The fate of Warner Brothers Interactive Entertainment remains the subject of intense speculation since reports that parent company AT&T may be interested in selling, but an internal memo released to WarnerMedia staff has addressed stability amidst a major corporate shuffle.

The prospective sale of Warner Bros Games by parent company AT&T has reportedly attracted an interested buyer in Microsoft Corp. News of the holding company considering selling its Warner Media gaming interests was first reported last month.

A new generation of console gaming looms on the horizon and NetherRealm Studios is apparently gearing up to take Mortal Kombat and Injustice into the next frontier. A WB Games job listing has revealed intentions to develop for the PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X. Read on for details:

It's been a little over a decade since courts approved the sale of Midway Games and its catalogue to Warner Bros. Now a fresh report is claiming parent company AT&T is internally discussing the sale of the entire Warner Brothers gaming division. Read on for the full story:

With modern origins rooted in independent regional events run by gamers, for gamers; it's perhaps unsurprising inter-personal drama - and corruption - has had an ugly background presence throughout the development of professionalized organized gaming.

Turtle Entertainment's Electronic Sports League (ESL) have been a leader in developing organized "eSports", and will take the next major step toward professional competitive parity with the introduction of player drug testing.

Motherboard reports the move comes in the wake of an admission of doping from Counter Strike competitor Cory “Semphis” Friesen. He reportedly acknowledged abusing ADHD drug Adderall to enhance performance and response. All Cloud 9 teammates were said to have participated in the allegedly widespread practice during an ESL tournament in Poland.

ESL introduced Mortal Kombat X to its league infrastructure with April's Fatal 8 Exhibition Tournament, before launching Season One of the league in May. Inaugural winner Dominique "Sonic Fox" McLean (17) walked away with $60,000 in winnings. He is among the youngest players achieving success, having gained first notice in 2012.

The injection of corporate wealth has already been a catalyst for eliminating lingering conflicts of interest. This year's Evo World Championship forced the omission of Mortal Kombat X players close to development and testing, including scene stalwart: Osu16bit. Warner Brothers and NetherRealm Studios have prioritized tournament support in promotion of the game, offering several large cash prizes to events.

ESL are yet to confirm the specifics of their drug policy, which will not include retroactive policing. It is unknown if all games will be targeted for testing. Mortal Kombat Online has reached out to ESL for more information.

Drug testing will be but one of the struggles eSports faces as it pursues legitimacy beyond the niche. This year's Evo Finals saw viewership increases for most events [full story], but the costs associated with testing and independent regulation may be a bridge too far for most organizers. A cocktail of young demographics, escapist entertainment, competitive culture and unregulated events poses inherent challenges for a world already rocked by ontroversies of match fixing, hacking and exploitation. ESL Head of Communications Anna Rozwandowicz told Motehrboard they will combat this with, "... drugs policing, education, and prevention among participants of [its] competitions."

After months of speculation and legal maneuverings, the sale of Mortal Kombat developer/publisher Midway Games is finally going through. Within the past day, the court overseeing the Chapter 11 bankruptcy of Midway noted that there were no other bidders for Midway's assets, so the only bidder for the company was Warner Bros.. In addition, all objections to the sale (including Threshold's question over IP rights and Vin Diesel's Tigon Entertainment questions about owed payments) were resolved, clearing the way for Warner Bros. to purchase the company. From the Chicago Tribune article: