One of the main minds behind Blizzard’s popular virtual card game Hearthstone has announced he and his new team are working on a new game set in the Marvel Universe. Hearthstone director Ben Brode and several other Blizzard employees left the company in early 2018 to found a new studio, Second Dinner, which has now secured a whopping $30 million in funding from publisher NetEase.
NetEase VP Ethan Wang had the following to say about the investment…
Related Heroes of the Storm Dev Team Downsized, Esports Killed as Blizzard Looks to Cut Costs
“The Second Dinner team has a strong track record of delivering quality games. With the resources and creative freedom they now have, we look forward to what they will come up with next.”
Head of Marvel Games Jay Ong is also excited about what Second Dinner is cooking up.
“I’ve worked with Ben [and company] for years and they are exactly who we want making Marvel games. They and the team they’ve assembled at Second Dinner have made some of the greatest games in history. And now, working with the Marvel Games team and playing in the Marvel Universe…it’s going to be Amazing! Or maybe Spectacular! Or Incredible! Or Mighty! Or quite possibly all of the above!”
In addition to Ben Brode, Second Dinner’s founding team includes Hamilton Chu (Halo series), Mike Schweitzer (World of Warcraft, Hearthstone), Yong Woo (Starcraft 2, Hearthstone), and Jomaro Kindred (Call of Duty: Black Ops series). The announcement of Second Dinner’s first project comes amidst news that Blizzard is under pressure to cut costs and increase production. I wouldn’t be surprised to see more longtime Blizzard employees breaking away to do their own thing.
So, what form will Second Dinner’s Marvel game take? Given the team’s background and the involvement of NetEase, a Marvel CCG seems likely, but who knows? Maybe they’ll surprise us with something completely different. What would you like to see from the studio?
