Warner Bros. is developing a new live-service DC title amid revenue slump

A new job listing has surfaced at WB Games Montreal, the studio behind Gotham Knights, which reveals that the studio is hiring an executive producer to lead a “high-quality AAA game” based on DC Comics’ IPs, emphasizing “post-launch operations” and a “live-service strategy”. 

Moreover, the studio is looking for a “deep understanding of the full game development lifecycle, including live services.” However, the exact IP and details surrounding the live-service DC Universe game remain undisclosed.

Last year, Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League, developed by Rocksteady, known for the critically acclaimed Arkham series, was met with mixed reviews and fierce backlash for the use of a live-service model and a controversial plot twist that revealed the Justice League to be clones, except for Wonder Woman.

Warner Bros. published its financial results for Q1 2025 and reported a 48% decrease in gaming revenue. As a whole, the studio segment’s total revenues were down 16% i.e. $2.3 billion, compared to the same period in 2024. Overall, Warner Bros. Q1 2025 financial revenue totaled $9 billion, a 9% year-on-year decrease. 

While the detailed specifics for its gaming revenue are not known, much of it is attributed to Suicide Squad: Kill The Justice League. This decline came despite continued success from other IPs, such as Hogwarts Legacy and Mortal Kombat 1, which are reportedly still raking in revenue.

The aftermath was severe, as Warner Bros. cut staff members from Rocksteady, halving its QA Team by September 2024. Moreover, Monolith Productions, Player First Games, and WB Games San Diego were subsequently shut down, axing a potential Wonder Woman game that was rumored to be using the critically praised Nemesis system from Middle-earth: Shadow of Mordor.

More importantly, perhaps, Warner Bros.’ Multiversus, which had all the makings of a worthy contender in a competitive F2P market, enjoyed short-lived success but failed to hold onto its player base in the long term. The game was, as a result, delisted and taken offline on May 30, 2025, even as users who had already downloaded copies retained the ability to engage in local multiplayer and play the game in training mode.

Warner Bros.' gaming division, much like most of its competition, has been going through a rocky period over the past few quarters. As WB Games Montreal gears up for its upcoming live-service project, the gaming community and, perhaps more importantly in this case, financial analysts are keeping a close eye to see if the studio will deliver a winner or stumble amid a competitive and arguably bloated live-service market.