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[Bernardougf]

And the Sky is blue. Thanks.

 

[Begleiter]

Kotick is throwing stones in a glass house here, another few years of his leadership and even the Blizzard side would be in the CoD mines.

I don't think it has to be the case that there are no creatives at Microsoft or that management can't foster a culture where their studios shine rather than decline, but I don't think it happens under the current leadership.

 

[Ogbert]

Two games they brought......

Again, fully understood.

Sony bought their games too. They’re an electronics giant and MS are a software giant.

But you can build around the games and studios you’ve bought and build an identity. Sony have done exactly that.

MS started to and then shat the bed.

 

[GHG]

But you can build around the games and studios you’ve bought and build an identity. Sony have done exactly that.

The difference is that Sony's other entertainment divisions existed long before they entered the videogames industry.

 

[ShaiKhulud1989]

Jobs said it all earlier in a brilliant way and I see no reason to quote that interview once again.

 

[Shubh_C63]

What if Nadella only keeps Xbox around to test and develop AI?

But Satya says he is in gaming for the games and not to test any other tool. And you know Microsoft never lies so you can take that to the bank.

 

[Rosoboy19]

Of the western tech giants, Apple would be a far better fit and could yield some interesting and unique results

Ehh, maybe. Based on their streaming efforts, Apple may go too far in the other direction, offering a bunch of Hellblade2-style super artsy games that don’t really connect with the masses.

 

[Fortress of Regrets]

It'll all be a downwards trajectory under MS. They will find a way to ruin the cash cows they bought as well.

Obsidian is already a slop factory (edit: not that they were ever a cash cow).

 

[adamsapple]

 

[TheThreadsThatBindUs]

I'm not sure if it's a criticism I'd be willing to accept from the man who's been in charge of motherfucking Activision for almost 2 decades.

Activision... the most successful, number 1 games publisher in the business?

Yeah, quite the indictment /s

WTF?!

 

[Horseganador]

They never were, in more than 20 years in the market they have not created any successful original IP, Halo was taken from Apple, Gears was bought from Epic, Rare was taken from Nintendo, etc... MS and Xbox are more about pulling out their checkbook and buying what they can't create themselves.

 

[TheThreadsThatBindUs]

Yet he sold Activision to them...

No... the shareholders did.

The CEO has very little say in who a company gets sold to. It's the owners who have the final say, and for a publicly traded company, that's the majority shareholders.

 

[RetroGamingUK]

Gotten to

 

[Sentenza]

Activision... the most successful, number 1 games publisher in the business?

Yeah, quite the indictment /s

WTF?!

Yeah, Activision, the embodiment of "creatively bankrupt" when it comes to game publishers, the one that ended up killing basically their entire line-up/portfolio to push just iterations of Call OF Duty and the occasional Blizzard games.

Are you fucking serious?

 

[TheThreadsThatBindUs]

Yeah, Activision, the embodiment of "creatively bankrupt" when it comes to game publishers, the one that ended up killing basically their entire line-up/portfolio to push just iterations of Call OF Duty and the occasional Blizzard games.

Are you fucking serious?

Activision that successfully reinvent COD sufficiently every year to sell 20+m copies.

Activision that funded, published and helped Bungie launch Destiny and Destiny 2.

Activision that's published a bunch of successful Transformers games.

Activision that owns and publishes the Tony Hawks Pro Skater franchise.

Activision that blew up the causal gaming market with Guitar Hero and its sequels back in the day.

Activision that shipped a bunch of successful Spider-man games until Disney eventually transferred the rights to Sony.

Activision who shipped Overwatch, the single most successful hero area shooter ever.

Activision who owns WoW, which was the biggest longest running MMO ever and still pulls reasonable sub numbers today.

Activision who owns King, i.e. one of the largest and most successful mobile publishers out there.

I really don't understand WTF you're arguing??!

The proof of the companies' creativity and success is in the pudding. Creativity doesn't mean only ever ship new IPs. Creativity also means reinventing stale formulas, pushing big new ideas (like Guitar Hero) etc etc. Activision is a creative company. There's no question of that. Has their creativity reduced alongside the increase in commercial risk in the industry due to ballooning dev costs...? Yes, the same and every other publisher in the business.

 

[Brucey]

They never were, in more than 20 years in the market they have not created any successful original IP, Halo was taken from Apple, Gears was bought from Epic, Rare was taken from Nintendo, etc... MS and Xbox are more about pulling out their checkbook and buying what they can't create themselves.

Once they've acquired it, it can be discarded. As the true purpose has been served. That's how the rest of the Microsoft organization operates.

"Embrace, extend, extinguish"

 

[DJ12]

Again, fully understood.

Sony bought their games too. They’re an electronics giant and MS are a software giant.

But you can build around the games and studios you’ve bought and build an identity. Sony have done exactly that.

MS started to and then shat the bed.

It's a fair point you make but it's hard to see them as creative.

Forza exists because of GT

Forza Horizon exists because of Test Drive Unlimited.

It's not like they've ever thrown a hail Mary and made something truly original.

It's fair to say Sony don't anymore too, but back when PlayStation won me over there were very creative and backed lots of weird stuff as well.

Can you see MS ever allowing something like little big planet to be made or dreams?

 

[clarky]

There isn't. A studio is either first or third party.
The question is how much freedom does a first party studio have.
And Bungie did have a significant leeway to make the games they wanted, as long as they wanted to just make Halo.
When Bungie wanted to make other games, and MS wanted them to keep making Halo games, that's when they split up.

There isn't what?

Bungie was owned by MS when they released Halo = First party, there is no grey area.

 

[winjer]

There isn't what?

Bungie was owned by MS when they released Halo = First party, there is no grey area.

I don't know what your doubt is, but yes, Bungie was a first party studio when they release Halo.

 

[clarky]

I don't know what your doubt is, but yes, Bungie was a first party studio when they release Halo.

Never mind mate busy day, wires crossed. The dude I originally responded to claimed Bungie wasn't owned by MS.

 

[Three]

Yeah on top of all the other problems with Kotick he turned formerly unique and creative studios into GaaS factories.

It still shocks me to this day that there are Kotick defenders existing somewhere on this planet.

The fact that he did this is why MS bought them for $70B and subsequently let go of Toys for Bob who didn't want to be a CoD factory. Say what you will of Kotick and CoD but he made a creative entertainment juggernaut of ABK.

 

[REDRZA MWS]

Microsoft used to be creative like when the original xbox launched and the xbox 360 era as well. The issue is that they lost their identity as a gaming publisher at the beginning of the xbox one era and they never had the right person in charge to steer the ship in the direction that they needed to go after peter moore left the company.

100% the OG Xbox packed in Halo CE, was the very first console with a HDD standard, and an Ethernet port standard, and the very first online gaming service all broadband.

The 360 took it to a pinnacle. It was the best machine they ever made. It’s was a gamers delight.

Whoever made the choice with the Xbox one is where MS lost their way. Massive vcr size unit, severely underpowered, hdmi in like anyone cares about, and that ridiculous forced Kinect, which nobody wanted .

If their next console just focuses on gamers. Give us a powerful machine. And put all the studios you purchased to use and pump out some great exclusives.

 

[Sentenza]

I really don't understand WTF you're arguing??!

Do you have a crippling mental impairment or what?
I'm "arguing" that Activision is as creatively bankrupt as they come and that Kotick of ALL PEOPLE, THE KOTICK who was often pointed as the anthropomorphic personification of corporate greed in the videogame industry, is in NO position to lecture ANYONE on creativity.

The fact that you think the list you posted is impressive in ANY way beside commercial success is honestly something that fluctuates between hysterical and embarrassing.

 

[Chukhopops]

The fact that he did this is why MS bought them for $70B and subsequently let go of Toys for Bob who didn't want to be a CoD factory. Say what you will of Kotick and CoD but he made a creative entertainment juggernaut of ABK.

I would disagree on the “creative” part, they took studios like Beenox, Raven, Neversoft etc and reduced those to franchise milkers.

They turned Blizzard from its pre-2013 form (ending with Diablo 3 basically) into its current form (Overwatch and Diablo Immortal).

Kotick should stfu and be glad somebody bailed him out.

 

[Mibu no ookami]

It seems people are taking this as a dig and taking it personally and they shouldn't. I don't think most people would argue that Microsoft is a creative company in the sense that they're designed to cater to the creation of gaming IP.

They've been in the business of console gaming since 2001 and have never once created a major hit IP on their own organically. They bought Bungie a rising star in Washington. Epic created Gears of War. Forza was a clone of Gran Turismo. Their most creative games like Fable, they never cultivated. Both Halo and Gears have waned under the direction of Microsoft.

They had to buy Zenimax and Activision because they didn't have creativity.

Microsoft is a software company that is their general essence. They're obviously very successful at that, but what makes them successful at that doesn't translate to every endeavor. It's the same as Google, and why so many Google products fail outside their focus area.

All of this isn't to say that there aren't creative people who work at Microsoft or Xbox, but the DNA for creativity doesn't exist within the company. They don't foster an environment where creativity thrives. They manage the studios they own like they manage the software development teams they own. Their contractor restrictions make it almost impossible to deliver consistently great games, especially the longer the development cycles get.

Matt Booty is in charge of the studios, the dude literally came from Midway...

 

[proandrad]

He's a fucking hypocrite, that's why. For money he would sold his mother to the devil.

He should keep his mouth shut.

It was a public company and it was literally his fiduciary responsibility to increase shareholder wealth. Microsoft made an offer too big to refuse.

 

[Mibu no ookami]

The fact that he did this is why MS bought them for $70B and subsequently let go of Toys for Bob who didn't want to be a CoD factory. Say what you will of Kotick and CoD but he made a creative entertainment juggernaut of ABK.

Not only did they let Toys for Bob go but they closed Tango (only for them to be saved later). They don't value creativity, their primary focus is making the balance sheet work which is also understandable. The timing and circumstances of these M&A made things really difficult for Microsoft/Xbox.

You have an untenable hardware situation and now massive OpEx that can't be sustained by the hardware operations. You have to start cutting cost somewhere and even if they're immensely creative, studios like Toys for Bob and Tango on paper weren't bringing in money. A company with some vision would try to build around them, but Microsoft doesn't have time for that. They have to focus on making GamePass profitable, which they can't do at current prices and lack of expansion due to lagging hardware sales.

 

[Unknown?]

I'm not sure if it's a criticism I'd be willing to accept from the man who's been in charge of motherfucking Activision for almost 2 decades.

I agree, but Microsoft were the ones who bought them which makes their judgement even worse than Kotick.

 

[Hudo]

He's not wrong, but it's like the pot calling the kettle black. ActivisionBlizzard weren't the hallmark of creativity either...

 

[Black_Stride]

I actually forgot Bleeding Edge even came out.

Anyone have a link to the full interview?

 

[Kacho]

I would have loved to see an Xbox division run by Kotick.

Anyone have a link to the full interview?

The Kotick one?

 

[diffusionx]

Steve Jobs said the same thing years ago - that they’re a company with no taste. I think he has been proven to be totally and 100% and Kotick is correct as well.

 

[FalsettoVibe]

That takes nothing away from anything he said.

 

[Black_Stride]

I would have loved to see an Xbox division run by Kotick.


The Kotick one?

Both.









That twitter user dislikes Xbox but every second tweet is about Xbox?
Just ignore it if it irks you so much.
I never post or even talk about Apple cuz i legit dgaf.

 

[Kacho]

Both.

Don't have the Satya one.

 

[Ivan]

Good old Bobby knows

 

[LordCBH]

Pretty much everyone who made the great decisions that led to the 360 being a banger of a platform left and were replaced by soulless suits. 2005-2010 Xbox was the absolute best.

I won’t say it’s all bad now, because the hardware is nice. But it’s all about the games man. And they just haven’t had them since 2010. They’re getting better now that they’ve bought a shit ton of studios and publishers, but that’s sad that that’s what it took.

 

[deriks]

He’s a business man, and a great one at that.

Yes, the "hypocrite" who pretty built Activision from scratch since taking them over in 1991.

One thing doesn't null the other

 

[PurePlatinum]

MSFT and other western game companies unfortunately view video games as being software...which they sort of are but really you need a different approach to make great games.

 

[Hudo]

Don't have the Satya one.

It's interesting how he comes across as a somewhat reasonable dude in this interview (and he's much less annoying than the 2 retarded interviewers, tbh). And yet, he ruined Blizzard and Raven Software during his tenure.

 

[sainraja]

Sadly, it’s not that simple.

MS *were* excellent. The original X and 360 were fantastic. And with Bungie and Gears, they had a clear, distinct identity.

It’s nothing to do with technology. They just forgot how to make good games.

And now they’re pointless.

The original xbox was a boring console. X360 had Xbox Arcade and Live features highlighting it, making it stand out, so will give you that. IMO, best overall, would be Xbox One X — of course, they completed botched everything else around that console. XSX is a more refined version of XONE | X.

But, the original? Pretty boring and the controller was pretty bad, even the S version. The black/white button placement was so odd. They didn't carry that forward which is a good thing!

 

[Hudo]

and the controller was pretty bad

Disagree. I think the OG Duke controller was awesome. And it saved me during a fight with some retard at an Xbox link party playing Halo.
Who knew you could knock a motherfucker out with the Duke controller. Good times.

 

[Durin]

I mean he's kinda right in some respects, because Microsoft just buys already creative people at this point rather than being able to foster that themselves.

That said...Bobby Kotick is one of the least creative fucking people on the planet, only good at squeezing money out of pre-existing franchises, and led to the decline of pretty much every studio in creative output that worked under him.

 

[reinking]

The original xbox was a boring console.

I disagree. You seem to attribute that it was boring due to something that was lacking in all consoles at the time. The OG Xbox brought us Xbox LAN parties. The Duke is considered by many to be a legendary controller (it wasn't my fav but a lot of people liked it).

 

[poppabk]

MS's problem isn't a lack of creativity in fact it's the opposite, they give too much power to the creative leads and don't reign it in. So you get games like Hellbalde 2 which are artisticly excellent but are kind of dull gameplay wise but also thematically. Or Indiana Jones in first person and more adventure than action.
What they need is someone with creative vision but who is also practical. The kind of person who will take an inventive studio like Insomniac and put them to regurgitating super hero movies over and over again.

 

[sainraja]

Disagree. I think the OG Duke controller was awesome. And it saved me during a fight with some retard at an Xbox link party playing Halo.
Who knew you could knock a motherfucker out with the Duke controller. Good times.

Using it as a weapon did make me laugh but... I thought the controller itself was pretty bad. I didn't like using it and the placement of the black/buttons and how they were used in games didn't work well.

I disagree. You seem to attribute that it was boring due to something that was lacking in all consoles at the time. The OG Xbox brought us Xbox LAN parties. The Duke is considered by many to be a legendary controller (it wasn't my fav but a lot of people liked it).

I guess I shouldn't have it said it had nothing going for it, obviously being the first console designed with online gaming in mind. And I would say the duke is considered by some to be legendary and I think a lot of that has to do with just being nostalgic. I don't remember people being that fond of it during its generation and the duke itself was replaced by MS very quickly with the S.

 

[reinking]

I guess I shouldn't have it said it had nothing going for it, obviously being the first console designed with online gaming in mind. And I would say the duke is considered by some to be legendary and I think a lot of that has to do with just being nostalgic. I don't remember people being that fond of it during its generation and the duke itself was replaced by MS very quickly with the S.

I was managing an EB Games at the time. The Duke definitely had its following but for those of us with normal hands, the S was the better choice. I still not not think it was a bad controller though. IMO, it always comes back to software and the OG Xbox had a solid line up of games.

 

[Mibu no ookami]

Never thought I'd have to defend Bobby Kotick, but a lot of you can't really grasp reality.

Is Kotick personally a creative person? Is that the real question here? Kotick took Activision from bankruptcy to the largest 3rd party publisher in all of gaming... To argue that he doesn't know what he is talking about here is laughable.

At the end of the day he's a businessman, but he cultivated a company that was able to create IP like crazy and brought in creative people. From Tony Hawk Pro Skater, to Guitar Hero, to getting the brains behind Medal of Honor out from under EA and turning that in CoD... The acquisition of Blizzard and the acquisition of King...Dude has had his finger on the pulse of gaming for decades...

Like him or hate him, none of that is changeable.

 

[bender]

the moment bobby said it........................

 

[Bry0]

Funnily enough it’s sim games that Microsoft do best at in terms of being ground up Microsoft games.

Flight Sim obviously being the other one.

But there’s no creativity here.

Forza and Gran Turismo are not the result of creativity in the same way that OutRun, Ridge Racer and Daytona were.

Was going to post this video. It was true then ands it’s true now!