Image: Warner Bros. Games / Kotaku
MultiVersus, the free-to-play Smash-like based on properties from Warner Bros. like Scooby-Doo and Steven Universe, will launch in open beta on July 26. And according to new news from today’s Comic Con presentation, NBA superstar LeBron James is joining the fighting game as a playable character on the same day.
You’ve probably realized that this means LeBron James, a real person, will soon be beating up fictional characters like Batman, Bugs Bunny, and The Iron Giant (we know, don’t get us started). If my sources are correct, LeBron is a flesh and blood human being. You can breathe the same air as him and maybe even get an autograph at any Los Angeles Lakers game. Weird, right?
Warner Bros. Games
I guess it makes sense since LeBron starred in Space Jam: A New Legacy produced by Warner Animation Group. But the reality that a company “owns” someone, at least enough to be able to put a version of them in a video game, feels off. I’m sure LeBron embraced the look, not to mention he was paid handsomely, I just thought it would take a little longer for the entertainment to collapse in on itself.
All that being said, this isn’t all that surprising since LeBron’s appearance in MultiVersus was hacked during the game’s online beta. Other characters discovered hidden in the code include DC Comics mainstays like Joker and Raven, Marvin the Martian from Looney Tunes, and Godzilla, though only time will tell if they become full additions to the playable cast.
MultiVersus players will be able to live out their basketball fantasies when LeBron arrives on July 26th. And while they didn’t show gameplay footage, the developers also revealed that Rick and Morty from, well, Rick and Morty will be joining the crossover fighting game during the first season of content. Morty launches on August 9, while Rick’s release date is still pending. Stay tuned.