Tag: Activision Blizzard

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Infinity Ward officially announces Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2

Activision Blizzard and developer Infinity Ward have revealed Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 will be the next core entry in the long-running franchise.

This year’s Call of Duty title will take players back to the Modern Warfare side of the franchise. The announcement not only confirms the title but also reveals the upcoming title’s logo treatment.

The new era of Call of Duty is coming,” a recent announcement tweet states.

Overall, this is a rather low-key announcement given a sequel to 2019’s Modern Warfare was expected as 2022’s Call of Duty title. With That said, the logo treatment does inspire the classic feel of the original Modern Warfare series.

Eagle-eyed players will catch a glimpse at the Task Force 141 symbol. Fans of the franchise will also recognize this as the special unit operation led by Lieutenant General Shepherd, Captain John Price, and Captain John “Soap” MacTavish.

A full reveal of the game will likely take place later during the summer. Activision Blizzard traditionally releases new entries in the Call of Duty series in November following in-depth reveals of both campaign and multiplayer modes. Additionally, a sequel to Call of Duty: Warzone is expected to coincide with the launch of Modern Warfare 2.

News of the announcement comes at a time when Activision Blizzard stockholders voted with 98 percent approval of Microsoft’s acquisition bid. Although the deal is not yet confirmed, Microsoft expects it to close by June 2023. This means that Modern Warfare 2 could potentially be the last Call of Duty title to not be published by Microsoft. In fact, reports claim Activision Blizzard may skip a 2023 Call of Duty release altogether. Thought a “steady stream of additional content” is said to be planned for Modern Warfare 2.

It’s worth noting that Activision Blizzard is currently under investigation for sexual harassment claims. Since claims of “frat-boy culture” within the workplace have been surfacing, 37 employees have “exited.” The California Department of Fair Employment and Housing also filed a lawsuit last year against the company.

Image credit: @CallofDuty

Source: GameInformer

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Activision Blizzard stockholders approve Microsoft acquisition

Activision Blizzard, developer and publisher of Call of Duty and Overwatch, reveals that its stockholders approve of Microsoft’s acquisition bid. The proposal, which would see Activision Blizzard under the Xbox Game Studios banner, saw more than 98 percent of the shares voting in favour of the proposal.

Earlier this year, Microsoft announced its plans to acquire Activision Blizzard for $95.00 per share. The $68.7 billion USD (roughly $85.96 billion CAD) deal would see tentpole franchises like Call of Duty, World of Warcraft, Diablo, and more owned by Microsoft. The acquisition also folds in a laundry list of studios including Blizzard Entertainment, Beenox, High Moon Studios, Infinity Ward, King, Raven Software, Sledgehammer Games, Toys for Bob, Treyarch and more.

Microsoft expects the deal to close by the end of its fiscal year ending June 30th, 2023. However, one step to securing the deal was gaining approval from Activision Blizzard stockholders. During the Activision Blizzard Special Meeting of Stockholders, the votes were cast in favour of the acquisition.

“Today’s overwhelmingly supportive vote by our stockholders confirms our shared belief that, combined with Microsoft, we will be even better positioned to create great value for our players, even greater opportunities for our employees, and to continue our focus on becoming an inspiring example of a welcoming, respectful, and inclusive workplace,” said Bobby Kotick, CEO, Activision Blizzard.

A report detailing the results from the Special Meeting will come in a U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission Form 8-K by early next week.

Previous reports claim Microsoft plans to make future Activision titles multiplatform. This includes Call of Duty in some capacity, as Xbox head Phil Spencer confirms. However, some games and content will be exclusive to Xbox consoles and platforms.

Activision Blizzard continues to be investigated over sexual harassment claims. Kotick is also being investigated after reports allege turned a blind eye to the supposed “frat-boy culture” within the company. While Kotick’s future within the company has not been officially confirmed, he is expected to step down.

The next step in the Activision Blizzard acquisition is to receive the approval of the Federal Trade Commission and antitrust enforcers. However, Wall Street is currently betting the deal may fail. If the merger passes, Microsoft will become the third-largest video game company.

Image credit: Microsoft

Source: Activision Blizzard

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Diablo Immortal coming to Android, iOS and PC on June 2

Diablo: Immortal will release on Android, iOS and PC on June 2nd, Blizzard has announced.

Immortal is a free-to-play spin on the classic Diablo action-RPG dungeon-crawling that will feature optional in-game purchases. On PC, the game will be in open beta to start, although this will be the complete, fully-featured version. Online multiplayer, including cross-play and cross-progression between mobile and PC, will also be supported.

Notably, the game was originally unveiled way back at BlizzCon 2018 for mobile, with Blizzard saying at the time that there were “no plans” to bring it to PC. Given that Diablo has historically been a PC franchise, this announcement was met with significant backlash.

In a blog post announcing the release date, Blizzard admitted that “the decision to develop Diablo Immortal for PC was one that the team went back and forth on for a large part” of development:

“On one hand, we felt that we wouldn’t be doing the title justice by releasing a game originally designed for mobile on PC; on the other hand, we wanted to make sure the game reached as many players as possible—especially our most dedicated PC fans. In the end, the deciding factor was that we knew many of you would attempt to play this game through an emulator, thus leading us towards building a better experience.”

While it remains to be seen how the game will fare on PC, it should be noted that the mobile versions have garnered a generally positive response so far from outlets in previews from the likes of IGN and Android Central.

News of Immortal‘s release date comes from Blizzard parent company Activision Blizzard’s latest earnings release. Overall, the company missed its sales targets due, in part, to weaker sales of last year’s Call of Duty: Vanguard. Since July, the company has been embroiled in a slew of lawsuits and controversies pertaining to an alleged toxic work culture. Microsoft is also currently in the midst of acquiring the publisher, following regulatory approval.

Source: Blizzard

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Meta exec accused of pressuring paper to kill reporting about Activision CEO

Meta COO Sheryl Sandberg used her power to bury two stories about then-boyfriend Bobby Kotick, Activision Blizzard CEO, according to The Wall Street Journal.

Sandberg, who dated Kotick from 2016 to 2019, is accused of pressuring the digital edition of U.K. tabloid The Daily Mail in both 2016 and 2019 to stop reporting on a restraining order filed against him by an ex-girlfriend. The WSJ reports that Kotick had said behind the scenes that Sandberg threatened The Daily Mail, stating that publishing this report could damage the outlet’s relationship with Facebook.

Speaking to The WSJ, Kotick denied that he said this, while Meta told the publication that Sandberg “never threatened the MailOnline’s business relationship with Facebook in order to influence an editorial decision.”

In any event, The Daily Mail story did not run either in 2016 or 2019, and Facebook now says it’s investigating whether Sandberg’s actions violated company policy. In 2012, Sandberg was the first woman to join Facebook’s board, and she’s since become renowned for her advocacy for women’s rights in the workplace. It’s for this reason — so as to not tarnish this reputation — that Sandberg and Kotick reportedly wanted to kill the Daily Mail piece.

It should also be noted that Sandberg’s leadership role at Facebook has put her at the front of major controversies surrounding the platform’s handling of privacy and fake news, especially following the 2016 U.S. Presidental Election.

Kotick, meanwhile, has had the opposite reputation of Sandberg when it comes to women. Last summer, the state of California filed a lawsuit against Activision Blizzard, alleging that the company fostered a “frat boy” culture in which employees, particularly women, faced sexual harassment and discrimination.

Months later, The WSJ reported that Kotick not only knew about these incidents but actively worked to cover some of them up. He is even said to have sent a voicemail to an assistant threatening to kill her if she didn’t stay quiet. Many in the gaming industry, including current and former Activision Blizzard employees, have since called for Kotick to step down.

Kotick has denied the specific allegations made against him but claimed he’s committed to staying at the company to improve its work culture. While he’s expected to leave once Microsoft’s acquisition of Activision Blizzard is finalized, a recent report indicates that Microsoft hasn’t actually discussed his future.

It remains to be seen what, if anything, will happen with both Sandberg and Kotick at their respective companies.

Image credit: Flickr — Dan Farber

Source: The Wall Street Journal

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Activision Blizzard to pay $18 million in sexual harassment suit

A California judge has approved an $18 million USD (about $22.5 million CAD) settlement in Activision Blizzard’s sexual harassment suit.

During a virtual hearing on March 29th, Judge Dale S. Fischer signed the agreement with the intent to close the case, although she acknowledged that she couldn’t stop anyone from filing an appeal.

The settlement pertains to a July 2021 lawsuit filed by the California Department of Fair Employment and Housing alleging a “frat boy” culture at Activision Blizzard. In the lawsuit, there were numerous reports of sexual harassment and other gender-based mistreatment at the Santa Monica-based gaming publisher.

As part of the settlement, anyone who worked at Activision Blizzard between September 1st, 2016 and March 29th, 2022 can submit a claim about sexual harassment, retaliation or pregnancy discrimination. Further, all “supervisory employees” at Activision Blizzard will be required to attend training on harassment and discrimination, while all employees will receive expanded mental health resources.

While A Better ABK, an advocacy group consisting of employees from Activision, Blizzard and King, hasn’t issued an official statement on the settlement, it’s unlikely that anyone who isn’t an executive is happy with this. After all, $18 million USD is absolutely nothing to a company like Activision Blizzard. For context, CEO Bobby Kotick, gaming’s most overpaid executive who was accused of covering up the toxic work culture, could receive more than $400 million USD (about $500 million CAD) once Microsoft’s acquisition of Activision Blizzard has been completed.

In the meantime, though, A Better ABK has been calling for unionization to help protect employees in the future. Activision-owned Raven, the developer behind Call of Duty: Warzone, has already announced a union, and A Better ABK has voiced its support for more unionization across both the company and industry writ large. Microsoft, for its part, says it won’t stand in the way should Activision Blizzard decide to recognize any unions.

Source: United States District Court — Central District of California Via: The Verge

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Blizzard confirms Warcraft is coming to mobile this year

While a Warcraft mobile game has been rumoured since as early as 2017, we haven’t gotten any official word yet — until now.

During its Q4 2021 earnings report, Activision Blizzard confirmed that a mobile iteration is indeed coming in 2022.

No other details were provided, such as how the game will play or even what it will be called. Nonetheless, this is significant news, given the popularity of World of Warcraft.

It was also inevitable; in 2020, Activision Blizzard confirmed that all of its franchises would get new mobile entries. Over the past few years, we’ve seen that happen with the likes of Call of Duty Mobile, Crash Bandicoot: On the Run! and the upcoming Diablo Immortal. Call of Duty Mobile alone made $1 billion USD (about $1.27 billion CAD) in 2021, per the Q4 earnings report.

It’s worth noting, though, that this news comes via a press release. That’s because the company skipped holding an earnings call. While a specific reason for that wasn’t provided, it’s likely due to a couple of factors.

Firstly, the company has been embroiled in significant controversy since last summer due to a California lawsuit. Following a years-long investigation, Activision Blizzard was accused of fostering a toxic work culture that led to the regular abuse of female employees. CEO Bobby Kotick has also come under fire for reportedly working to cover up these misconduct scandals. And most recently, Microsoft announced plans to acquire Activision Blizzard for $68.7 billion (about $87 billion CAD).

Given these factors, it’s likely that the company didn’t want to respond to any inquiries during an earnings call. Ultimately, the next several months will be significant for Activision Blizzard, especially as the U.S. Federal Trade Commission (FTC) investigates the acquisition. It remains to be seen whether the deal will even be approved, but assuming it does, Microsoft has said it doesn’t expect it to close until “fiscal year 2023,” which could be up to 18 months from now.

Image credit: Blizzard Entertainment

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Xbox boss wants to ‘keep Call of Duty on PlayStation’ following Activision Blizzard acquisition

Phil Spencer, longtime Xbox boss and newly appointed “CEO of Microsoft Gaming,” says the company has no intentions of taking Call of Duty off of PlayStation following its acquisition of Activision Blizzard.

On Twitter, Spencer tweeted that he had “good calls” with Sony leaders this week about the future of Activision Blizzard’s games on PlayStation.

“I confirmed our intent to honor all existing agreements upon acquisition of Activision Blizzard and our desire to keep Call of Duty on PlayStation. Sony is an important part of our industry, and we value our relationship,” said Spencer of these calls.

On January 18th, Microsoft announced plans to acquire Activision Blizzard for a staggering $68.7 billion USD (about $85.9 billion CAD). At the time, it was unclear what this would mean for titles that have historically been multiplatform, like Call of Duty.

Amid this uncertainty, Bloomberg reported that Microsoft planned to keep some games available on PlayStation while making others Xbox and PC exclusive. More recently, a Sony spokesperson told The Wall Street Journalthat “we expect that Microsoft will abide by contractual agreements and continue to ensure Activision games are multiplatform.”

What does this actually mean?

Given that the acquisition isn’t expected to be completed until fiscal year 2023, it’s impossible to say at this time whether Spencer is being truthful. For example, in the case of ZeniMax, Microsoft’s last big gaming purchase, Bethesda subsidiary Arkane Studios’ most recent game, Deathloop, was legally required to release exclusively on PlayStation 5 and PC in 2021.

However, Arkane’s next game, this summer’s Redfall, was later confirmed to be an Xbox and PC exclusive. Given that we don’t the exact nature of “contractual agreements” for Call of Duty, it’s possible that Xbox continues to release these games for some period but then, when these deals expire, shift to Xbox-only releases.

It’s also worth mentioning that some industry experts, including reliable VentureBeat reporter Jeff Grubb, have speculated that Xbox might take a hybrid approach when it comes to platform releases. In other words, they theorized that the massively popular free-to-play battle royale game Call of Duty: Warzone would remain on all platforms (especially amid rumours of a mobile version) while the main annualized entries could become Xbox/PC exclusive.

Of course, Activision Blizzard also owns a wealth of properties beyond Call of Duty that have appeared on PlayStation, including Overwatch, Diablo, Crash Bandicoot and Spyro the Dragon. It’s possible that Call of Duty remains multiplatform (either fully or only to some degree) while other franchises see Xbox-only releases. That would stay consistent with what Spencer is saying now — he only mentioned Call of Duty — while still allowing for other properties to become Xbox exclusive.

It should be noted, though, that Xbox’s current approach deemphasizes the need for a specific piece of hardware to play its first-party games. Outside of native releases on Xbox consoles and PC, Xbox Game Studios titles like Halo Infinite and Forza Horizon 5 are playable on mobile devices via Xbox Game Pass’ Cloud Gaming service. Further, the company has confirmed plans to bring this streaming service to other devices, like streaming sticks and apps for TVs.

Therefore, even if Call of Duty went “Xbox exclusive,” the game be playable for PlayStation owners, in theory, via streaming on one of several devices they potentially already own. Streaming isn’t as good as playable natively, of course, but it would give some options besides dropping hundreds of dollars on an Xbox console or PC.

Another big question pertains to how Microsoft will handle Activision Blizzard’s allegedly rampant workplace misconduct. The company, particularly CEO Bobby Kotick, has been accused of fostering a “frat boy” culture that regularly led to the mistreatment, including but not limited to sexual abuse, of women. Many have called for Kotick to resign, although he reportedly won’t do so until after the acquisition closes.

Ultimately, though, it’s too early to say either way regarding exclusivity and company reform. What we do know, though, is Activision Blizzard and Microsoft will operate independently for at least another year. That means that the former’s imminent slate of games, including this year’s inevitable annual Call of Duty, will definitively release on PlayStation. Likewise, Microsoft will not be able to make any changes at Activision for the time being.

Image credit: Activision

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Embattled Activision Blizzard CEO Bobby Kotick expected to leave after Microsoft acquisition

Bobby Kotick, the scandal-ridden CEO of gaming giant Activision Blizzard, may finally step down, reports The Wall Street Journal (WSJ).

Citing multiple company sources, the WSJ says Kotick is currently only expected to remain as CEO until Microsoft’s $68.7 billion USD (about $86 billion CAD) acquisition of Activision Blizzard has closed. Microsoft expects this to be completed “in fiscal year 2023,” which means Kotick will likely remain as CEO for up to 18 months. It’s unclear whether other leaders are expected to depart as well.

Kotick has faced numerous calls to resign following a July 2021 California lawsuit alleging a years-long “frat boy culture” that led to sexual harassment, abuse and unfair hiring practices towards women. Then, in November, a WSJ report alleged that Kotick was not only aware of these issues, but actively worked on keeping them out of the public eye.

Kotick, meanwhile, has said he’ll only do so if the company’s issues aren’t fixed “with speed.” In a new interview with The New York Times regarding Microsoft’s acquisition of the company, Kotick also wouldn’t confirm whether he’ll step down after the deal closes, simply saying he’ll be “available as needed.”

Of course, the deal needs to actually be approved by all of the requisite U.S. regulators and lawmakers. While it’s possible it could be blocked, Microsoft (post-Activision Blizzard acquisition) would still only account for less than 15 percent of total gaming revenue behind Sony and Tencent. Therefore, analysts expect that it will likely go through.

As Xbox boss Phil Spencer noted in a press release, Activision Blizzard will “continue to operate independently” from Microsoft until the deal is complete. Once that’s happened, Activision Blizzard will report to him directly.

It’s worth noting that Spencer had previously said he was “deeply disturbed” by the allegations surrounding Activision and that Xbox was reevaluating its relationship with the company accordingly. Following the news of the acquisition plans, some gamers have pointed out that acquiring the company full-stop is an odd way of doing that.

Bloomberg‘s Jason Schreier also noted on Twitter that he’s heard from some Activision Blizzard employees who simultaneously feel optimistic about change amid Xbox Game Studios’ “positive culture,” and “fury toward Microsoft for giving Bobby Kotick a big payday and soft exit.” Further, criticism was levied at Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella, who said he’s “grateful to [Kotick’s] leadership and commitment to real culture change.”

However, given the legalities surrounding a major acquisition like this, it’s unlikely that Microsoft could comment further on the issues. As VentureBeat‘s Jeff Grubb pointed out on Twitter, Spencer or other Microsoft executives providing any elaboration could have been seen as “price manipulation” that would have impacted the deal.

In a statement posted to Twitter, the ABK Workers Alliance, a group made up of employees of Activision, Blizzard and King, said the acquisition news is “surprising” but “does not change [its] goals” with regards to improving Activision Blizzard.

“The news of Activision’s acquisition by Microsoft is surprising, but does not change the goals of the ABK Worker’s Alliance. We remain committed to fighting for workplace improvements and the rights of our employees regardless of who is financially in control of the company. We will continue to work alongside our allies across the gaming industry to push for measurable change in an industry that desperately needs it. We called for the removal of Bobby Kotick as CEO in November for shielding abusers and he still remains CEO as of this writing. The strike for Raven QA is in its fifth week, and our striking staff has still not received response from leadership regarding our request to negotiate. And finally, 3 out of 4 of our original collective demands to improve the conditions of women in our workforce have not been met. Whatever the leadership structure of the company, we will continue our push to #EndAbuseInGaming, and appreciate the outpouring of support we’ve experienced in the last year.

The Raven strike, in particular, is referring to dozens of developers at the studio behind Call of Duty: Warzone protesting the sudden termination of 12 quality assurance (QA) contractors. QA plays a significant role in ensuring that a game runs sufficiently, and Warzone has been plagued with bugs amid these layoffs. Multiple QA workers told The Washington Post that they attribute these issues to Raven’s now-reduced QA team. Others said to Inverse that Activision Blizzard has yet to address their concerns.

Source: Wikipedia

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Microsoft to acquire Activision in deal valued at $68.7 billion USD

Source: https://news.microsoft.com/2022/01/18/microsoft-to-acquire-activision-blizzard-to-bring-the-joy-and-community-of-gaming-to-everyone-across-every-device/

Microsoft will acquire Activision in a deal valued at $68.7 billion USD (about $85.96 billion CAD).

Activision is the troubled publisher behind many popular games, including the Call of Duty series, World of Warcraft and Diablo. The deal far outranks most of Microsoft’s other acquisitions, both in gaming and beyond.

The Activision deal is significantly more than the $7.5 billion USD (about $9.4 billion CAD) purchase of Bethesda, and it’s larger than the company’s previous biggest acquisition, the $26 billion USD ($32.5 billion CAD) it paid for LinkedIn in 2016.

Microsoft says (via The Verge) that when the deal closes, it will be the “third-largest gaming company by revenue, behind Tencent and Sony.”

Further, the company plans to add many of Activision’s games to Xbox Game Pass once the deal closes. Xbox chief Phil Spencer said that Microsoft would “offer as many Activision Blizzard games as [it] can within Xbox Game Pass and PC Game Pass, both new titles and games from Activision Blizzard’s incredible catalogue.”

Bobby Kotick will remain as Activision CEO

The deal follows months of sexual harassment claims against Activision Blizzard, which most recently saw dozens of employees exit the company over the scandals. Activision Blizzard CEO Bobby Kotick has also been under intense scrutiny after reports alleged he was aware of the “frat boy culture” at the company and actively worked to keep it quiet.

The Verge reports that Microsoft hasn’t detailed how it plans to deal with the issues at Activision Blizzard. However, Bobby Kotick will continue to serve as CEO.

“As a company, Microsoft is committed to our journey for inclusion in every aspect of gaming, among both employees and players,” says Xbox chief Phil Spencer. “We deeply value individual studio cultures. We also believe that creative success and autonomy go hand-in-hand with treating every person with dignity and respect. We hold all teams, and all leaders, to this commitment. We’re looking forward to extending our culture of proactive inclusion to the great teams across Activision Blizzard.”

Microsoft’s acquisition will further bolster its Game Pass subscription service, which The Verge reports has 25 million subscribers. The Bethesda acquisition was seen as a massive win for the number of popular titles it brought for the service — the Activision deal stands to bring even more.

Image credit: Microsoft

Source: Microsoft Via: The Verge

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Dozens ‘exited’ Activision Blizzard over misconduct, CEO tried to keep departures quiet: report

Thirty-seven employees have “exited” from Activision Blizzard amid the gaming publisher’s workplace misconduct scandals, according to The Wall Street Journal, citing internal documents.

A further 44 employees have been disciplined, Activision Blizzard spokesperson Helaine Klasky told the outlet.

Since last summer, the company has been facing a lawsuit from California’s Department of Fair Employment and Housing alleging years of fostering a “frat boy culture” that led to sexual harassment, unfair hiring practices and other forms of mistreatment of women.

However, given the ambiguity surrounding the word “exited,” it’s unclear exactly how many of those 37 people left voluntarily versus being pushed out. Likewise, Activision Blizzard wouldn’t specify exactly what form of disciplinary action has been taken against the 44 other employees.

Meanwhile, The Wall Street Journal reports that Activision Blizzard collected around 700 employee complaints who expressed concerns of workplace misconduct, although the company denied this to the outlet. Bobby Kotick, Activision Blizzard CEO, also reportedly shut down the release of a company report summarizing all of the above information to address the allegations. According to The Wall Street Journal, Kotick felt the report would make the company’s issues seem bigger than what has already been revealed.

Kotick himself has been the subject of immense scrutiny, especially following a November report from The Wall Street Journal alleging that he not only knew about the “frat boy culture,” but actively worked to keep it quiet. More than 1,000 Activision Blizzard employees quickly signed a petition calling for Kotick to resign, although the executive has said he would only consider doing so if the workplace issues aren’t fixed “with speed.”

Activision Blizzard is also facing a strike from dozens of developers at its Raven studio, which works on its massively popular Call of Duty: Warzone game. The workers were protesting the sudden termination of a dozen quality assurance (QA) contractors. The ABK Workers Alliance, which represents employees at Activision, Blizzard and King, has condemned the company for its “silence” over these protests.

All the while, Warzone players have been reporting numerous bugs in the game. Speaking to The Washington Post, multiple unnamed QA testers attributed these issues to the QA workers who were laid off from Raven. “You can’t just lose some of your hardest-working people and expect nothing to happen,” one of them told The Washington Post.

A GoFundMe has been set up to support the ABK Workers Alliance — you can check that out here.

Image credit: Wikimedia Commons

Source: The Wall Street Journal