The maker of D&D Wizards of the Coast has reportedly canceled at least 5 games

Dungeons & Dragons publisher Wizards of the Coast has canceled at least five unannounced video game projects, according to New report from Bloomberg.

Publisher, who also makes Magic: The Gathering Part of the Hasbro toy group, it has made no secret of its ambition to become a major player in video games in recent years, creating and buying development studios, hiring designs and signing deals. It now appears that he is backing away from those plans somewhat.

In a statement to Bloomberg, a Wizards of the Coast spokesperson said it remains “committed to digital gaming,” and has “made some changes to our long-term portfolio to focus on games that are strategically aligned with the development of our existing brands and those that show promise in expanding our reach.” our audience or engaging it in new ways.” In other words, only those projects with the best chance of success escaped execution.

The company said fewer than 15 people will lose their jobs at Wizards of the Coast, but Bloomberg said the cancellations could have a bigger impact on outside studios working on games for the company.

It is not clear exactly what projects have been cancelled. Bloomberg mentions overseas studios Otherside Entertainment and Hidden Path Entertainment, both of which are working on Wizards of the Coast games, as well as two other outdoor projects and one indoor game that were early in development. But, Hidden Narrative director Whitney “Strix” Beltran He said in a tweet that D & D game in the studio It’s still in development, and it’s actively recruiting for the project.

Polygon has requested comment from Wizards of the Coast, Otherside, and Hidden Path.

Given the small scale of the layoffs, the cancellation wouldn’t have a huge impact on the in-house studios that Wizards of the Coast has been building to fulfill its video game ambitions, some of which are highly talented. In October 2022, the company announced that Tuque Games, the developer of its 2021 release Dungeons & Dragons: Dark AllianceI was Rebranding to Invoke Studios and working on an “AAA” D&D game.

In the past two years, Wizards of the Coast has also announced the founding of two studios in Austin, Texas, led by former BioWare talent: Skeleton Key and Archetype Entertainment.

Despite the size of its investment in video games, Wizards of the Coast has made few releases and advertisements. next to whom Dark Alliancewhich had an average reception, as well Magic: The Gathering Online And the Magic: The Gathering Arenathe only other game on the company’s public slate is Baldur’s Gate 3 From Larian Studios, developer of Divinity Games. The sequel to a pair of D&D-derived classics from the late 90s and early 2000s, Baldur’s Gate 3 It was well received in early access, and is due to reach its full version in August of this year.

Update: This story now shows that both Magic: The Gathering Online And the Arena Currently active.

Update (Jan 6): The status of Hidden Path’s Dungeons & Dragons is still unclear. Thursday, The developer tweeted From her official account that “The epic D&D project with Wizards is still happening!” However, a Bloomberg reporter Jason Schreyer repliedHe insists his report was accurate and a Wizards of Coast spokesperson confirmed the project had been cancelled, both by And yet The statement from the hidden way.