Speaking at the DICE Summit in Las Vegas yesterday, Activision CEO Bobby Kotick got all introspective about lost opportunities with the Guitar Hero franchise. According to G4tv.com, Kotick expressed regret over not trying to buy Harmonix when the company picked up RedOctane and the Guitar Hero franchise.
From the article:
“[A]t first we thought, ‘okay, [Guitar Hero is] a good piece of software, but if we gave it to Neversoft, they’re going to knock the ball out of the park with this. … We really didn’t even think, ‘hey, we should go to Boston and meet these Harmonix guys and see what they’re up to,” said Kotick. “And of course, had we gone, I think the world of Guitar Hero would have been rewritten and it would be a lot different today and probably a profitable opportunity for both of us.”
Some have interpreted Kotick’s comments to be disrespectful to both Harmonix and Neversoft. The bit about Harmonix comes from the fact that at one point he mentioned that before Guitar Hero, he had perceived them as “sort of a somewhat failed developer of music games. They always had really good ideas, but nothing that was really commercially viable until Guitar Hero…” But let’s not forget: By Harmonix’s own admission, that’s kind of what they were.
As for Neversoft, it’s true that Kotick seems to be expressing regret for handing development over to them. But I wouldn’t read too much into that; remember that Neversoft was responsible for Guitar Hero III, the second-best selling game of the decade. I can’t imagine he regrets that too much.
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I don’t see his statement as disrespectful. If activsion had bought harmonix, then they would have a monopoly for their never-ending torrent of guitar hero, instead of having to compete with a critical darling in rock band. That’s what he regrets. He probably sees everyone who buys rock band as a lost sale for guitar hero.
This Bobby guy is the main reason I stopped buying anything with Activision’s name on it. Bobby has made it clear that money is his motive, and he also says that making video games should not be fun. Does he not realize that people do their best work when they enjoy doing their work? I have a small circle of friends that agree with me, NO MORE ACTIVISION PURCHASES FOR US! Any company that puts $$$$$ before their employees happiness is consumed by greed. HEY ACTIVISION!!! You just lost a few more customers thanks to your CEO, Bobby K. and that crud that spews from his mouth! When Bobby K. has been replaced, then I may consider buying another CoD or GH game. Until then, I just say no!