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Head Of Xbox Downplays Fears Of Game Pass Price Hike
9.2.2022
Game Pass has never been more popular, and after Microsoft revealed its plan to buy Activision Blizzard and add some of that company’s biggest games to the service, an increase in the Game Pass subscription price has never felt more inevitable. Newly minted Microsoft Gaming CEO Phil Spencer...
Blizzard Teases First New Game Universe Since Overwatch Amid Developer Exodus
26.1.2022
Still reeling from a workplace misconduct reckoning, staff exodus, major game delays, and a record-breaking deal to be acquired by Microsoft, Blizzard announced yesterday that it’s working on its first game set in a new universe since the launch of Overwatch six years ago. Details were scant,...
Xbox Boss Shrugs Off Union Question As Activision Blizzard Employees Push For Better Working Conditions
20.1.2022
Upheaval at Activision Blizzard last year over workplace misconduct sparked an unprecedented level of labor organizing at the Call of Duty publisher. Those actions recently culminated in an ongoing strike and the distribution of union cards, while the misconduct reckoning that precipitated them...
Report: Bobby Kotick Meeting Leaves Activision Blizzard Staffers Unimpressed, Worried
20.1.2022
This morning, Bobby Kotick held an all-hands meeting with Activision Blizzard employees to address Microsoft’s acquisition of the company for $68.7 billion dollars. He stated that Microsoft would be trying to “retain as many of our people as possible,” and that he planned to stay on as the CEO...
Official FAQ For The Microsoft x Activision Blizzard Deal Tries And Fails To Answer Some Questions
20.1.2022
As part of Microsoft’s proposed $70 billion purchase, an official FAQ of sorts has been sent to all Activision Blizzard employees. Sadly not many questions are actually answered, with responses looking more like huge black holes in the shape of things that could be answers. One day. Maybe.Read more
The Real Reasons Activision Blizzard Was Sold, Without Bobby Kotick's PR Spin
19.1.2022
As you probably already heard, Microsoft is looking to purchase Activision Blizzard for a whopping $68.7 billion. But why Activision CEO Bobby Kotick suddenly decided to give up control of the company and where that leaves the beleaguered executive after the ink dries changes depending on who...
This Was Inevitable
19.1.2022
Microsoft’s purchase of Activision Blizzard has been momentous news today, as much for the scale of the deal as its shock value. But we shouldn’t be too surprised. This was inevitable. A handful of companies have always wanted to own everything, and nothing is going to stop them.Read more
Microsoft Is Bringing Activision Blizzard Games To Game Pass
18.1.2022
Alongside news that Microsoft is preparing to acquire Activision Blizzard for $70 billion, the Xbox console maker has confirmed that games from the recently troubled Call of Duty and Warcraft publisher will make their way to Xbox Game Pass.Read more
Head Of Microsoft Says He’s ‘Grateful’ For Activision Blizzard CEO Bobby Kotick's 'Commitment to Real Change'
18.1.2022
Microsoft revealed a bombshell today: it’s buying embattled Call of Duty publisher Activision Blizzard in the largest gaming industry acquisition ever. That means a lot of things, including that the head of Xbox, Phil Spencer, will soon be veteran CEO Bobby Kotick’s new boss. But what that means...
Report: Bobby Kotick Is Still Trying To Hide The Scale Of Activision's Problems
17.1.2022
The Wall Street Journal is reporting that not only has Activision Blizzard fired dozens of staff in the last few months, but that CEO Bobby Kotick has been hiding that information from the public. Because it might look bad...Read more
Microsoft Closing In On $50 Billion Deal To Buy Activision Blizzard
17.1.2022
In an extraordinary turn of events, the Wall Street Journal is reporting today that Microsoft is getting near to a deal to buy Activision Blizzard. Which not only would be one of the most major shake-ups in the gaming industry in years, but also could finally spell out the end for its horrendous...
Despite Pandemic, Gaming CEOs Made An Obscene Amount Of Money In 2020
14.1.2022
In 2020, as the world grappled with a paradigmatic societal shift in the form of a globe-spanning pandemic, chief executives of the biggest gaming companies collectively brought home close to $1 billion. That’s according to a new report from market intelligence firm Games One, which collates...
Lego Delays Overwatch 2 Set Over Activision Blizzard Allegations
11.1.2022
Lego’s Overwatch 2 Titan set won’t come out next month as planned. The Danish toy maker announced today that it’s delaying the release until it can finish reviewing its partnership with Activision Blizzard, in light of workplace misconduct issues made public in recent months.Read more
Xbox Boss Not Interested In 'Virtue Shaming' Activision
10.1.2022
Back in November, the head of Xbox, Phil Spencer, told staff he was “evaluating all aspects” of the Microsoft gaming division’s relationship with Call of Duty publisher Activision Blizzard following a bombshell report by The Wall Street Journal of workplace misconduct and coverups at the massive...
Longtime Blizzard Employee Spouted Hateful Garbage On Discord Server
28.12.2021
Geoff Frazier, a former early Blizzard employee who was responsible for much of the company’s web content over the past 23 years, has been posting bigoted and hateful messages in a Discord server going back to May 2021. ABetterABK founder and organizer Jessica Gonzalez tweeted screenshots...
Call of Duty Studio Vaguely Promises To Do Better A Month After Sexual Harassment Report
21.12.2021
Call of Duty studio Treyarch just issued the latest in a long series of murky apologies from Activision-owned studios regarding the ongoing investigation into company-wide sexism, harassment, discrimination, and bullying. In a tweet issued today, a little over a month after the Wall Street Journal...
The Biggest Gaming Disappointments Of 2021
21.12.2021
Hell-year 2021 is almost over. It’s been a terrible year for more reasons than I can count. Pondering all the bad, disappointing, or just plain sad news that transpired within the video game industry alone is enough to make you want to jump into bed, hide under the covers, and binge on TikTok...
The Year In Gaming Apologies
16.12.2021
Video games had a lot to be sorry for in 2021, from the usual screenshot apologies over delays and busted launches, to things that actually matter like years of reported workplace abuse. Don’t worry though, everyone’s trying to do better.Read more
Inside The Revolt That Led To Activision Blizzard Workers' Historic Unionization Push
9.12.2021
Several Call of Duty developers have revealed to Kotaku that Activision Blizzard’s internal unwillingness to directly respond to the recently announced Raven Software layoffs was what ultimately sparked the just-revealed, broader labor organizing effort at the troubled publisher. Read more
Activision Blizzard Devs Announce Work Stoppage And Strike Fund
9.12.2021
Employees at publishing giant Activision Blizzard, who formed the ABK Worker Alliance, have called on supporters today to donate to a strike fund. They have announced their intention to stop working, in protest of their management’s ongoing response to months of lawsuits and reports about...