Bobby Kotick

A growing number of video game developers are now quietly working on projects for Nintendo's unannounced Switch 2.

Microsoft will soon announce its intention to release this year’s mainline Call of Duty game straight into Game Pass, according to a new report.

Sign up for the GI Daily here to get the biggest news straight to your inbox

NetEase is reportedly about to bring Blizzard’s games back to China.

Xbox corporate vice president (CVP) Kareem Choudhry is reportedly leaving Microsoft after spending more than two decades at the company. The departure of Choudhry comes during a period of change within the Xbox division and uncertainty among fans regarding the future of the console manufacturer.

Overwatch 2 developers reportedly received no profit share bonuses from the semi-annual Blizzard payout in March, which covers the second half of 2023. This fact paints a grim picture of Overwatch 2, and has led many to worry about the long-term health of the game.

Blizzard and NetEase are allegedly planning on announcing the restoration of their partnership within the next few weeks. If the rumors are true, Blizzard may be able to restore access to its games in China via NetEase this year, possibly as early as April.

The United States House of Representatives has passed the “TikTok bill” that would effectively ban the short-form video-sharing app if owner ByteDance doesn’t divest. Representatives voted on Wednesday on the Protecting Americans From Foreign Adversary Controlled Applications Act, pushing it forward with a majority vote of 352 to 65. The bill is expected to move onto the Senate for another vote if Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) brings it to the floor. President Biden said he’d sign the bill should it reach his desk.

Former Activision Blizzard CEO Bobby Kotick is reportedly interested in acquiring TikTok.

Former Activision Blizzard boss Bobby Kotick has reportedly expressed an interest in buying social media platform TikTok.

Will this year’s Call of Duty launch day one on Game Pass? Xbox boss Phil Spencer has suggested it will.

A report claiming Nintendo Switch 2 will now launch in Q1 2025 is spreading online.

Microsoft recently cut 1,900 jobs from its gaming division and among the layoffs were many at the recently acquired video game developer Activision Blizzard. Blizzard Entertainment's President Mike Ybarra and co-founder Allen Adham are both departing. The tech giant also announced the cancellation of a Blizzard game, called “Odyssey,” that was already six years in development. On Tuesday, Microsoft reported quarterly earnings, posting its strongest revenue growth since 2022.

Nintendo's Switch 2 will feature an eight-inch LCD screen, according to a new report.

The development team behind Blizzard's now-cancelled survival game, reportedly called Odyssey, is seemingly among the teams dramatically impacted by the layoffs at Microsoft today.

Following its acquisition of Activision Blizzard, Microsoft is reportedly reducing of 1,900 employees from its workforce. While he didn’t confirm being part of the same, Blizzard Entertainment president Mike Ybarra has revealed that he is also departing the company.

Well here's one way of getting yourself some free publicity: casually announce your product will be releasing alongside Switch 2 this «September» so everyone excitedly thinks you might have just accidentally splurged Nintendo's big secret, then, when you're confronted about it, give a little shrug and admit you were just «guessing».

Nintendo's shares have hit a record high as expectations around Switch 2 continue to grow, and amid speculation Saudi Arabia is set to further invest in Japanese video game stock.

It can be difficult keeping track of the various comings and goings in the games industry, which is why we compile them in semi-regular round-ups.

Do you want to get the latest gaming industry news straight to your inbox? Sign up for our daily and weekly newsletters here .

A former Activision Blizzard executive is suing the company for age discrimination, according to lawsuit filed on Jan. 2. James Reid Venable, a 57-year-old former senior director of business operations, said Activision Blizzard “retaliated and discriminated” against him after he made a discrimination complaint to the company’s human resources department — specifically, Venable believes he was laid off for being old and white.

It’s always nice to think that certain industries are “above harassment” or other things that have weighed down our world. But, sadly, that faith is rarely rewarded. The places and companies that should be the most “sound of mind” sometimes turn out to be the most corrupt or have some of the most hate-filled people around. For example, the video game industry is full of horror stories about the working conditions of certain places and the abuses made by those in power. And that says nothing about gamers themselves. But in the case of Activision Blizzard, they had an issue that was so grand that it resulted in several lawsuits, and those suits keep on coming.

Activision-Blizzard has been the centre of a lot of controversy over these past few years. After a lawsuit went public, detailing «numerous complaints about unlawful harassment, discrimination, and retaliation» and a «frat boy» culture, plus claims from former CEO Bobby Kotick that the whole thing was just an «aggressive labour movement,»  the company finally settled last year.

An unnamed former Activision executive is taking the Call of Duty publisher to court in California, accusing the company of age discrimination and violating the state's whistleblower protection law. Said executive is a 57-year-old who worked at the company from 2014; apparently, he and six other men aged 47 or older were cut from a team of 200, as part of broader Activision Blizzard restructuring efforts last August.

Publisher Activision Blizzard has been accused of discriminating against “old white guys,” by a former executive.

A former Activision Blizzard executive has filed a discrimination claim with the company, alleging it of discriminating against «old white guys».

A former Activision executive has sued the publisher in California state court accusing the company of age discrimination and violating the state's whistleblower protection law, as reported by Law360.

The decisions made by outgoing Activision CEO Bobby Kotick actively made Call of Duty games worse. That's according to Christina Pollock a programmer who previously worked on the series. Pollock, along with many other former colleagues, made their feelings regarding the controversial exec known on social media once it was confirmed he had definitely left the building.

One constant of the last year's worth of news swirling aroundMicrosoft's acquisition of Activision Blizzard was the back-and-forth bickering between the tech giant and the UK's Competition and Markets Authority as the deal headed to a close. Now, Microsoft's Brad Smith seems to have softened his tone a bit regarding the CMA.

Activision-Blizzard's transfer over to the growing empire of Microsoft has been a bit of a drama, to say the least—but it's all over now, its curtains called with the departure of the company's former CEO Bobby Kotick, exiting stage right.

Bobby Kotick was a controversial figure during his long tenure as the CEO of Activision Blizzard, and controversy, it seems, is continuing to follow him in the aftermath of his recent departure. More specifically, developers who formerly worked at Activision Blizzard studios have been speaking out on Kotick’s leadership adversely impacted the games they worked on.

Blizzard is reportedly back to working with Netease again to bring their video games to China.

After 32 years, Bobby Kotick has retired at Activision Blizzard King, and possibly, from the video game industry as a whole.

Bobby Kotick’s last day at renowned gaming megacorporation Activision Blizzard was Friday, December 29th, 2023. He leaves with a $15 million… departure salary? In casual terms, it’s a “golden parachute.” He’s 60 years old. He’ll be fine. 

«Bobby [Kotick]'s decisions made our games worse,» a former Call of Duty programmer said on social media the same day Kotick completed his final day as CEO at Activision Blizzard.

This July, Blizzard announced it would bring back its games to Steam after several years of absence, beginning with Overwatch 2. However, the team-based first-person shooter game's debut on Valve's platform was marred by severe review bombing. Overwatch 2 actually became the lowest-rated game of all time on Steam when it first became available there. While the game isn't quite as popular as its predecessor, it still is a solid product that shouldn't be rated anywhere near as low. The main factor was the cancellation of the PvE mode, which angered fans due to the developer's broken promise, but that's not the whole story.

Overwatch 2 launched on Steam this year, making it the first time that the series has been available to purchase on the platform. However, this also coincided with several controversies surrounding the game, so when it wasn't too surprising to see that it was immediately review-bombed.

It's official: Bobby Kotick has left Activision Blizzard. After 32 years of leading the company, originally just Activision before the Blizzard merger, the controversial CEO is gone, having seen the Microsoft acquisition through to the end.

Following a 14-year partnership, Blizzard and NetEase had a loud and controversial split in late 2022. The Chinese publisher operated Blizzard's games in China as the licensed partner required by the government. The announcement came in November 2022, revealing to angry fans that popular games such as Overwatch 2, Diablo III, World of Warcraft, StarCraft, Hearthstone, and Heroes of the Storm would not be available any longer starting on January 23, 2023 across mainland China.

Do you want to get the latest gaming industry news straight to your inbox? Sign up for our daily and weekly newsletters here .

Do you want to get the latest gaming industry news straight to your inbox? Sign up for our daily and weekly newsletters here .

Sign up for the GI Daily here to get the biggest news straight to your inbox

There's a Cantonese saying I've been looking for an excuse to use in one of these columns for months, and with the year drawing to a close, I'm going to drop it here as a little present to myself.

Long-time Activision Blizzard boss Bobby Kotick is leaving the company following its acquisition by Microsoft in October. Kotick will depart on 29th December, with Microsoft largely keeping the company’s core leadership intact outside of this.

Long-time Activision Blizzard boss Bobby Kotick is leaving the company following its acquisition by Microsoft in October. Kotick will depart on 29th December, with Microsoft largely keeping the company’s leadership intact outside of this.

The CEO of Activision Blizzard, Bobby Kotick, is officially stepping down from his role later this month, it’s been confirmed. 

The products discussed here were independently chosen by our editors. GameSpot may get a share of the revenue if you buy anything featured on our site.

It’s official: The Bobby Kotick era at Activision Blizzard will end on December 29. According to The Verge, Instead of appointing a new replacement, the top Activision Blizzard executives will now report to Microsoft’s game content and studios president Matt Booty. Several more higher-level Activision Blizzard employees will also leave the company in the new year with departures planned through March 2024.

After a 32-year career, Activision Blizzard CEO Bobby Kotick is officially stepping down next week, with his last day at the company being Friday, December 29. Meanwhile, Microsoft has announced a series of key leadership changes as it works to bring Activision Blizzard into Xbox's fold.

Do you want to get the latest gaming industry news straight to your inbox? Sign up for our daily and weekly newsletters here .

Microsoft has announced that Bobby Kotick, CEO of Activision Blizzard, will be stepping down on December 29th. Instead of a replacement, Blizzard president Mike Ybarra and Activision publishing president Rob Kostich will report to Microsoft Gaming game content and studios president Matt Booty, per The Verge. Activision Blizzard vice chair Thomas Tippl is also leaving in March 2024 but reports to Booty till then.

It is now official: In a farewell message to employees, Activision Blizzard CEO Bobby Kotick has confirmed that he will be leaving the company.

Sign up for the GI Daily here to get the biggest news straight to your inbox

It was massive news when Microsoft revealed that they had put out a bid to acquire Activision Blizzard. Billions of dollars went into this purchase, and it was anything but easy. There were court cases and battles against the regulators to ensure that this deal would go through. Fortunately for Microsoft, the deal was finalized earlier this year. Since then, we’ve seen Microsoft go into a transitional phase to ensure production could continue while Microsoft took over the reins. Meanwhile, it was noted that Bobby Kotick, the CEO of Activision Blizzard, would continue staying on until the upcoming year.

Controversial Activision Blizzard boss Bobby Kotick will depart the company on 29th December, it's been announced.

Activision Blizzard CEO Bobby Kotick will leave the company on December 29 after 32 years, and remaining Activision Blizzard executives such as Blizzard Entertainment president Mike Ybarra, Activision Publishing president Rob Kostich, and Activision Blizzard vice chairman Thomas Tippl will be overseen by Microsoft Gaming game content and studios president Matt Booty.

Activision Blizzard CEO Bobby Kotick is officially resigning from the company after the completion of Microsoft’s $68.7 billion acquisition of the gaming developer and publisher. Kotick’s last day is Dec. 29, when Microsoft studio head Matt Booty will take lead of the Activision Blizzard executive leadership team. Kotick led Activision Blizzard for 32 years.

Upon the formal close of the merger between Activision and Microsoft this past October, Kotick shared his commitment to remain with his company as CEO during a transition period through the end of 2023. That day is now soon to come, as long time Activision CEO Bobby Kotick has released a new message to employees saying goodbye to the company he led over the past 32 years. His last day will be December 29th, 2023.

Activision Blizzard CEO Bobby Kotick will officially leave the company on December 29, it’s been confirmed.

Activision Blizzard CEO Bobby Kotick has announced he’s stepping down from his position on December 29. The news comes two months after Microsoft officially completed its acquisition of the developer/publisher. 

Bobby Kotick has confirmed that he'll be stepping down as CEO of Activision-Blizzard-King on December 29, with no direct replacement planned to take his place.

Perhaps the most controversial executive in the history of the video game industry is stepping down by the end of the year. Activision CEO Bobby Kotick has long been a divisive figure for his aggressive and abrasive style, but his image took an even worse beating when he was personally implicated in the workplace misconduct allegations that roiled Acti-Blizz back in 2021. Despite that, he hung on, negotiating the $69 billion sale of Activision Blizzard to Microsoft. Throughout the process Microsoft and Xbox boss Phil Spencer have remained mum on what Kotick’s fate may be once the sale was completed.

By Tom Warrenand Ash Parrish

California’s Civil Rights Department reached a settlement with Activision Blizzard late last week two years after the state regulator brought a lawsuit alleging gender discrimination, pay inequities and a culture of sexual harassment at the video game company.

The products discussed here were independently chosen by our editors. GameSpot may get a share of the revenue if you buy anything featured on our site.

Following allegations of workplace discrimination at Activision Blizzard, the gaming giant has agreed to pay just under $55 million. The settlement with the California Civil Rights Department is still subject to court approval.

California’s Civil Rights Department has reached a settlement with Activision Blizzard that will see the company pay tens of millions of dollars in damages to women for unfair pay and treatment — but, as part of the settlement, the CRD has dismissed its own allegations of a “frat boy” culture of widespread and systemic sexual harassment at the company.

Activision Blizzard King is looking to settle its lawsuit under the California Civil Rights Department.

First reported by the New York Times, a major chapter in Activision Blizzard's reckoning over an alleged internal culture of misogyny and harassment has ended. The California Civil Rights Department (formerly the Department of Fair Employment and Housing) has settled with Activision Blizzard for $54 million, dropping its sexual harassment suit.

As reported by VentureBeat, Activision Blizzard has agree to pay a total of roughly $54 million to settle a lawsuit in the state of California. The company was sued by California’s Civil Rights Department (CRD) in 2021 after reports emerged with allegations of widespread and systemic sexual harassment and racial discrimination against employees, and unequal pay for women.

Activision Blizzard will settle allegations that it discriminated against female employees with a payout of over $50 million. As reported by the Wall Street Journal, this will end its lawsuit with the California Civil Rights Department (formally called the Department of Fair Employment and Housing), which launched in 2021.

By Jay Peters, a news editor who writes about technology, video games, and virtual worlds. He’s submitted several accepted emoji proposals to the Unicode Consortium.

Activision Blizzard will pay a $54 million settlement to end a 2021 sex discrimination lawsuit.

Activision Blizzard CEO Bobby Kotick has been linked with Premier League football club West Ham United.

«It's a bit of a change of strategy,» Microsoft admits.

After a stellar career at Housemarque, Harry Krueger is ready to move on to the next adventure in his life.

In celebration of 's 20th anniversary, the SR Gaming editor team has taken a deep look at how gaming has evolved since 2003, picking the best game of each year for the last two decades. From to, here are themost memorable and industry-shaking video game releases since 's inception.

Activision Blizzard Inc. accepted a package of incentives worth $360 million in 2020 to ensure its games launched on the Google Play store just as they did on rival platforms, jurors were told in an antitrust trial over Alphabet Inc.'s dominance in Android mobile apps.

Microsoft has recently been implementing leadership changes for its Xbox division, as part of which vice president Sarah Bond was promoted to president, and Xbox Game Studios head Matt Booty to president of game content and studios, and it has now been confirmed who will be stepping in the take up the latter’s vacant position.

The Microsoft-Activision Blizzard acquisition continues to shake up leadership at Xbox. Alan Hartman, former leader of Turn 10 has been promoted as the new head of Xbox Game Studios.