February 25, 2021 – Hasbro, a giant in the tabletop entertainment world, has outlined the Company’s strategic growth drivers for the near and medium-term and unveiled new segment reporting aligned to these drivers today at its virtual investor event. The company identified three major pillars – Consumer Products, including toys and games; Wizards of the Coast (Wizards) and Digital Gaming; and Entertainment.
Wizards of the Coast is of particular interest to any tabletop fan because they, among other top brands, house the Magic the Gathering and Dungeons & Dragons brands. And this is in addition to Hasbro’s already sturdy stable of family games and other board game titles outside of the WOTC brand.
“The integrated and assembled value of consumer products, Wizards and digital gaming, and entertainment is how we unlock the next level of return for our business and for our stakeholders,” said Brian Goldner, Hasbro’s chairman and chief executive officer. “We have simplified our structure to maximize our growth and provide a clearer view to the drivers of Hasbro revenues, profit, margin, and cash generation. Our Brand Blueprint thrives as we create value from these three areas of our business, and we are building scale behind them to drive more profitable revenue and meet the needs of our consumers and audiences with innovation and creativity for a modern era.
The company went deeper into each pillar and had the below specifically to say about the Wizards brand. Hasbro acquired the company back in September of 1999 and has been making moves ever since.
Wizards of the Coast and Digital Gaming
- Wizards of the Coast is approximately halfway to achieving its target of doubling its revenue from 2018 to 2023.
- 2020 Wizards of the Coast revenue was $816M. MAGIC: THE GATHERING revenue up 23% and DUNGEONS AND DRAGONS revenue up 33% for the year, both record years.
- Digital gaming licensing revenue grew 17% in 2020.
- Invested approximately $210 million on development for digital games over the past five years and have more than a dozen games in development between partners and internal projects. Plan to invest several hundred million more on development over the medium-term.
- 2021-2022 anticipated digital game launches include:
- MAGIC: THE GATHERING: Arena on mobile, Spellslingers and F2P Action RPG, Magic Legends, with Cryptic Entertainment.
- DUNGEONS & DRAGONS: Dark Alliance with wholly owned subsidiary Tuque Games and Baldur’s Gate 3 with Larian Studios.
- Increasing the number of MAGIC: THE GATHERING premiere card set releases from 5 to 6, including Modern Horizons 2 in June 2021.
- Announcing Magic Universes Beyond crossover products, to take fan-favorite brands and bring them into the Magic play system for exciting new collectible and social play opportunities.
- Including the science-fantasy collectible powerhouse, Warhammer 40,000 by Games Workshop, and Middle-Earth Enterprises, to include characters from the beloved The Lord of the Rings universe.
Read the full presentation announcement for further details
