Internal struggles within Disney have many of its executives looking at the gaming industry according to a recent by Bloomberg. Apparently, many Disney Execs have been floating around transforming the company from game licensing to a “gaming giant” to it’s CEO Bob Iger.
Bob Iger’s deputies want him to turn Disney into a gaming giant, “through, say, an acquisition of Electronic Arts”
Iger so far has been noncommittal
via Bloomberg @BW pic.twitter.com/Rvev5L1KVE
— ScreenTime (@screentime) October 10, 2023
This wouldn’t be the first time Disney’s ventured into gaming territory. One of it’s more popular series, Kingdom Hearts, was a collaboration between it and Square Enix. In recent years, Disney has had a bigger roll in development with the recent Star Wars games by Respawn Entertainment, who’s owned by Electronic Arts (EA).
Regardless, Iger remains noncommittal about the idea. With the WGA writers’s strike coming to an end, there’s a possibility that Disney may bounce back thanks to the many reforms they’ll be making when it comes to their TV and Movies content.
Even if Disney were to move into making more video game content, their studio selection would be limited depending on what franchise they wanted to work with. For example, EA had a ten-year exclusivity contract for Star Wars games. Now, EA struck one with Disney again, this time for Marvel.
If they wanted to, Disney could acquire EA, but they would more than likely face major federal opposition similar to Microsoft’s ongoing acquisition of Activision Blizzard.
But despite Iger’s ambivalence, the reception to Disney’s recent games like Disney Dreamlight Valley provide are sure to provide him an example of all the potential an emphasis into gaming content could bring to the company. But only time will tell.
Fans who are curious about where Disney is headed next should follow their social media channels and stay up to date on their official website.