Speaking to Industry Gamers, Activision Publishing CEO Eric Hirshberg discussed the company’s two largest properties – Call of Duty and World of WarCraft.
“I can’t tell you how many times I’m asked, ‘Well, what if one of those two falters?’ We’re making some pretty big bets and we’re placing some pretty good resources behind them… I feel that that’s a story that gets undertold about Activision. I don’t feel like Activision gets credit for the support it gives to the big ideas we get behind. And when we get behind something, we get behind something big,” said Hirshberg.
“I think when you have a massive hit like Call of Duty or you have the kind of hit that Blizzard has in World of Warcraft, the first priority, of course, is to focus on and put every resource possible into keeping that leadership position. You’ve got an entire industry outside those doors trying to knock Call of Duty or World of Warcraft [off the pedestal]. We’ve got to put every resource we have into protecting our leadership position, so of course we’re doing that,” he said.
Eric Hirshberg
Activision also has a number of less significant but still successful properties which they continue to support, and of course, they have a Bungie ace up their sleeve.
“You’re going to see a pretty big investment in a new IP in Skylanders. You’re going to see us doubling down on Prototype with Prototype 2. You’re going to see Bungie coming in the coming months and years – that’s a huge investment in new intellectual property and a new gaming universe. These are all things that take real innovation,” said Hirshberg. “I don’t know who’s got a better pipeline in intellectual property.”
“If gamers have made one thing clear to us – and directly to Activision, it’s that, ‘We don’t need just another racing game. We don’t need just another war game. What we want is real innovation and games that really differentiate themselves.’ So those are the games we’re making. Now you can critique us for narrowing our slate and making tough decisions, but what you can’t say is that we’re not investing in new IP and new ideas. You can’t say that we’re under investing in Bungie. You can’t say that we’re under investing in Radical and Prototype,” Hirshberg concluded.
Activision Publishing CEO: We’re more than CoD and WoW << Comments and views
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