Blizzard: Activision hasnt changed us

With developer relations remaining very much a touchy issue at Activision for the time being, Blizzard Entertainment’s VP and executive MD of internal operations Michael Ryder has told MCV that the merger between former owner Vivendi and Activision hasn’t made any difference to Blizzard’s internal workings.

Since we had our merger with Activision, it hasn’t changed anything at Blizzard,” he stated. We operate in pretty much the same way we already have. Since we have been working with Activision we continue to be who we are. We make the same decisions in the same way we always have, and the relationship with Activision hasn’t change that.

The way I think of that is the Blizzard culture. For Blizzard, our culture is extremely important. It is actually the basis for how we do what we do. We have a really strong culture that has a number of values that we share with our offices around the world. That culture, those values, binds us together and it defines the way we want to behave.

For example, one of our values is that gameplay is supremely important. We talk about play nice and play fair, which has to do how we work with each other and our partners. Preserving that culture is a key part of our ability to continue to deliver great games. We nurture it, protect it and take care of it as much as we can, because it is a big part of who we are.”