EA CFO talks CoD spat

Speaking at a GDC panel on Wednesday, Electronic Arts’ chief financial officerJohn Schappertexpressed doubts over the future of rival Activision’s Call of Duty franchise, following the public spat between Activision and developer Infinity Ward’s former leading lights Jason West and Vince Zampella.

He said, "I’m disappointed because I think Jason and Vince, on the human side, are two great guys. I know them personally, and they’ve done great things. And I think they’re two of the best creative leaders in our space, and to think that they’re going to be spending their future dealing with litigation and lawyers rather than crafting the next great experience."

He added, "I don’t think that’s good for them. I don’t think that’s good for our industry. That’s disappointing. I hope that they find a way to make games and focus on that during this period. The other disappointing thing is that, rivalries aside,Modern Warfare 2is a great game. It’s the biggest launch our industry has seen, it’s a great franchise. I’m putting my consumer industry fan-hat on to think that there could be some challenges—what’s the future of that franchise? I don’t know what’s going to pan out. I feel bad for Jason and Vince and the franchise itself because they’re great leaders and it’s a great franchise for our industry."

Thanks to IGN.