Disney is making a splash in the video game space as they invested $1.5 billion in Epic Games last year and they have an interconnected universe with Fortnite on the way. Recently, Disney has enjoyed various video game success stories from Marvel Rivals, Star Wars Jedi series, Insomniac’s Spider-Man franchise, Indiana Jones and the Great Circle, and more.
Sean Shoptaw, Disney’s EVP of Global Games and Digital Entertainment, is building out his Disney gaming team. He previously hired some notable Ubisoft and Blizzard vets. Disney is bullish about its gaming future and working with top gaming studios. Disney is continuing to elevate its gaming strategy and new job openings point to Disney’s future ambitious plans.
Disney is searching for a Senior Game Designer and Lead Game Designer. Both roles would be in the creative development space. The job listing states Disney is looking for “a standout creative expert, leader, and collaborator to partner with the best game developers from across the globe to create the next generation of Disney, Pixar, and Avatar games.”
Notably, the listing doesn’t mention Star Wars or Marvel but I wouldn’t fret as those franchises have sustained gaming efforts. This listing also lines up with Disney’s current strategy of licensing its biggest intellectual properties to the best game developers. Some of the latest gaming efforts for the Disney brand proper have been Disney Dreamlight Valley and Disney Speedstorm from Gameloft. The next Kingdom Hearts game is also in development (Shoptaw told Axios about the new Kingdom Hearts back in 2023: “We’re super excited about the next game"). The last video game for Pixar was Lego: The Incredibles back in 2018. Avatar, a newer top franchise for Disney, first major gaming launch was Avatar: Frontiers of Pandora in 2023.
The new game designer roles will also “creatively and mindfully work within existing and upcoming Disney, Pixar, and Avatar IP guidelines” and ideally have worked on “large scale, high-profile projects and have experience with mobile, console, and/or PC games with live operations components.”
The upcoming Disney gaming slate that we know about leans heavily on Marvel and Star Wars. It includes Marvel 1943: Rise of Hydra, TRON: Catalyst, Iron Man (EA), Black Panther (EA), Marvel’s Wolverine (Insomniac), Blade, Amy Hennig’s Star Wars game from Skydance, a new Star Wars Jedi installment, and likely much more.
Disney’s gaming slate will evolve with its plans to create the next generation of Disney, Pixar, and Avatar games. There are a lot of stories to be told in the gaming world for Disney, Pixar, and Avatar. There is a lot to pull from. Maybe one day Disney will finally make their version of Super Smash Bros.?
As more details emerge about Disney’s plans for new video games based on Disney, Pixar, and Avatar, we will report them here at Boardwalk Times.
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Zach Perilstein is the Editor-in-Chief of the Boardwalk Times
