Bobby Kotick, former CEO of Activision Blizzard, recently slammed his ex-EA counterpart, John Riccitiello, labeling him "the worst CEO in video games" during a podcast interview on Grit. While acknowledging EA's superior business stability compared to Activision's, Kotick stated he'd have paid to keep Riccitiello in the CEO role indefinitely. This wasn't personal, Kotick clarified, expressing a fear that Bing Gordon, EA's former chief creative officer, might succeed Riccitiello.
Riccitiello's departure from EA in 2013 followed disappointing financial performance and significant layoffs. His tenure, spanning from 2007, included controversial proposals, such as suggesting Battlefield players pay per reload. He later led Unity Technologies, leaving in 2023 amidst a backlash over proposed and subsequently retracted installation fees. His time at Unity also saw him apologize for his disparaging remarks about developers who resisted microtransactions.
Kotick, who oversaw Activision Blizzard's $68.7 billion acquisition by Microsoft in 2023, revealed EA's multiple attempts to acquire Activision Blizzard. He admitted EA's business model was often considered stronger and more stable.
Kotick's own leadership at Activision Blizzard, while financially successful, was also marked by controversy. Numerous employee complaints regarding sexism, a toxic work environment, and alleged mishandling of serious misconduct allegations surfaced. While Activision Blizzard maintains that independent reviews found claims of widespread sexual harassment and improper board actions to be unsubstantiated, a $54 million settlement was reached with the California Civil Rights Department in December 2023. The settlement concluded that no court or independent investigation had substantiated claims of systemic sexual harassment or improper board handling of misconduct.
During the interview, Kotick also voiced his critical opinion of Universal's 2016 Warcraft film adaptation, calling it "one of the worst movies I've ever seen."
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