We knew Activision Blizzard’s longtime CEO Bobby Kotick was going to be resigns at the end of this year follows Microsoft’s historic purchase of its own company— but we didn’t know it would officially be the last time he left work day It’s 2023, technically two days until the end of the year. This news was some of the letter he sent today.
Kotick, who has been mired in controversy for most of his 32 years at the helm of ActiBlizz, wrote. farewell letter On Wednesday, December 20, he announced to employees that his last day would officially be December 29 (the last day of work in 2023, he is not a weekend warrior). The letter, titled “Bobby Kotick: With Gratitude,” is addressed to “extraordinary people” and begins with Kotick’s history as a “G” Player.
Over the years, my obsession with video games has often been attributed to him Pitfall!, river raid, and Kaboom!. I love those Atari 2600 games, but this one was the first to capture my imagination House of Mystery, developed by Roberta and Ken Williams. I used to play it on a borrowed Apple II night after night when I was in college at the University of Michigan.
House of Mystery was a text adventure with some primitive sprite-based graphics. (Accordingly, we now have House of Mystery and the company that publishes it, Sierra On Line). The world in which the game took place was largely left to the player’s imagination. I envisioned rich, expansive worlds with all kinds of interactive, animated life that would allow players to fulfill their various desires—all in a simulated universe that offered unlimited possibilities for experimentation, connection, and fun.
He goes on to praise the hard work of those same Activision Blizzard employees accused him to contribute to a workplace environment including sexual harassment and discrimination—loudly and vehemently denied the accusations. Again in 2021 Kotick toyed with the idea of quitting if he can’t “fix” the company culture but ultimately decides to stay and cash his salary. It’s unclear if the company’s culture has ever been fixed, but the comment came the same week he admitted to writing a silent company-wide email This led to the dismissal of the entire staff.
Kotick’s letter later refers to Microsoft/Xbox as “the most admired company in the world” and the major acquisition (which The FTC tried to block it) was not an “accident”. He then turns his attention to Xbox CEO Phil Spencer The Verge reportsMicrosoft Studios head Matt Booty will oversee operations at ActiBlizz going forward.
Phil Spencer has appreciated the magic of ABK for decades. When you get close Brian [Bulatao, Chief Administrative Officer] and when I proposed to acquire the company two years ago, it was immediately clear that combining our businesses would allow us to continue to lead as the list of capable, well-resourced competitors grew.
Phil shares our values and recognizes our talents. He is passionate about our games and the people who make them. He has a bold ambition.
As we move into our next exciting chapter, you couldn’t be in better hands.
It’s unclear how Microsoft will handle ActiBlizz’s back-to-office mandate for remote QA testers. he calls his position “soft dismissal”.
As for Kotik leaving, I’ll quote my late grandfather Pasquale Cestaro: “You don’t have to go home, but you do.”
Correction 12/20/2023 2:20 PM ET: In fact, Matt Booty will oversee ActiBlizz operations going forward.