Activision: We're Still the Same Fun Bunch of Guys

Andy Chalk

One Flag, One Fleet, One Cat
Nov 12, 2002
45,698
1
0
Activision: We're Still the Same Fun Bunch of Guys


Activision's head of developer relations Dan Winters says that perceptions of the company began to change after it became number one but the truth is that it's still the same lovable, hard-working bunch of guys it's always been.

No game publisher can arouse passionate, visceral anger like Activision. Even in its heyday, I don't think Electronic Arts ever stirred up such intense feelings of dislike as those expressed by a wide swath of gamers toward Activision and its much-reviled CEO, Bobby Kotick. That it's a hard-driving, profit-driven company is bad enough, but the way it's so unabashed about it is what really seems to drive people nuts; yet according to Winters, perceptions of the company have changed over the years but the company itself really hasn't.

Winters said he felt sorry that people were surprised by reports of the generally good relationship between Activision and Bizarre Creations, even after Activision Blur [http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/107757-Bizarre-Creations-Dies-on-Friday]. Activision does what it can to allow studios to retain their own culture and leadership and to be "stewards of the brands," he explained, which also naturally tends to foster positive relations, but that gets overlooked because of the widely-held impression of the company as a soulless behemoth.

"It's interesting, before our merger with Blizzard, becoming the number one publisher from a revenue perspective, we were always known as the warm and cuddly Activision; the scrappy, loveable number 2. As soon as we become the number one and we develop broader perspectives, perceptions started to change a little bit," he said in an interview with GamesIndustry [http://www.gamesindustry.biz/articles/2011-04-11-activisions-dan-winters?page=4].

"We've worked very hard, and continue to do so, to let people know that, you know, we're the same guys, we really are. We haven't changed!" he continued. "I'm the same guy that I was before the merger, as are most of us. We're the same organization. We haven't gone out and hired 3000 people. Our ability to scale and move quickly is the same as it was before. We're not this big, monolithic empire that's making decisions in a dark room, we're still very collaborative. We still have the same healthy respect and appreciation for talent that we ever did."

There's no question that Activision isn't shy about dropping the hammer wherever and whenever necessary. After pulling the plug on the famed Bizarre, it cut 500 jobs shuttering the take all the fun out of making videogames [http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/107672-Activision-Pulls-the-Plug-on-Guitar-Hero-Franchise]."

That was presumably a joke but it sure didn't go over like one with most gamers, which Winters thinks is unfortunate. "We went from being a very successful company, in fact in terms of the market share perspective we were teetering on the number one, number two before the merger and then we went to delivering 25 million copies of World of Warcraft [http://www.amazon.com/Call-Duty-Black-Ops-Xbox-360/dp/B003JVKHEQ/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1302809083&sr=8-1] front," he said. "That doesn't mean that we've changed our perspective at all. We have the same sensibility and we're still the same small town folks that we were before, just with a lot more work to do."


Permalink
 

Evilsanta

New member
Apr 12, 2010
1,933
0
0
Yeah, right! And I am tooth fairy and easter bunny combined.

Nobody going to listen anyways. You are to late Dan!
 

The Rockerfly

New member
Dec 31, 2008
4,649
0
0
Oh look a liar :eek:

Activision stop lying, you can never come back from all the shit things you have said and done
 

Dr. Paine

New member
Oct 26, 2009
1,134
0
0
 

Gxas

New member
Sep 4, 2008
3,187
0
0
Evilsanta said:
Yeah, right! And I am tooth fairy and easter bunny combined.
Tooth Fairy + Easter Bunny = Evil Santa?

I must warn the world on the terror that will be unleashed if a tooth is lost on Easter!!!
 

Macheteswordgun

New member
Jul 24, 2010
710
0
0
Evilsanta said:
Yeah, right! And I am tooth fairy and easter bunny combined.

Nobody going to listen anyways. You are to late Dan!
Damn my thoughts exactly on the matter, my friend your prob gonna get quoted a lot espically since your the first post and the most correct lol
 

Baresark

New member
Dec 19, 2010
3,908
0
0
Shenanigans and Chicanery!

"We are the same, fuck you if you don't like us... but we are still the same guys."

This is for people with Stockholm Syndrome, or at very least for victims of repeated domestic abuse.

You're strong enough, you don't need them!!!!!
 

The Wykydtron

"Emotions are very important!"
Sep 23, 2010
5,458
0
0
Why can't i stop laughing?

On a more srs note Activison seems rather nice in all their press statements if Bobby Kotick isn't spouting shit...

Winters:"We're nice people... Honest!"

Kotick: "VIDEOGAMES FUCKING SUCK! GIVE ME MY BANHAMMER, I FEEL LIKE RUINING SEVERAL PEOPLE'S DAY"

The moment Kotick dies is fired is the day i start taking Activision seriously
 

XT inc

Senior Member
Jul 29, 2009
992
0
21
I don't care if your a cute cuddly kitten, If you spend all of your time trying to claw me in the face and I know damn well you're doing it on purpose I am going to punt your fuzzy butt between the uprights.

No one cares about how nice the people think they are their actions have made the gaming populous hate a lot of the industry thanks to the big dogs money grubbing schemes that all the little guys had to follow suit to keep afloat. Take me back 10 years and tell my little self. "Hey buddy the day will come where you hate activision and blizzard far worse than that awful EA corp", And little me would have laughed in your face.
 

Feriluce

New member
Apr 1, 2010
377
0
0
This is akin to a serial killer pleading his innocence with a bloody knife in one hand and a womans severed head casually slung over his shoulder.
 

Johnnyallstar

New member
Feb 22, 2009
2,928
0
0
Sorry Dan, but you're disillusioned if you really believe that. Start risking on new IPs instead of churning out sequel after sequel and watering down series, and I'll start to believe you.
 

irishda

New member
Dec 16, 2010
968
0
0
I haven't really seen Activision do anything bad, unless you're a fan of guitar hero or geometry wars i guess
 

SilverKyo

New member
Apr 15, 2009
211
0
0
"... and if you look out your window, you'll see pigs flying." After focusing entirely on profits and cutting developer after developer, I'm incline to tell Mr. Winters that he is delusional. Virtually nothing they can say or do will change my incredibly low opinion of Activision, not even if they fired the Evil Emperor himself... but if they did fire him, it couldn't hurt their chances.