Activision Blizzard

Activision Blizzard is a developer and publisher.

Activision Blizzard Webpage, Facebook

Activision Blizzard, founded in 2008, is one of the world’s largest producers and publishers of games for PC, consoles, and mobile devices.

The company was formed through the merger of Activision, one of the oldest and most respected names in gaming since 1979, and Vivendi Games, a division of the French media giant Vivendi SA and owner of the legendary Blizzard Entertainment studio.

In mid-2013, after acquiring a majority stake in Vivendi Games, Activision Blizzard became fully independent. On January 18, 2022, it was announced that Microsoft would acquire Activision Blizzard by the end of 2023. The company in question and Xbox Game Studios were to operate side by side, under the common Microsoft Gaming banner. The acquisition officially closed on October 13, 2023.

Activision Blizzard is organized into five main divisions:

1. Activision (and its affiliated studios) – game developer and publisher.
2. Blizzard Entertainment – game developer and publisher.
3. King Digital Entertainment – developer and publisher of mobile and social games.
4. Media Networks – responsible for e-sports.
5. Activision Blizzard Studios – focused on the film industry.

The company is headquartered in Santa Monica, California, USA. From its founding until December 29, 2023, Robert “Bobby” Kotick served as president and CEO, having led Activision since 1991. The Activision Blizzard group includes nearly 40 divisions worldwide, ranging from development studios and regional offices to teams focused on film and e-sports. Together, these divisions employ more than 9,000 people. {TOC H2}

Activision Blizzard as a game developer

Activision Blizzard runs its gaming operations through internal Activision and Blizzard studios, as well as externally owned developers. This approach allows the company to span multiple hardware platforms and game genres, though Activision is best known for action games, while Blizzard Entertainment focuses on strategy and RPG titles. The key development studios within the Activision Blizzard group include (in alphabetical order): Beenox, Blizzard Entertainment, Demonware, FreeStyle Games, High Moon Studios, Infinity Ward, King Digital Entertainment, Raven Software, Sierra, Sledgehammer Games, Toys for Bob, Treyarch, and Vicarious Visions.

Over the years, the Activision Blizzard group - and its predecessors - has included many other development studios that were later dissolved or sold. Notable former studios include 7 Studios, Activision Value, Beachhead Studios, Bizarre Creations, The Blast Furnace, Blizzard North, Budcat Creations, Bungie Software, Coktel Vision, Dynamix, Fox Interactive, Gray Matter Interactive, Headgate Studios, Impressions Games, Infocom, Knowledge Adventure, Luxoflux, Massive Entertainment, Neversoft Entertainment, Papyrus Design Group, Radical Entertainment, Shaba Games, Swordfish Studios, Synergistic Software, Vivendi Games, Wanako Games, and Yosemite Entertainment.

Activision Blizzard as a game publisher

When looking at Activision Blizzard as a global game publisher, it’s important to consider the group’s major divisions separately, as each follows a slightly different business strategy. Since its early days - even before merging with Activision - Blizzard Entertainment has focused solely on publishing its own games, centered on its flagship franchises: Diablo, WarCraft, and StarCraft.

Unlike Blizzard, Activision has always published games from its own studios while also collaborating with major external developers. Over the years, Activision has partnered with major gaming giants like id Software (creators of the Quake and Wolfenstein series), Disney Interactive, and LucasArts, as well as smaller studios such as Harmonix Music Systems, known for the Guitar Hero series. The crown jewel of Activision’s publishing portfolio remains the Call of Duty series, developed since 2003, and one of the most important and best-selling FPS franchises in history. Activision is also known for games based on Marvel comics, like Spider-Man and X-Men, as well as popular toy franchises such as Transformers. Other key Activision brands include Skylanders, Tony Hawk, Prototype, True Crime, the James Bond action game series (in development since 2008), and Civilization: Call to Power, inspired by Sid Meier’s legendary franchise. It’s also worth noting that beyond its AAA titles, Activision has released a range of low-budget and casual games, which were for a time published under the Activision Value label.

Since February 2016, Activision Blizzard has also included King Digital Entertainment, one of the leading producers of casual mobile and social games, including the Saga series. Like Blizzard Entertainment, King publishes its games independently.

History

The beginnings of the company

Activision, Inc. was founded on October 1, 1979, by former Atari employees David Crane, Alan Miller, and Bob Whitehead, joined by former music producer Jim Levy, financier Richard Muchmore, and later, their ex-colleague Larry Kaplan. It is widely regarded as the first video game third-party developer/publisher. Before Activision, games were published only by the companies that made the hardware (for example, Atari exclusively handled games for the Atari 2600). The push to break this restrictive model - and give developers more freedom - led directly to a conflict between Activision’s future founders and Atari’s then-president, Ray Kassar. The name Activision, suggested by Jim Levy, was a blend of the words “active” and “television.” Interestingly, the company was originally registered under a very different name: VSync, Inc.

Based on that concept, Activision revolutionized the gaming industry by putting game creators in the spotlight alongside their productions and rewarding them much like record labels did with musicians. In 2003, the founders were honored with the special Game Developers Choice Award "First Penguin". However, before Activision could achieve its breakthrough, its founders had to overcome several obstacles - including a legal battle with Atari, which wasn’t settled until 1982. In the meantime, the company stayed busy - developing games for home computers and snapping up smaller publishers along the way. However, Activision’s first major hit came in 1982 with Pitfall!, created by David Crane for the Atari 2600. It became the system’s second best-selling title and inspired numerous “clones” on other platforms, including arcade machines. Games like Kaboom! and River Raid also achieved significant success.

In June 1986, Activision acquired Infocom, the pioneering studio behind text adventure games. A few months later, Bruce Davis became the head of Activision, a position he held until 1991. However, his strict management style led to Activision's first financial losses. As a result, the Infocom studio was closed in 1989, and only five of its 26 developers agreed to relocate to Activision’s headquarters in Silicon Valley. In 1988, Activision decided to expand into business applications, consolidating all its activities under the new corporate name Mediagenic. Under the Mediagenic umbrella, Activision continued publishing video games for the popular platforms of the era, including the Nintendo Entertainment System, Sega Master System, Atari 7800, Atari ST, Commodore 64, and Amiga. In 1989, Activision launched its first CD-ROM title for PCs: The Manhole, developed by Cyan.

"New" Activision

In the early 1990s, Mediagenic was found guilty of patent infringement and hit with multi-million-dollar fines, pushing the company to the brink of bankruptcy. However, a group of investors led by Robert Kotick - who would later become the company’s long-time president - stepped in to save the day. Under the new ownership, Mediagenic went through a major reorganization, merging with The Disc Company to streamline its operations. The company also reverted to its original name, Activision, refocusing on developing and publishing games for PCs and consoles, while continuing to acquire third-party developers. At the same time, Activision relocated its headquarters from Silicon Valley to Santa Monica, California. In 1992, Activision opened its first overseas office in Australia, followed by another in the United Kingdom a year later.

During this period, Activision focused on strengthening its core franchises, releasing collections like Lost Treasures of Infocom and continuing the MechWarrior series, which launched in 1989 and is based on FASA's BattleTech universe. In 1997, Heavy Gear, a game adapted from a tactical board game, was released. The MechWarrior 2 engine powered such successful games as Interstate '76 and Battlezone, a remake of a classic arcade game. The Zork series of interactive adventure games also turned out to be a major success. In 1997, Activision acquired the rights to the iconic Quake series from id Software, which quickly became one of the company’s flagship franchises. That same year, as part of its European expansion, Activision opened a branch in Germany, followed by another in France the next year.

In 1998, Activision signed a multi-year deal with Marvel, launching a series of video games based on the X-Men and Spider-Man comics. These titles became key franchises, securing a strong and lasting spot in Activision’s publishing portfolio. In 1998, Activision also struck cooperation deals with major industry players like Disney Interactive and LucasArts. Activision also entered the Benelux markets with its offer. That same year, Activision secured the license to develop games set in the Star Trek universe and signed a long-term deal with skateboarding legend Tony Hawk, who would go on to star in a whole series of skateboarding games. A year later, Activision teamed up with Cabela’s, one of the world’s top hunting equipment brands, resulting in a series of hunting games, including the Cabela’s Big Game Hunter series.

At the start of the 21st century, Activision secured the rights to another iconic id Software franchise: the Wolfenstein series. Activision also struck deals with other sports stars, including BMX legend Mat Hoffman, snowboarding champion Shaun Palmer, wakeboarding pro Shaun Murray, and surfing icon Kelly Slater. In 2000, Activision reorganized, turning the original company into Activision Publishing, a division under Activision Holdings, Inc. The following year, it launched the Activision Value brand, bringing together three studios dedicated to developing low-budget games. Activision also expanded its partnership with Marvel, securing licenses for iconic franchises like the Fantastic Four and The Hulk.

In 2002, Activision bought a 30% stake in the newly founded Infinity Ward studio, which a year later released its debut hit, the first Call of Duty first-person shooter. The game was a huge success, launching Activision’s most important publishing series to date, with development also involving Treyarch, which the company had acquired in 2001. In 2005, in collaboration with Harmonix Music Systems, Activision launched another franchise, Guitar Hero, which was actively developed in the following years. Its standout feature was the use of special guitar-shaped controllers. The series spawned numerous sequels and spin-offs, including DJ Hero, Band Hero, and the Rock Band series from Electronic Arts, which introduced additional controllers mimicking bass guitars, drums, and DJ consoles.

Merger with Vivendi Games

In December 2007, Activision announced plans to merge with Vivendi Games, the gaming division of the French media company Vivendi SA (formerly Vivendi Universal), which owned studios like Blizzard Entertainment and Sierra Entertainment. The merger was completed in July 2008, creating Activision Blizzard, valued at nearly $19 billion - surpassing rivals like Electronic Arts, which was worth just over $14 billion. Vivendi became the majority shareholder of Activision Blizzard, with former Activision president Robert 'Bobby' Kotick taking the helm. Right after the merger, the legendary Sierra company was shut down - though it was later revived in August 2014 as a publishing brand under Activision Blizzard. Some employees with overlapping roles were laid off, and many titles vanished from the portfolio, with their rights sold to other companies. Despite the merger, Activision and Blizzard Entertainment continued to operate as separate, independent entities.

In November 2009, Sledgehammer Games was founded, with key members drawn from Visceral Games, a subsidiary of Electronic Arts. The team initially planned to develop a Call of Duty spin-off with MMO elements, but after a crisis at Infinity Ward, they were redirected to help with the next main installment, Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3. The game delivered one of the series’ strongest launches ever, raking in $400 million in its first 24 hours. In 2010, Activision struck a partnership with Bungie, the studio behind the legendary Halo series, which had split from Microsoft three years earlier. That same year, the company was named the world’s largest video game publisher, surpassing giants like Electronic Arts, Ubisoft, and Nintendo. In 2011, the innovative Skylanders franchise launched, combining a video game with collectible figurines that could be brought to life in the game via a special portal.

In July 2013, Activision Blizzard announced plans to split from Vivendi Games, which had previously held a majority stake in the company. The process was completed in October, making Activision Blizzard independent once again and significantly boosting its market position. As a result of the deal and related legal disputes, Vivendi Games’ stake fell to just 12%, and then dropped further to around 6% in the following months. A large portion of the shares (24.4%) was acquired by the investment group ASAC II LP, led in part by Bobby Kotick, and including the Chinese company Tencent, the main shareholder of Epic Games.

In 2015–16, Activision Blizzard helped develop Warcraft: Origins, a cinematic adaptation of one of Blizzard Entertainment’s most iconic franchises. In October 2015, Activision Blizzard launched a dedicated division, Activision Blizzard Media Networks, focused on e-sports competitions. A month later, the company announced plans to launch Activision Blizzard Studios, focused entirely on film and TV. Its first projects included a sequel to Warcraft: Origins, an untitled Call of Duty movie, and a TV series based on the Skylanders franchise. At the end of 2015, Activision Blizzard acquired Major League Gaming, a professional esports organization active since 2002, and announced plans to launch a TV channel dedicated to broadcasting esports competitions. At the end of February 2016, Activision Blizzard completed its acquisition of King Digital Entertainment (also known as King.com), a leading developer of mobile and social games.

Restructuring, layoffs and bonuses

In November 2018, reports surfaced that Activision’s influence over Blizzard Entertainment was growing, with the company pressuring Diablo developers to cut costs and boost profits. In January 2019, the holding company saw the departure of its chief financial officers, Spencer Neumann from Activision and Amrita Ahuja from Blizzard Entertainment. Neumann was soon replaced by Dennis Durkin, who received a $15 million welcome package - $3.75 million in cash and the rest in Activision shares.

Also in January 2019, Bungie parted ways with Activision Blizzard and returned to being an independent studio. The split was driven by Bungie’s struggle to sustain player interest in the second Destiny game, which led to lower-than-expected revenue. The team retained full rights to the brand.

In February 2019, despite a record-breaking 2018 in revenue, CEO Robert Kotick announced that Activision Blizzard would cut around 800 positions across nearly all non-managerial departments, including development studios, publishing divisions, and esports teams, as part of a restructuring. Future plans were also unveiled, with a focus on expanding the company’s most profitable franchises, led by the Call of Duty series. In March, it emerged that of the roughly 800 layoffs, 209 affected Blizzard Entertainment employees. Interestingly, the hiring process for positions vacated just four months earlier kicked off in July 2019.

Financially, 2020 was another strong year for Activision Blizzard. In the second quarter, revenue from digital channels topped $1.44 billion, and by January 2021, the company was valued at $72 billion. However, this didn’t stop Blizzard Entertainment from closing its French branch, as revealed in October 2020.

In February 2021, Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund purchased $1.4 billion worth of shares in Activision Blizzard. In February, it was revealed that the company’s new strategy focuses on boosting its presence in the free-to-play and mobile gaming markets, with its brands following the lead of the best-selling Call of Duty franchise.

In March, it was revealed that the holding company planned to lay off fifty more Blizzard Entertainment employees, including staff involved in live events like esports tournaments. The layoffs were driven by a shift in company policy prompted by the COVID-19 pandemic. Shortly after, it was announced that Activision Blizzard was gearing up for another major round of layoffs. The cuts were expected to hit the company’s European publishing branches in Germany, France, Spain, the Netherlands, and the UK, with the latter set to become, in a sense, the hub of Activision Blizzard’s operations on the continent. At the same time, Bobby Kotick received a $200 million bonus, drawing criticism from investors at CtW Investment Group.

Controversy and changes

In July 2021, Activision Blizzard faced a lawsuit following a two-year investigation by the California Department of Fair Employment and Housing. At the time, it emerged that female employees at the company had repeatedly faced sexual harassment, bullying, and unequal treatment, with management ignoring complaints and even taking "retaliatory actions".

A company spokesperson quickly responded, downplaying the allegations and calling them "inaccurate". Meanwhile, J. Allen Brack, head of Blizzard Entertainment, expressed concern over the situation and voiced solidarity with the victims. However, Activision Blizzard’s official response angered employees, who first sent an open letter to management and later staged a protest outside Blizzard’s headquarters in Irvine, California.

Finally, Bobby Kotick addressed the scandal himself, admitting that the company’s initial response was mishandled and announcing a series of future changes. The most significant of these measures was the pledge to remove from the company anyone found to be involved in the alleged abuses. Nevertheless, it seemed he was just putting a good face on a bad situation. Behind the scenes, the company enlisted the controversial law firm WilmerHale, which has represented clients including Amazon. In response, employees sent another open letter to Kotick, urging him to end the cooperation with the firm. Over time, shareholders filed a class-action lawsuit against the company, alleging that information about the harassment and the investigation had been withheld from them. As if that weren’t enough, by the end of August the company faced accusations of destroying incriminating documents. In mid-September, Activision Blizzard faced yet another lawsuit. This time, the company was accused of discouraging employees from speaking out about abuse. The company allegedly resorted to threats, surveillance, and employee interrogations.

All of this led the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission to take an interest in the case in September 2021, summoning Bobby Kotick for questioning. However, just a few days later, it was reported that Activision Blizzard had reached a settlement with the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. The company pledged to improve measures against discrimination and harassment, and to establish a special fund to compensate victims.

The first consequences of all this turmoil quickly became apparent. In early August, J. Allen Brack, president of Blizzard Entertainment, resigned and was succeeded by Jen Oneal and Mike Ybarra. At the end of the month, it was announced that McCree from Overwatch would be renamed. The character had originally been named after Jesse McCree, a Blizzard veteran who was fired for unprofessional behavior. A day later, it was announced that the names of certain employees linked to the scandal would be removed from World of Warcraft. In September, Chacko Sonny, executive producer of Overwatch 2, departed from Blizzard Entertainment. Additionally, references to the series’ former director, Jeff Kaplan, were set to be removed from the game. In October, it was announced that certain jokes and flirtations would be removed from World of Warcraft, deemed "outdated" and "inconsistent" with the studio’s new policy.

Moving under Microsoft's wing

On January 18, 2022, it was announced that Microsoft would acquire Activision Blizzard. Once the $68.7 billion deal was finalized - originally expected in 2023 - Microsoft was set to become the third-largest company in the video game industry. Only China’s Tencent and Japan’s Sony were expected to surpass it. Activision Blizzard was set to operate under Microsoft alongside Xbox Game Studios, forming the newly created Microsoft Gaming division.

Shortly after the acquisition news broke, Phil Spencer stated that Microsoft plans to honor existing Activision Blizzard agreements and will not restrict the availability of its games - especially the Call of Duty series - on other platforms. Bobby Kotick, however, said that Activision Blizzard’s move under Microsoft was driven by the goal of competing with tech giants and joining the race for dominance in the emerging metaverse. The Wall Street Journal and Bloomberg News reported that the real reason behind the move was the company’s weaker-than-expected game sales and, as a result, its declining financial position. Allegedly, Kotick was seeking a safe haven for the company, including with Meta, the parent company of platforms like Facebook.

Although Kotick said he planned to stay on, The Wall Street Journal reported that he would step down once the deal closed, receiving a severance package estimated between $252.2 million and $292.9 million.

The path to the Activision Blizzard–Microsoft merger proved to be long and full of obstacles. Although shareholders approved the merger and several antitrust authorities - including the European Commission and China’s State Administration for Market Regulation (SAMR) - gave it a green light, the U.S. Federal Trade Commission (FTC) and the UK Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) opposed the deal. The merger also drew criticism from Sony, which feared that Microsoft might make the Call of Duty series exclusive to Xbox.

As a result, Microsoft made several concessions, pledging to keep Activision’s flagship shooter series non-exclusive until at least 2033 and granting Ubisoft ten years of cloud support for Activision Blizzard games. Ultimately, both the FTC and CMA approved the deal, clearing the way for the merger to be finalized on October 13, 2023. Kotick, the head of Activision Blizzard, stepped down shortly after, on December 29, 2023.

In January 2024, Microsoft Gaming, which employed 22,000 people, carried out layoffs affecting roughly 1,900 employees. The layoffs were explained as a need to "adapt the strategy and plan (...) to a sustainable cost structure". Shortly after, it was announced that Johanna Faries, former CEO of the Call of Duty series, had been named the new president of Blizzard Entertainment.

In February 2024, Toys for Bob announced it was leaving Activision’s umbrella and returning to independent operations. Shortly after, in May, the developers announced that their new project, which was then in a very early stage of production, would be released by Microsoft.

May 2024 also brought news that a new studio – Elsewhere Entertainment – based in Warsaw was established under Activision. The newly formed team was tasked with creating a "narrative and genre-defining AAA game series." The team included developers who had previously worked on series such as The Last of Us, Uncharted, The Witcher, and Far Cry.

Finally, in June 2024, Call of Duty fans saw the announcement of Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 - the first installment in the series to be included in the Xbox Game Pass on the day of its release. The game came out on October 25th 2024 and received solid reviews from industry media and "mixed" opinions on Steam. Nevertheless, this didn't prevent CoD BO6 from becoming "the biggest Call of Duty launch in history" and setting "a new record for players who played it on day one."