In mid-2022, following the completed merger of Warner Bros. and Discovery, major changes were reported to be taking place within multiple legs of the company, including at DC Studios and Warner Bros. Games. While several DC Comics-related games were already in development at the time, it was believed that plans for the rebooted DC Extended Universe (DCEU) would lead to a significant overhaul for upcoming games.
James Gunn continued to fuel speculation with confirmation in November 2022 that going forward, all DC Comics video games would be part of the new canon set to be established by Superman: Legacy and Batman tale, The Brave and the Bold. In a Twitter exchange, Gunn simply replied ‘Yes’ to a query about whether video games would be connected to the new DC Universe, given animation, TV and films would be considered canon.
Now, it appears Gunn has a new edict. As reported by IGN, Gunn was recently asked whether it will be a requirement for all Warner Bros. Games to be set in his upcoming DC film universe – to which he replied ‘No‘.
Read: Future DC Comics games to be connected to the cinematic universe
This seemingly contradicts his earlier statement, while leaving room for upcoming DC video games to exist within their own spaces, and without being tied down by DC Universe canon shared across TV and film.
At this stage, it’s unclear whether DC video games will continue to exist in their own bubble, or whether some video games will still be canon to the movie universe. For now, there are a number of DC games already in development – Wonder Woman, Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League, and The Wolf Among Us 2 – with each existing outside of these canon demands.
With Gunn’s proclamation, we may see more of these “alternative universe” projects in future – games hopefully inspired by fresh perspectives on the planet-spanning DC Comics universe.
Given the success of Marvel spin-off titles like Marvel’s Spider-Man and its sequel, both of which exist outside of the popular Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU), it appears a freer, more segmented approach may be warranted when it comes to the wild and wonderful world of comic book video games.
