Maybe that’s what ex-PlayStation boss Shawn Layden was talking about: more companies that aren’t in the games industry by default wanting to get into it, and they’re to be feared…

Disney has been around for decades with several of its IPs, with a game adaptation here and there, and later made a bigger push into the industry with Marvel and Star Wars, but we still haven’t seen the Mouse Empire develop AND publish games. Instead, they’ve been licensing IP (hence the resurrection of LucasFilm Games, which also ended Disney-EA’s Star Wars exclusivity), sometimes with good results (Marvel’s Spider-Man), sometimes not (Marvel’s Avengers…).

Bloomberg has reported how Disney has been struggling lately, with returning CEO Bob Iger tasked with getting the world-famous conglomerate back on track, and some of his deputies already talking about getting a foothold in the games industry by acquiring a major publisher.

According to Iger’s deputies, Disney could be about to undergo a major transformation, and they even mentioned the name of Electronic Arts, but Iger won’t comment on the matter! (We dare not even think about it: how stupid would it look if Disney had the F1 licence with Codemasters?) Electronic Arts is logical, as they have made and are making several Star Wars games, and they also use the Marvel licences (Black Panther, Iron Man, and Respawn is working on a Star Wars shooter game). Disney also owns the ESPN sports channel, so they could use the licence more seriously in Madden NFL games, for example.

Last year we heard rumours that Electronic Arts was openly looking for another company to take it over, and that a merger with Disney would be exciting. Of course, none of this is official information, so Iger may end up rejecting the idea of a replacement. If the Andrew Wilson-led publisher does receive an offer, we have to ask: will Disney be able to succeed as a games publisher?

Source: WCCFTech