Summary
Blizzardhas formed a new team dedicated to making AA games based on the company’s existing intellectual properties. That’s according to a new report from a well-known industry insider, which states that this latestBlizzardendeavor was started at Microsoft’s behest.
After clearing many a regulatory roadblock,Microsoft managed to acquire Activision Blizzardto the tune of $68.7 billion in October 2023. The gaming giant’s long-time CEO, Bobby Kotick, subsequently left the company in December. No direct replacement has been named, with Activision Blizzard’s senior leadership now reporting directly to Matt Booty, Microsoft’s game content and studios president. Other than this leadership switch, not much else has changed in Activision Blizzard’s everyday operations immediately following the blockbuster deal, which was the largest-ever acquisition in not just gaming but the entire technology sector.
Blizzard Reportedly Forms New AA Game Team From King Staffers
Ten months later, Microsoft may be adopting a slightly more hands-on approach to managing its latest acquisition. That’s according to a newreportfrom Windows Central’s Jez Corden, which states that Activision Blizzard has formed a new internal team meant to tackle AA game development at Microsoft’s behest. The group’s focus will be onexisting Blizzard IPssuch asDiablo,Overwatch,StarCraft, andWarcraft, as per the same source. Corden also claims that the new team has mostly been formed from staffers of Activision Blizzard’s subsidiary King, best known for itsCandy Crushfranchise.
The exact size of this purported new AA development division is unclear. Game Rant’s review of publicly available LinkedIn data suggests that Activision Blizzard currently has at least 99 staffers who list King, which still operates as a standalone entity, as their former employer. Many of them have moved from King to Activision Blizzard in July 2024 while retaining the same job titles. Given how King is predominantly a mobile developer, the talent pool this new team seemingly drew from could imply a core focus on smartphones and tablets, especially givenMicrosoft’s growing mobile ambitions.
But whether that’s actually going to be the case is unclear. Corden reports he was only able to confirm the team’s big-picture goal, which is to leverage Blizzard’s existing franchises better than Activision Blizzard did prior to the Microsoft acquisition. To that end, Microsoft is said to be happy to “explore and experiment” with a variety of AA projects. Whether these experiments result in Blizzard making some non-live-service games after a good long while remains to be seen.
The purported formation of this new Blizzard team arrives mere months afterXbox shut down four ZeniMax Media studiosas part of far-reaching cutbacks. Microsoft’s cost-cutting efforts in the gaming space have so far resulted in approximately 2,100 layoffs in 2024.
