Warner Bros. wants to buy Midway Games

[Mogwai]

follow link:
http://blog.newsarama.com/2009/05/21/warner-bros-entertainment-buying-midway-games/

 

[Mogwai]

cont'd...

May 21st, 2009
Author Lucas Siegel

​

Reports have popped up today that Warner Bros. Entertainment has bid 33 million dollars to purchase Midway Games. The buyout would include Midway, the Mortal Kombat franchise, and the Chicago and Seattle development studios. Midway has been suffering for nearly two years now, having already shutdown several projects and locations, and laying off much of their staff at remaining locations. The deal apparently does not include the TNA Wrestling license, nor two other development studios. There will be an auction before the deal goes through to allow other companies to take a shot, but it’s expected that WB will come out on top.
A sell-out was expected, as it is the only way at this point that the Mortal Kombat franchise and Midway as a whole could avoid a fatality. Time Warner clearly wants a larger stake in the games industry. Their first major step, buying a chunk of Eidos Interactive, was foiled a few months ago when Square Enix decided to buy the company outright. This move would all but assure a sequel to last year’s well-received Mortal Kombat vs. DCUniverse, and possibly see a new internal development point for more of Warner’s many properties to be translated into games.

 

[Isildur´s Heir]

Since they let Eidos go, i always thought they would try to buy another one.
Guess i was right.
So, they want the MK franchise (it figures, after MK vs DC), The Chicago studio (the original one, last game made being Stranglehold) and the Seattle studio (their best one, Surreal Software, the makers of The Suffering and the upcoming This is Vegas).
Midway, imo, as been awful for years now, so i agree that WB should stay away from the other studios, but there are some ips they should get their hands on: Area 51 (i still think that, in other hands, it can be a good franchise), Spy-Hunter and Psi-Ops (Midway´s best game in ages).

 

[Mogwai]

they probably just want the rights to mortal kombat, i'm sure.

 

[Isildur´s Heir]

And they would pay 33 millions only for that?
Imo, that would be stupid.
So, i can´t believe that´s all they want.

 

[William_C]

I'm hoping for a new Mortal Kombat movie by Warner Bros.

 

[hippie_hunter]

they probably just want the rights to mortal kombat, i'm sure.

They want more than that. Warner Bros. wants more developers which is what they're essentially turning Midway into.

And they would pay 33 millions only for that?
Imo, that would be stupid.
So, i can´t believe that´s all they want.

They're paying $33 million for Midway Games (the Chicago studio), Surreal Software (the Seattle studio), and the IPs to Mortal Kombat, the Suffering, This is Vegas, Game Party, Rush, Area 51, Stranglehold, Wheelman, Rampage, Psi-Ops, and the publishing rights to the Unreal series.

Frankly it's a good way to diversify Warner Bros.' gaming portfolio, and adds a lot to Warner Bros'. gaming franchises (that are not based on Warner Bros. IPs) beyond just Lego, FEAR, and Condemned. But they need to go just a little bit more.

 

[Isildur´s Heir]

They're paying $33 million for Midway Games (the Chicago studio), Surreal Software (the Seattle studio), and the IPs to Mortal Kombat, the Suffering, This is Vegas, Game Party, Rush, Area 51, Stranglehold, Wheelman, Rampage, Psi-Ops, and the publishing rights to the Unreal series.

Sure, that´s why i said that it would be stupid to pay that much just for MK.
I hope they buy Spy-Hunter too.
A question?
Are you sure those are the Ips they are after?

As for the Unreal publishing rights, i don´t know if they can have those, Unreal belongs to Epic, and just like they pull it off from Atari (the previous Unreal publishing rights holder), they can say no to WB.
I don´t believe they will because it´s a good deal for both Epic and WB, but they can.

 

[Raiden]

Looks like we will be getting a MK vs DC II in the future.

 

[Aztec]

Looks like we will be getting a MK vs DC II in the future.

I would imagine so. The game sold well and was well received (I loved it too). I imagine the push will be on too if MvC2 does well (as I imagine it will) on XBLA and PSN. Which interestingly enough would likely push Marvel to agree to Capcom making an MvC3.

One can only imagine what it would be like if Mortal Kombat vs. DC Universe 2 and Marvel vs. Capcom 3 are released in close proximity to one another...

 

[hippie_hunter]

Sure, that´s why i said that it would be stupid to pay that much just for MK.
I hope they buy Spy-Hunter too.
A question?
Are you sure those are the Ips they are after?

It's pretty obvious that Warner Bros. wants the Mortal Kombat IP the most, but when you buy Midway, you're going to end up with all of it's IPs anyways.

As for the Unreal publishing rights, i don´t know if they can have those, Unreal belongs to Epic, and just like they pull it off from Atari (the previous Unreal publishing rights holder), they can say no to WB.

They can say no to Warner Bros., but right now Midway holds the publishing rights to Unreal. And from the way the article sounds, Midway is going to be a developer from now on, so naturally the rights will transfer to Warner Bros. unless Epic decides to end their relationship with Midway completely.

I don´t believe they will because it´s a good deal for both Epic and WB, but they can.

True.

 

[Spider-Vader]

Fine with me. This could mean we'll get a good MK movie.

 

[hippie_hunter]

Considering that New Line (a label of Warner Bros.) made the last two movies, I doubt it.

 

[BATZARRO WWD]

Considering that New Line (a label of Warner Bros.) made the last two movies, I doubt it.

Didn't they still have the rights and where working on it? I remember reading somehting along those lines last year. Granted it's probably development hell, and it was gonna be produced by someone called Mink that had only Steven Seagal movies under his belt. Scanning... 1 match found

 

[Spider-Vader]

Reboot it. Those two movies are crap. Make it epic, like it should be. Scorpion & Sub-Zero should have bigger roles too. Especially since they're the most popular characters.

 

[Isildur´s Heir]

There are two other companies after Midway.
Ubisoft and a private Chicago company.
But, in the end, i believe WB will be the one to buy them.

IAnd from the way the article sounds, Midway is going to be a developer from now on...

I don´t believe it for a second.
They only did it once, with Unreal 2, which was developed by Legend Entertainment (owned by Atari), but produced by them, and look how it turned out.
There can very well be the main reason why they took the publishing rights off Atari.
Epic would only give development to another company, only if they were People can Fly (Painkiller and PC Gears of War) or Chair Entertainment (XBLA´s Undertow), both bought by Epic sometime ago.

 

[hippie_hunter]

I don´t believe it for a second.
They only did it once, with Unreal 2, which was developed by Legend Entertainment (owned by Atari), but produced by them, and look how it turned out.
There can very well be the main reason why they took the publishing rights off Atari.
Epic would only give development to another company, only if they were People can Fly (Painkiller and PC Gears of War) or Chair Entertainment (XBLA´s Undertow), both bought by Epic sometime ago.

I wasn't talking about the development rights to Unreal. That will forever remain at Epic. I was saying that Midway itself will be a developer from now on with the publishing duties falling under Warner Bros. Interactive and Midway Games being the Chicago studio that makes Mortal Kombat and whatnot.

 

[Isildur´s Heir]

ok, my bad

 

[hippie_hunter]

Warner Bros. emerges as sole bidder for Midway Games

The movie studio's purchase of the bankrupt video game publisher once owned by Viacom's Sumner Redstone is all but assured.
By Ben Fritz and Alex Pham
June 27, 2009

Warner Bros. has emerged as the only bidder for Midway Games Inc., all but assuring that it will take control of the bankrupt video game publisher previously owned by Viacom Inc. Chairman Sumner Redstone and become a major force in the video game industry.

Midway had hoped that the film studio's $33-million offer, made in late May, would spark a bidding war that would boost its price. A Chicago investment group and several game publishers kicked the publisher's tires, according to a source familiar with the discussions, but none pulled the trigger.

"No other bids came in, so there's not going to be an auction," Geoffrey Mogilner, a Midway spokesman, confirmed.

Redstone, who took control of Midway in 2004, was never able to bring the troubled company to profitability. He sold it at a huge loss to a private investor last November in exchange for a $700-million tax write-off that has since led to a lawsuit from the publisher's creditors.

Integrating Midway will significantly expand the scope of Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment, the studio's small but growing video game division. Warner has acquired three game production companies in recent years and hired industry veteran Martin Tremblay as WBIE president. It also tried, unsuccessfully, to buy Eidos, the British publisher of the Tomb Raider games.

Although Midway has declined in significance in the last few years because of big losses and poor-selling games, it is still a well-known brand with a rich library of titles that Warner will be able to exploit as games or, potentially, movies and TV shows.

"We bid on Midway because we are interested in their catalog of intellectual properties," Tremblay said in May.

Assuming the deal goes through, the studio will take control of most of Midway's assets, including Mortal Kombat and well-known but dormant game series such as Joust and Spy Hunter. It will also get two production houses in Chicago and Seattle.

That would allow Warner to expand its video game lineup, which currently includes titles based on "Where the Wild Things Are," "The Lord of the Rings" and the "Harry Potter" books, as well as an original game called Scribblenauts that received numerous awards at the E3 industry conference.

"Building a company takes time," Tremblay said of his division's growth plans. "We have one of the most efficient distribution channels in the world. We have strong intellectual properties. But we're missing a third piece: talent."

Warner Bros. is one of three major media conglomerates, along with Walt Disney Co. and MTV Networks, to invest hundreds of millions of dollars in video games recently in an effort to reach younger audiences and tap a fast-growing market as traditional cash cows like DVDs decline.

Before the deal is complete, the Delaware court overseeing Midway's bankruptcy must address complaints by several creditors about the sales process. One of those is producer Larry Kasanoff's Threshold Entertainment, which worked on two "Mortal Kombat" films and claims it has the exclusive film and TV rights to the series. Also objecting is Tigon Studios, a production company controlled by Vin Diesel, which said in a filing that it is owed $200,000 for the star's work on the Wheelman game.

A court hearing to address those and other issues is scheduled for Wednesday.

http://www.latimes.com/business/la-fi-ct-midway27-2009jun27,0,2631772.story

 

[Superhero 101]

Wow

 

[TheBat812]

lol, no other bids came in. Can't say I'm surprised.

 

[hippie_hunter]

Me neither. Asides from Midway Games - Chicago and Surreal Software along with most of Midway's IPs, just what else is attractive at Midway? The obvious answer of course is nothing.

 

[terry78]

Here comes a Rampage movie.

 

[THE LIZARD#1]

Since they let Eidos go, i always thought they would try to buy another one.
Guess i was right.
So, they want the MK franchise (it figures, after MK vs DC), The Chicago studio (the original one, last game made being Stranglehold) and the Seattle studio (their best one, Surreal Software, the makers of The Suffering and the upcoming This is Vegas).
Midway, imo, as been awful for years now, so i agree that WB should stay away from the other studios, but there are some ips they should get their hands on: Area 51 (i still think that, in other hands, it can be a good franchise), Spy-Hunter and Psi-Ops (Midway´s best game in ages).

I strongly agree. I thought Area 51, while I admit it wasn't the second coming of Christ like I thought it was going to be, was indeed a great title. I can't believe that garb. game Black Site was made as a sequel to it.

Also I want Psi-Ops to get that sequel it deserves! They can't end the game with To Be Continued and then not do anything with it.

Also The Suffering was a brilliant franchise. I want to see more of these three IP's more than anything else Midway puts out on the shelves.

 

[hippie_hunter]

Considering that Warner Bros. picked up Surreal Software with their bid for Midway, I'd be surprised not to see the Suffering continue in some shape or form.