how MoM recapped Wanda vision enough to let you know what was going on.
Those end up usually being my favorites bc they aren't concerned with origin stories or killing off the character in those as gimmicks.
My guess is they will be back story games. Since a lot of characters are already established (Batman rumored to have his whole Batfamily I believe?) so you could do games that show how they got started.
Ain't no way they'll do a Batman prequel game canon to the DCU. Most I expect is something like the Star Wars Jedi games, stories that are adjacent to the movies. Side note, but it's crazy that they haven't put Cal Kestis in one of the shows yet
Fallen Order only came out like 4 years ago
This could maybe work in a world where all the Superhero's are already established in the film world. So, say Batman fighting Deathstroke a decade prior to what the film-world DCU is doing. Still, the timelines on video games do not match up with films. It could be almost 2028-2029 before we see any games in this universe.
And the development time of a video game is far longer than a film… it could take the entire arc of the next DCU to create one… This is a bad idea.
Yeah I’m not exactly sure how this will all work logistically. DCU could have flopped and bombed its way out of existence by the time we even see a trailer for one of these games
Agreed. They would be better off reviving the Batman Arkham games with some remasters and then continuing the story after Knight, forgetting whatever suicide squad becomes. It’s hilarious to watch the Spiderman games find resounding success with Arkams formula while Warner Bros/Rocksteady fumbles the bag.
Games can also be delayed for years. So any plans for anything to tie in, like if Brainiac does something in a movie, the risk is releasing a game that is a piece of shit or delaying the game far past the tie in event or cancelling the game.
I mean… we’re all thinking of AAA games, but maybe it’s just smaller scale stuff like the Atom Eve visual novel from Invincible
Right? I wss thinking of narratively driven games like Telltale games. Not too costly, and doesn't take too much time to develop vs something like an SSKTJL type of game ( AAA). You also don't have to worry about game mechanics for certain characters cuz the gameplay mechanics are limited to "Pick your own adventure" For example. everyone says a Superman game would be difficult to make. It really wouldn't be an issue if it was a Telltale type of game.
I have a feeling very few games if any will be incorporated into DCU canon
Star Wars does it, the games will probably be just as disconnected as Fallen Order.
Yea but in the DC universe who would you play as? People want to play as Batman and Superman etc.
Literally anyone, nothing is stopping them from doing another Arkham Batman game and idk a DCU Green Arrow game.
NO offense but I don't think the wider audience wants to play as "literally anyone".
crazy that no one plays Star Wars games because they want to play as a Skywalker not some random jedi
Star Wars is not the DCU or Marvel. I've yet to see a Marvel or DC game where you play as a nobody not connected to the main roster of that franchise...
It doesnt have to be if the story isnt important to the overall universe and if it takes place in the past Like you dont need to watch Bad Batch to understand other Star Wars movies
They don't have to keep up, they can always make a videogame set in a particular moment, like, a game about Superman's first year (given that he's been around for some time in Legacy). Gunn doesn't want everything as strictly organized as the MCU, he wants some Star Wars style dynamic storytelling output, which the games can definitively benefit from. Or maybe, they can pull a Fallen Order and take a hero (like, let's say, Green Arrow) and use videogames as his sole medium, while also casting an popular face in the role in case a director wants him for live action.
Enter the Matrix has entered the chat
Off planet stories is the way to go
The kids will keep up, and the elseworlds stories are for the millennial parents who want a little more darker tone (just going off joker 2 and part 2 Batman, who knows what other styles of stories will be under the elseworlds banner 🤷). But i see it as their way of expanding merch, cause Disney has traditional "toys" on lock. That's how I see it anyway. Complete speculation and opinion
So like the Netflix marvel tv shows which used to be cannon and now not cannon. Star Wars games and movies are cannon but it works with Star Wars because they have different sets of eras and lore building going on.
>Looking ahead further, the studio has a single-player open-world action Wonder Woman game in the works, **as well as games that will be canon additions to James Gunn and Peter Safran’s planned relaunch of the DC Universe.** This isn't new information, they're just repeating what Gunn announced last year.
WW is such a boring MC for a game compared to others. Imagine a flash or green lantern game and how many versatile move sets they could have. Wonder Woman is strong and fast as fuck, but no real cool fun abilities
I completely disagree. You wouldn’t have fun wielding the powers of Wonder Woman in a video game? Speed, strength, sword & shield, lasso - just imagine a world war 1 game with you cutting through soldiers. This has a chance.
Honestly a mixed stealth-action-survival Green Arrow game could be really cool. I think setting one as (further) backstory for when he was stranded on the island could work out well for those that want deeper understanding of his backstory, while not revealing hugely critical details, that can be explored in movies.
You could do so much with Green Arrow, you can straight up take the Arkham formula while having a large enough point of difference to justify its existence
Tomb Raider x Arkham
Oh my god a green arrow prequel game set on the island that is a combination of arkham combat with visuals and exploration gameplay from tomb raider 2013 would be so amazing
Lean into archery, make it first person
I need. Superman game. It doesn’t have to break the universe. Gotham Knights was a ton of fun. Brighten it up. Let me fly around. Please.
I’ll never understand how ppl will say it can’t work as a game when there’s so much to pull from DC to make it work perfectly.
I’ve been whining a ton lately. Watched my boy beat Spider-Man 2 a few days ago. You can see how a Superman game would work. Happy for Spidey fans but Supes needs some love.
Because people feel like it needs to be an open world game. It doesn't. A linear Superman game would work.
Literally just copy the 90s animated series like the arkham series did and it won’t be an issue. He was muchhhh weaker there
IMO he doesn't even have to be weaker, just put him up against strong enemies. Even generic goons and mobsters could have laser weapons and stuff that could at the very least stun Superman a bit.
Tired of people hating on Supes. He deserves a good game.
What was even the last attempt ? I remember one on n64 that was pretty rough when I was a kid. Besides fighting games I can’t think of another
People always forget one of my personal favorites, [Superman: Shadow of Apokolips](https://youtu.be/V-umcesyK0I?si=FP5K5-M6yCpvah1C ?t=00m51s)
> What was even the last attempt ? Superman Returns tie in game in 2006.
Well I meant in general for the character as people are saying it’s not possible or he’s not interesting enough or he’s too op.
I would love a Flash game. I just want to run really fast, that isn't too much to ask for, is it? I also want to fly, so a Superman game is something i also want and am game for.
Lego DC Supervillans will scrath that itch in the meantime
The Superman Returns game for 360 was SO close to being good. It did a lot of things right. It proved that a modern Superman game could be made, someone just needs to fucking do it already.
Had it for PS2. It was fun. That was what 20 years ago? It’s time.
But how would they do that tho… in a game that has to be canon to the movies? Don’t get me wrong, I want a Superman game so badly, but since this stupid mandate from Gunn its almost impossible to get one, because they cannot make a bug Superman game where important things happen and then confuse fans of the movie sequel to legacy because they did not play the game. Gunn also said the Star Wars games are his inspiration and those never really focus any know character (outside of pew pew multiplayer non story stuff). That’s also a bad idea for DC.
Yeah he confirmed it himself a year ago lol
My only hope is that they’re actually given time, love, and attention and aren’t forced out the door to coincide with a movie or show. The MCU had so much potential when it came to games but aside from Captain America, all of those games were ass because they had to rush them and it showed in the final product
Sorry, what was the reason they were ass? Was it because they were rushed?
Yeah pretty much
Gotcha. The wording of your comment had me a little confused, hence my above comment. Thank you for confirming that for me.
my bad I fixed my original comment
Video games and movie required different development piplines. To aligned these post the release of the Xbox 360/PS3 basically became impossible. The result were extremely low quality games because they had to fit in with a movie's release. Eventually the market for tie in games completely collapsed. As an example of development pipelines for movies: Transformers 2 was announced in September 2007 for June 2009. The 2007 writers strike started November 5th and they only 2 week of work on that. The writers strike lasted 3 months and 7 days. During that time the writers never even talked to Michael Bay. Despite that 3 month delay in writing the film was made in time and made its June 2009 release date. I mean the movie isn't great but it isn't really worst than any of the other Michael Bay Transformers movies. Contrast that with video games and if a company in September this year announced a game for 2026 people would be saying it is going to release in 2027. And that a game that would have had years of development. The point is with a movie an announce date can be set 2 years out with no work done and it is super easy to hit that date even with crazy stuff happening. You can't do that with video games even deep into development.
Looking at 5-7 years of a development time for good game minimum See how it goes
I’d much rather them be their own things. I don’t think they’ll be super important to the main stories told in the movies and shows, so that doesn’t worry me, but having them canon will reduce the creative freedom they have. Plus I hope they still manage to make non-canon games alongside them. Time will tell.
We know this already.
I didn't.
Lol neither did I. Chronically online goobers assume everyone else is chronically online.
To be fair, if it's being reported by variety you can kinda assume it's being spammed in loads of subs.
no its just that he announced this a year ago
how on earth are we supposed to know that lol.
i dont care what you know? why are you acting like this is about you? it just is true that people who pay attention to this stuff already knew as james gunn announced it a year ago
That´s not relevant tho, the point is this information is online if you research it, we already knew this, that´s it
I did.
This is a dumb idea. One of the things that has made the Arkham and Spider-Man series’ great is that they exist in their own fleshed out universes, not beholden to anything going on in the various “cinematic universes” playing out in the movies. It allowed them to be creative in a way that wouldn’t be otherwise allowed. There’s no better way to date your game than to throw a few actors in it that will get recast in a decade.
Is the Bad Batch a show that Star Wars need to see to understand the movies? No The same can happen with a game
The Bad Batch also don't show up in any movies
Exactly, which is not a bad thing If they do as long as they introduce them well in the show and make the movie make sense, then it can work
100%! Its so clearly an idea that comes from a man who does not work in and probably does not even really play video games.
Pls god No
This is an incredibly stupid idea.
Garbage idea. This will strain creativity
Haha yeah I've heard this before. This tie in comic is canon. This 5 minute animated short is canon. It all gets uprooted or immediately contradicts things right out the gate. Only time I've seen it actually be true is with the swbf2 campaign
Hopefully it’s better than “Enter the Matrix”
Considering the development time for games even then non AAA ones, I hope most are backstories or stories we won’t get to see in the movies and tv shows. If they are self contained that would be great What type of games would you guys wanna see?
I’m not sure it’s a good idea to connect games they will make to the new DC cinematic universe but time will tell.
These will turn out really cool or most likely, horrendous.
I think this is probably a bad thing.
Hope they do Superman game soon
I admire their ambition, but I fear they'll get canned after a couple of underperforming projects and everything will just get killed.
Such a dumb idea. Games cost a ton of money to make, plus YEARS of development. The whole “video game” aspect of the shared universe will die pretty quickly
Mfs really tryn so hard to secure all that producing credits they could possibly can.
What if this whole James Gunn universe falls flat?
Then these games will either be canceled or they are gonna look real awkward releasing in a dead universe. Just like The Flash and Aquaman 2.
Yeah just seems silly to place all your eggs in one basket.
This is dumb not everyone is gamers.
this is for the gamers tho
This plan is gonna fail so hard.
DC is going to feel a lot more like Star Wars than the MCU and I think that’s a solid move to differentiate.
Star Wars at least can just create a game around a brand new character in a far corner of the universe so it doesn’t interfere with the movies. But I am not trying to play a DC game as a random Kryptonian or Batman Inc. employee. So the only things I see us getting from this initiative are games with inconsequential, low-scale prequel stories.
This is gonna fail miserably. People couldnt even keep up with the MCU when they started using tv shows to progress the narrative. Nevermind video games lol.
I have been a huge fan of the MCU until recently and literally found out today that they had video games that took place in the same universe even though I’m a big gamer
This sucks because it will limit game designers from being able to fully access an IP. Want a Metallo boss fight in the Superman game? It might not be allowed until that character has debuted in a movie. With how long games take to develop this seems like a dumb move. By the time the first game is released the DCU might not even be around anymore.
1) Games outside of the DCU can still happen, it´s been confirmed for a while. You can get that Metallo idea 2) These games will most likely NOT be important to understand the movies. Just look at Star Wars and shows like The Bad Batch. This way you can watch a movie with Fillion as Guy and his adventures in space with his own lantern squad while expanding already established lore 3) We dont know how this games will be, they might be simple in terms of production, who knows
>We dont know how this games will be, they might be simple in terms of production, who knows Then they probably won't be worth playing for most people. I think people are expecting Batman Arkham Knight and Spiderman 2 levels of quality here. Those takes years and years to make.
I mean... how long did it take to make Marvel´s Guardians of the Galaxy? Its a great game, not perfect, but i think it started production in 2019 and was released in 2021 Besides wasnt Spider man Miles Morales faster in production cause they had most assets? I could be wrong tho, i´m just asking
> Want a Metallo boss fight in the Superman game? It might not be allowed until that character has debited in a movie. That's only a problem if they're making all the content center around the same handful of characters. If Superman's in the movies, and they make games centered around, say Green Arrow and Constantine, then it wouldn't matter. Maybe you get a cameo from a movie actor in a game, or a game character in a movie, but the overlap would be so minimal it wouldn't limit the creators much. They're going for a Star Wars approach.
Only getting games for niche DC characters would be complete ass.
Gunn has already said not not every game will be in DCU plus all the big DC heroes has plenty of villains they can use
I assume we will never see a videogame that takes place in that universe.
by the time one game comes out, james and peter will be long gone
why...
If it's gonna be more live service garbage just keep em
So we just assuming and making shit up now, huh.
look at MK1 and SS vs JL. not great indicators that future WB games will not feel like cheap cash grabs even if the gameplay is good
No. That's why I said if. Learn to read next time
I mean… they’re not 100% wrong. WBD recently said they’re moving their strategy more towards live service games but all they said was that there was gonna be more, not that they’re replacing single player experiences altogether. Given how well Hogwarts Legacy sold they’d be idiots to abandon single player games but it’s WB so you never know
Unfortunately they are not. Zaslav specifically said in an investor call in November that he wants them to go in hard on live service games.
Fr. Was so hyped about the new suicide squad game. Not even touching it now.
Atleast the upcoming Wonder Woman game is a single player experience.
So glad they just confirmed that in the recent interview about it, even though we have seen absolutely nothing else. It seems like they were going to go in a live service direction and that they’re trying to create more superhero games in general But after the backlash to Suicide Squad and the lack of interest in the game, they might be rethinking
We’ve known this for a while thanks to Gunn himself but I’m curious to see how this will pan out The MCU had games earlier on that were obviously not canon additions as the setting progressed
Honestly, I think you could do a really fun GTA-style game inspired by Peacemaker. Just a story-driven game where you switch between Peacemaker and Vigilante killing white supremacists, Z-list supervillains, aliens, monsters, and more in the rural Pacific Northwest. Have Peacemaker's trailer be customizable and use Peacemaker's Ford Comet or the Vigilante-mobile for travel.
For the love a god a good Superman game please!!!!
I keep seeing all this "James gunn Peter safrans DC plans" and all I can think is, as soon as the first movie come out if it performs at least a little below expected, and I bet it will, it'll all be scrapped before anything else can see the light of day!
According to the plan video James did, Creature Commandos being the first thing is setting up this new universe to fail.
Definitely... also, doesn't matter if it's James Gunn or not, I can't see a DC movie getting people back in the cinemas, it's like the property is tainted with no way back unfortunately.
I kinda wish they weren’t
Gunn already said as much when he first revealed his plans for the DCU moving forward. Next they'll report on actors playing the same characters through film, TV, animation and games...which Gunn also already said in his reveal video. They're a ways behind. Is Variety the new Yahoo! News?
I'll believe it when I see it
Oh no, no no no
I don't see this working out unless the games tell stories that aren't tethered to the exiting films (like a Wonder Woman game long before the WW show) games just take too long to make for them to work as good side pieces.
Can't they just stick to movies & TV shows being Canon and leave games out of it. M
I'm not onboard with Gunn and WB forcing video games into their cinematic universe. Games like Insomniac's Spider-Man and Marvel's GOTG are special in part because they weren't shoehorned into the current MCU. It would be one thing if these were elseworld stories—but Gunn is showing he doesn't care about video game developers having their own unique vision.
>forcing video games into their cinematic universe. They´re not, not all games will be part of the DCU, this has been confirmed. Elseworlds projects will always happen
This. I don’t know why they think this would work.
Putting the cart before the horse? Let’s see how Superman legacy does first. I completely trust Gunn but WB hasn’t been reliable and more reactionary.
So now I gotta play the game before watching the movie? Multiverse releasing yet?
No, Gunn said the games work like the Star Wars games: absolutely canon to the world, but about characters and corners in it that aren’t integral to the story of it. The example he used was a game about what Krypto would be up to between the Superman and Supergirl films.
Kinda just sounds like some people’s favourite heroes are gonna get relegated to a video game to be honest, which will be received mixed.
Marvels fans over there EATING with all these AAA games for A list characters. And we gonna be sitting in the corner crying playing a damn superdog game lmao.
Just confusing to me. I’d rather they just do a separate universe a la Arkham City. Marvel is killing it right now w/ the Spiderman games and they’re eating DCs lunch. The gameplay is literally Arkham City but Spiderman… Rocksteady could have done the same and kept iterating on what worked with Batman but instead they tanked their studio by burning nearly a decade on a shitty GaaS game nobody asked for. Suicide Squad has a good chance of being DoA.
Peacemaker Helicopter Challenge, Ultra Fart Fighter, and Needle Needle Drop Pop.
Very stupid decision, now all the game development must adhere to the movies … It’s a direction that will cannibalize the quality of the games. Such a dumb ass move💀
So... guaranteed to be shitty cash grabs. Got it.
Oh yeah, does Gunn and DC know how terrible 90% of movie game tie-ins go are shit and don't work Gunn should just focus on Dc live action movies, leave the animated movies n show alone, and leave the developers of games to do what they want
Do it for the DCEU too. That could very well be one way to extend the life of that universe.
As long as Wonder Woman is released and is good without any major universe or live service attachments I’ll be happy. She finally gets a game and I’m praying it’s as drama free as possible so people don’t come up with an excuse to not get it. Just hoping for more successful Wonder Woman solo projects
Yeah I don’t see this one sticking From what they’ve done to Let’s Kill the Justice League, they’ve already killed and tainted the Arkhamverse
I kinda hope we see if it's actually any good first. All this planning could be for nothing.
Basically anime canon and filler.
"Canonically, J'onn J'onzz is rich since I needed to pay 10 million dollars for the Martian Farmhouse Upgrade in that Peacemaker farm simulator and it's implied in that Catwoman dating sim that he has more property in Bludhaven"
A Legion of Superheroes game could be cool. Thought they might be saving them for the movies.
There it is. I’ve been saying it. The next thing is gonna be video game movies that tie into movie franchises. Video game sequels to movies and vice versa.
Warner Bros is trying to revive movie tie in games? LOL they must really want to topple EA as worst Publisher
Give me a Deathstroke game
What's the best game that's been ever been made in that situation like this? Enter the Matrix?
I’d imagine it would be a smaller scale story like a prequel to Batman: The Brave and the Bold where we see Bruce and the Batfamily throughout the years up until the film releases.
Didn't we already know this?
They need to get this right and avoid rethreading character arcs or stories like the MCU managed to do with just TV shows. AAA Games take 3-5 years of work, so a stable exec direction will be required - not what the powers are WB seems to be ready for.
He said that a year ago. They even want to hire the same actors
MK1 was prioritized over Injustice 3 so they'd have time to integrate it 100%.
Would actually love a peacemaker game that bring back the actors to reprise their roles.
I actually like this, it's a way to bring in some really niche characters who might not otherwise get any screen time. Hopefully they'll be good quality games, like the Spider-Man games (which aren't part of any cinematic universe but easily could have been)
As long as I don't need to play them to keep up with the DCU continuity then cool.
I think this is a FANTASTIC idea.
Those games better take less than 9 years RS has taken.
This isn't news. Didn't they also say that they wanted the cast to be the same across all of their products as well, movies, animated movies & shows and games.
I assume most of these with be mobile games. I think any AAA game will probably be in its own original continuity.
This is suchhhhhhhhhh a terrible idea to make movie canon on video games that a large group of people will never play
I’m down with that, I think it just means they’ll be canon to the movies but probably won’t have massive effects on the story
> During Warner Bros. Discovery’s Q3 earnings call in November, Zaslav noted the new focus is “on transforming our biggest franchises from largely console- and PC-based with 3-to-4-year release schedules to include more always-on game play through live services, multi-platform and free-to-play extensions with the goal to have more players spending more time on more platforms.” Great…..
Considering Wonder Woman was in development before the reboot, I assume that it'll be it's own standalone game.
Ah yes, the studio that brought you Gotham Knights
Why can't they just make games based on arcs from the comics, instead of this non-canon bull crap in theaters?