A Harry Potter MMO was “killed” due to EA’s lack of faith in the franchise because it does not believe in the IP’s long-term viability, EA has canceled a Harry Potter MMO game. Twitch streamer The Real Brandolorian interviewed Kim Salzer, EA’s director of product marketing from 2000 to 2003.
Kim Salzer mentioned recently the MMO when asked about a game that never saw the light of day and described it as a big deal for her because she was so personally involved in it and because it is such a well-known IP that has endured. She continued saying that they did all the research, built the beta, and it was a hybrid offline-online experience where they’d actually mail prizes and ribbons to the kids, and it has been thoroughly researched.
She said that she is highly confident in its success, but it was killed for lack of a better term, because EA was going through some changes at the time, and they didn’t know or believe enough that the IP would last longer than a year or two.
It was so close for EA to make a Harry Potter MMO, but it wasn’t meant to be.
EA owned the Harry Potter franchise at the time, but Warner Bros. has since taken control of it through its Portkey Games label. Hogwarts Legacy, the studio’s next major game, was postponed until 2022 earlier this year.
It will have a trans-inclusive character creator, despite author JK Rowling’s controversial views.
