Some have criticized Activision for playing it safe by cranking out new Call of Duty titles every year, but Activision Publishing CEO Eric Hirshberg doesn’t believe it for a minute.
“I think there is a false narrative that all Activision wants to do is put out a Call of Duty every year, when in fact we’ve shown some real innovation and appetite for risk,” Hirshberg told CVG in an interview.
During the interview Hirshberg pointed to Skylanders as an example of a massive risk, but one that the media forgets about in favor of Activision’s shooters. “I think that publishers which have wider and ‘more diverse’ slates are far less risky than us, are far less creative. Just because you have a game in every genre does not mean you’re creative. So, what we do is certainly a strategy that’s not for everyone, and it’s not the only way to make good business, but it works for us. It’s something that pre-dates me, it’s something Activision has done for many years.”
Activision certainly took a risk with Skylanders, investing more than $100 million in development for an unproven title with high manufacturing costs for all the toys. The gamble has been a successful one, with Skylanders bringing in more than $1.5 billion at retail since its launch. Coming up, Activision is betting big on Bungie’s new game Destiny, a completely new IP that has potential to be a major hit.
Source: GamesIndustry International
