Topic: Games Industry Death Watch 2010-present

[KDR_11k]

Could Activision be on the verge of dismantling Infinity Ward? just months after making $1Billion with CoD: MW2?

They did say earlier that IW wouldn't be making another CoD...

[Urkel]

Reggie won the bet. Now he's taking names.

[NinGurl69 *huggles]

IW won't make more CoD, that frees them up for 5 more SpongeBob titles to flesh out the Wii's 15-year plan.

[BlackNMild2k1]

If they had managed to crack the uncrackable Wii market with a blockbuster system selling multimillion seller then they would have achieved untouchable status.

Only IW refused to make Wii games. Guess now that Activision fired the 1st shot, those that want to keep their jobs might change their tunes.

[ThePerm]

money > Graphics

[Stratos]

Makes me wonder if this could change what Modern Warfare 2 Wii or even the one after that will be like or when it releases.

Remember the rumors about how IW were trying to hinder Treyarch and the Wii version at launch? Maybe they overstepped their boundaries and Activision finally said enough is enough. They did seem to be getting pretty cocky from what I read.

Course, it could be similar to how the Retro heads walked out except with more drama and heated words. They could have refused to make a Wii game or something like that and Activision looked at the numbers of the 'stunted' sales of MW: Reflex and saw the light. If a stealth released game with no advertising could still sell as well as Reflex did then I'll bet Activision wanted the sequel to get a lot more support.

Though this is mostly me hoping Activision is behind a sequel and making sure it is done right.

[SixthAngel]

Seems to me it is typical Activision grinding all their franchises into dust.

They don't think creativity or anything is actually necessary.  They are replacable cogs meant to be put into the Guitar Hero/Modern Warfare/Tony Hawk machine.

Tony Hawk games are dust already.
The guys that made Guitar Hero told them they wanted to make a full band game.  Activision said "Hell no!"  They left and made their biggest competition, Rock Band, while Activision drove Guitar Hero into the ground and were forced to try and catch up with Band Hero.  Nice job guys!

It won't be long until Modern Warfare shares the same fate.  Yearly releases will eventually destroy it especially now that people who make the game good and actually add different things are gone or will be.  Correct me if I  am wrong since I'm not positive about this but someone told me that IW even had to fight to actually make CoD4 set in modern times.  If Activision is really serious about making CoD pay to play the cow will be drained in moments.
If EA had brains they'd be picking these guys up for a Medal of Honor reboot.

What really makes me sad is that I know its only a matter of time until Blizzard is turned to crap too.  I never played WoW but I was a big fan of their other games.  I hear people say "Blizzard is too successful, they can't."  It makes me laugh.  This is what always happens when a company buys/merges with another, you do it their way eventually, one way or another.  This guy is gone and probably most of the team that matters with him and he just made two of the most successful games ever.  Bye bye Blizzard.

If they had managed to crack the uncrackable Wii market with a blockbuster system selling multimillion seller then they would have achieved untouchable status.

No way.  They are just as expendable because Activision only cares about the franchise.  I think there is already a CoD game coming out this year made by another developer anyway.

[Invincible Donkey Kong]

You're supposed to take the names of other people, Bobby, not those in your own company.  You get zero points this round. 

[BlackNMild2k1]

If they had managed to crack the uncrackable Wii market with a blockbuster system selling multimillion seller then maybe they would have achieved untouchable status.

No way.  They are just as expendable because Activision only cares about the franchise.  I think there is already a CoD game coming out this year made by another developer anyway.

sorry. I meant to stick a maybe in that sentence, but you're probably still right.

[BlackNMild2k1]

UPDATE 11:20 PM: It turns out Activision may have showed their hand in this matter earlier today.

In an SEC filing made this morning, Activision cited a human resources investigation into "breaches of contract and insubordination by two senior employees at Infinity Ward."

Based on the information we currently have, at least one of those employees may have included Infinity Ward CTO Jason West. It's possible Vince Zampella is the other unmentioned employee.

"This matter is expected to involve the departure of key personnel and litigation," read the filing. "At present, the Company does not expect this matter to have a material impact on the Company."

UPDATE 12:02 AM: Double Fine's Tim Schafer, who had his own troubles with Activision over the release of Brutal Legend, recently commented on Twitter about what's happening between Infinity Ward and Activision.

"Getting mad at Activision for this kind of thing is like getting mad at an ape for throwing feces," said Schafer. "It's just how the beast communicates."

Now travel back in time to Dice 2010 and see what Bobby Kotic had to say

Kotick said that Activision is a company that supports creators and champions vision. He took barely-veiled shots at EA, comparing his interest and efforts in the past to help start companies such as Jamdat and Pandemic with the eventual fates of those companies now folded into EA and, in the case of Pandemic, shut down as an independent entity.

If you have a company and you want to protect your creative freedom and the integrity of the creative process, if you want to retain your identity and culture, if you want the support of the mothership and the resources of the mothership, we're a really great mothership. But if you want to sell out and move on, there are definitely other companies to talk to.

It's looking like Stratos might be right. It's starting to sound like Jason West was trying to upend a tea table @ Activision HQ and Kotic chopped his hands off before he even got a grip on the table.

and of course it probably all started over an argument about this...

Activision expresses interest in subscription-based Call of Duty

Infinity Ward may have tried to distance itself from the rumors about the Call of Duty franchise going down Subscription Laneâ„¢, but Activision head honcho Bobby Kotick said otherwise during the publishing giant's recent earnings call. "If you think about the success that we've had in other product categories on subscription, you can get a sense of the direction that we want to take that franchise," he said.

[Stratos]

I refuse to play MMOs for a reason and the biggest one is the whole 'pay-to-play' nonsense. How do they think this is going to fly? Non-MMO PC gamers never pay for their online gaming since the dawn of the webs and Microsoft already tried to do it and it failed. Consoles either already offer free online (Wii) or an all-encompassing system (XBox Live) so a $2play setup would be terrible there as well.

[Ian Sane]

Activision won't exist in five years.  Well I'm sure the Activision name will be used by some company but the big giant company they are today will be gone.

Activision loves their franchises.  But what franchises do they have?  Tony Hawk, Guitar Hero, Call of Duty and the Blizzard IPs.  That's all I can think of.  Tony Hawk is dead, Guitar Hero pretty much is, and Call of Duty likely will be soon as well.  I understand the idea of milking franchises.  The flaw in that business model though is that you wear the IP out and the market grows sick of it.  To continue on you need to create new IP to replace the old stuff that goes stale.  How is Activision going to do that when they cut loose the talent that comes up with the concepts in the first place?  They are so obviously fucked.

Blizzard will eventually be infected with this disease.  It's only a matter of time.

[D_Average]

Activision dead in five years?  Not gonna happen.

[NinGurl69 *huggles]

Right.  2 years.


Kelli will be waiting to weigh their hearts.

[Kairon]

Blizzard will eventually be infected with this disease.  It's only a matter of time.

NOOOOOOOOOO!!!! Not Blizzard! The only other gaming company I'm almost as much of a fanboy of as Nintendo! Please spare Blizzard!

[Peachylala]

Greediness gets you shitcanned!

[NWR_Neal]

Activision is going EA the crap out of themselves, except I'd argue their stakes are higher, and their collapse will be more dramatic.

[SixthAngel]

Blizzard will eventually be infected with this disease.  It's only a matter of time.

NOOOOOOOOOO!!!! Not Blizzard! The only other gaming company I'm almost as much of a fanboy of as Nintendo! Please spare Blizzard!

Its too late.  What do you think they are going to do once CoD runs dry?  The only franchises they have left to suck dry will be Blizzard's.  Then it will be time for the yearly Warcraft/Starcraft/Diablo iteration (not all made by Blizzard of course) unless there are some big changes in how the company runs.

[BlackNMild2k1]

Well, here is the update on the story for now.
http://www.gamasutra.com/view/news/27482/Analysis_Infinity_Wards_DoubleEdged_Sword.php

summary:
Infinity Ward co-founders Jason West and Vince Zampella got fired for contract disputes
-Activision wanted IW to start work on MW3. Not next week, not tomorrow, but NOW!!!
-IW wanted to work on the New IP that they agreed on with Activision back in 2008
-Refer to the line above the last.
-JW & ZV put their foot down and refused
-Activision used that as reason to file for subordination and breach of contract since IW is the only studio that can work on new MW franchise games and Activision wants more MW NOW!!
-JW & ZV are let go.

Activision announces plans for future of Modern Warfare

Publisher Activision announced today new "strategic plans" for the Call of Duty franchise, announcing a new developer for the shooter franchise and confirming the departure of key Infinity Ward staffers.
[...]
The company expects to release a new Call of Duty game from Treyarch this fall. In addition, Infinity Ward is in development on the first two downloadable map packs for Modern Warfare® 2 for release in 2010.

The company is also for the first time announcing that a new game in the Call of Duty series is expected to be released in 2011 and that Sledgehammer Games, a newly formed, wholly owned studio, is in development on a Call of Duty game that will extend the franchise into the action-adventure genre.

So to sum it all up.
IW wanted to make the New IP that Activision said they could during the contract negotiations they had back in 2008.
IW releases a record breaking MW2 and anted to start on that new IP now as planned.
Activision: (laughs)
IW says they are gonna do it anyway
Activision: (scowls)
Activision sends guards over to the studios, jams all incoming and out going signals to the building, chains and pad locked all the doors.
Jason West and Vince Zampella look around nervously as armed guards surround them inside Bobby Kotticks office.
Kottick then hits a button on his desk and says "Bring in the kit"
::About 4 hours of details missing:: But the skys darkened over Activision HQ and the sounds of thunder and lightning where being reported as a freak weather incident at the time. All security cameras in the building lost their feed and the sound of screaming could be heard from down the halls.
Jason & Vince wake up at home, unemployed and feeling hung over with a bottle in hand
Activision announces that IW will not be making the next 2 CoD games (leaving IW free to do their new IP?) and that those game will be released over the next 2 years (leaving IW free to make that new IP?).

I guess IW is now about to start work on MW3 scheduled for Fall 2012.

[Stratos]

And action-adventure CoD?!?

The Call of Legend: Duty's Quest?

Epic fail. Call of Doodie fail.

[Stogi]

Action-adventure is what CoD already is...

[Stratos]

CoD is a shooter. Unless you were knocking the game yourself and I missed the humor.

[Kairon]

Blizzard will eventually be infected with this disease.  It's only a matter of time.

NOOOOOOOOOO!!!! Not Blizzard! The only other gaming company I'm almost as much of a fanboy of as Nintendo! Please spare Blizzard!

Its too late.  What do you think they are going to do once CoD runs dry?  The only franchises they have left to suck dry will be Blizzard's.  Then it will be time for the yearly Warcraft/Starcraft/Diablo iteration (not all made by Blizzard of course) unless there are some big changes in how the company runs.

This cannot happen. I REFUSE to believe this will happen. The world of Blizzard Fanbois will RISE UP and stop this from ever happening.

[Peachylala]

BlackNMild's post wins.

[KDR_11k]

blackn~1's post would've been more awesome with

Bobby Kotick: I have altered the deal. Pray I do not alter it any further.