Activision Blizzard will cut around seven per cent of its global work force – around 500 people, as it restructures business units.
The company is struggling somewhat at the moment, in part due to a lack of interest in its Guitar Hero franchise. That lack of interest will cause the publishing giant to drop its dedicated Guitar Hero business unit.
This doesn’t mean Guitar Hero will go away, just that it will no longer see the same level of focus from Activision going forward.
Call of Duty looks to be the main thrust for Activision going forward, and mentions of a micro-transaction model being developed for the Chinese market is perhaps a sign of things to come.
MMORPGs have slowly been shifting to a similar model – in concept free to play, but as the player becomes more involved in the game world, the cost of playing (buying special items, unlocking places to explore) starts to jump.
Call of Duty has traditionally been free to play, so it will be interesting to see if Activision is capable of providing enough incentive for people to buy additional in-game goodies.
The stakes are high. Despite the staff cuts, Activision Blizzard is channelling additional resources into the Call of Duty brand, and is building a new studio – Beachhead, to focus on online play.
With the value of the Tony Hawk franchise also on the wane, Activision really needs the various Blizzard properties (World of Warcraft, Diablo 3, Starcraft 2) and Call of Duty to keep it profitable. A backlash against any microtransaction system put into place could cost the publisher dearly.
Don't forget about Bungie's long-term deal with Activision – if they can come up with something special, that could be a good money-spinner.
Overall, though, I think Activision is one of the worst publishers in the business – they take awesome franchises and milk them dry in the pursuit of short-term profits. I'm glad that Blizzard and Bungie have a good degree of autonomy or I'd bet good money we'd see their work go downhill as well.
They definitely shouldn't try and make CoD not free-to-play. The gameplay isn't best practice as an FPS (and is relatively shallow in terms of dynamics – I see it as a poor man's UT3 in the modern era with unlockables and no jump-pads), the online (peer-to-peer – higher lag) generally pales in comparison to the experience playing a dedicated server game (Homefront, SOCOM, Killzone, Warhawk, MAG, Resistance 1 and 2).
The only thing that keeps CoD as popular as it is, is because it's the 'in' thing for teenage male gamers. If another in thing comes along, though, it's sales will fall precipitously.
Don't forget about Bungie's long-term deal with Activision – if they can come up with something special, that could be a good money-spinner.
Overall, though, I think Activision is one of the worst publishers in the business – they take awesome franchises and milk them dry in the pursuit of short-term profits. I'm glad that Blizzard and Bungie have a good degree of autonomy or I'd bet good money we'd see their work go downhill as well.
They definitely shouldn't try and make CoD not free-to-play. The gameplay isn't best practice as an FPS (and is relatively shallow in terms of dynamics – I see it as a poor man's UT3 in the modern era with unlockables and no jump-pads), the online (peer-to-peer – higher lag) generally pales in comparison to the experience playing a dedicated server game (Homefront, SOCOM, Killzone, Warhawk, MAG, Resistance 1 and 2).
The only thing that keeps CoD as popular as it is, is because it's the 'in' thing for teenage male gamers. If another in thing comes along, though, it's sales will fall precipitously.
Hi Anonymous,
I had completely forgotten Bungie… that could be a huge money spinner for Activision – I'm sure what those guys come up with will sell well.
Thanks for the comment! I agree that Call of Duty is a franchice with a limited lease on life, it surprises me that Activision is so keen to over-resource it.
Hi Anonymous,
I had completely forgotten Bungie… that could be a huge money spinner for Activision – I'm sure what those guys come up with will sell well.
Thanks for the comment! I agree that Call of Duty is a franchice with a limited lease on life, it surprises me that Activision is so keen to over-resource it.
What is up with the Tony Hawk franchise? Really, how could they let such a fantastic franchise go to waste.
I want a true sequel to Tony Hawk 2!
What is up with the Tony Hawk franchise? Really, how could they let such a fantastic franchise go to waste.
I want a true sequel to Tony Hawk 2!