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Security guards sent to Infinity Ward. West and Zampella fired for "insubordination"

VALKYRAY said:
very good news. i hope iw closes, and all employees die in starvation.
you fucked up big time with mw2, thousands of controllers were broken. death is too good for you guys
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2wq5ylx.gif
 
Juice said:
What makes it worse is the institutional realities of (physical) publishing in the industry that generally prevents software developers from retaining their own private ownership for more than a couple years or a single major title. Even if you run your own business, the likelihood is you'll be put in a bind that requires you take a buyout... and then do any of the above and get fired.
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You forgot the next step in the cycle:

Refugees from the closed/laid-off/fired studio form a new studio. Then, due to the bull shit way the system works, they end up working for one of the publishers again, either in the indentured servant model, or the more direct buy out slave model. Either way, crunch mode and other exploitative BS occurs, until another round of firing/lay-offs/closing etc occurs. Then...
 
Dear IW employees,


I know some of you are reading this thread. Please leave that shithole and let it die. If you stick together you can make a much better deal with a different publisher and -most important of all- you can find employment in an environment that appreciates your work and doesn't see you just as dollar bills.

You might not regret it now if you don't leave you'll definitely regret it later though, when the evil Grinch decides he doesn't need you anymore. You're expendable in Activision.

Yours respectfully,
fortifiedc
 
Apologies if this has been posted, but Andrew Fitch said on the Geekbox that he "knows" that Activision is going to shut down another studio and that they'll announce it in a couple of days.
 
GhaleonQ said:
Apologies if this has been posted, but Andrew Fitch said on the Geekbox that he "knows" that Activision is going to shut down another studio and that they'll announce it in a couple of days.
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I really wouldn't take Fitch as a reliable source on, well, anything. :lol

And I'm a big Geekbox fan.
 
beat said:
You know about GameDevMap.com, right? (I know it's not a Google Map.)
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I know about that, but I am making a local map for just Vancouver that got the locations of all the CG studios (videogames/vfx).
 
VALKYRAY said:
very good news. i hope iw closes, and all employees die in starvation.
you fucked up big time with mw2, thousands of controllers were broken. death is too good for you guys
Click to expand...
2411fs7.gif
 
So now that the giant bomb guys have confirmed what most of us already knew, that the IW management were complete assholes, can we end the "poor IW, get as far away from Kotick as you can" melodrama?

Unless Activision actually shutters IW - and it's been confirmed that that's not happening - I dont know what the fuck you're all whining about.

All we really have is the heads of a wholly owned developer being shitcanned after a series of derogatory statements and insubordinate behaviour. So what's the problem here?
 
VALKYRAY said:
very good news. i hope iw closes, and all employees die in starvation.
you fucked up big time with mw2, thousands of controllers were broken. death is too good for you guys
Click to expand...

10ck8ig.gif


The fuck?
 
GhaleonQ said:
Apologies if this has been posted, but Andrew Fitch said on the Geekbox that he "knows" that Activision is going to shut down another studio and that they'll announce it in a couple of days.
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Well here are the current studios that they own according to Wiki

7 Studios in West Los Angeles, California, Salt Lake City, Utah and Taipei, Taiwan, founded in 1999, acquired On April 6, 2009.
Beenox in Quebec City, Canada, founded in May 2000, acquired on May 25, 2005.
Bizarre Creations in Liverpool, England[28] , founded as Raising Hell Productions in 1987 and changed name in 1994, acquired on September 26, 2007.
Budcat Creations in Las Vegas, Nevada, founded September 2000, acquired on November 10, 2008.
DemonWare in both Dublin, Republic of Ireland and Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, founded in 2003, acquired on May 2007.
FreeStyleGames in Leamington, England, United Kingdom, founded in 2002, acquired September 12, 2008.
High Moon Studios in San Diego, California, founded as Sammy Entertainment in April 2001, acquired by Vivendi Games in January 2006.
Infinity Ward in Los Angeles, California, founded in 2002, acquired October 2003.
Neversoft in Los Angeles, California, founded in July 1994, acquired October 1999.
Radical Entertainment in Vancouver, Canada, founded in 1991, acquired in 2005.
Raven Software in Madison, Wisconsin, founded in 1990, acquired in 1997.
Sledgehammer Games in Foster City, California, founded November 17, 2009
Toys For Bob in Novato, California, founded in 1989, acquired May 3, 2005.
Treyarch in Santa Monica, California, founded in 1996, acquired 2001.
Vicarious Visions in Albany, New York, founded in 1990, acquired January 2005.
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benita said:
So now that the giant bomb guys have confirmed What most of us already knew, that the IW management were complete assholes, can we end the "poor IW, get as far away from Kotick as you can" melodrama?

Unless Activision actually shutters IW - and it's been confirmed that that's not happening - I dont know what the fuck you're all whining about.

All we really have is the heads of a wholly owned developer being shitcanned after a series of derogatory statements and insubordinate behaviour. So what's the problem here?
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I'm sorry to have to be the one to break this to you, but you were just a cheap fling to Bobby. Nothing you say is going to make him come back.
 
Kosma said:
Horrible news. You'd think a studio that has created such a blockbuster series as COD would be able to do some pet project.

Why did blizzard ever join these idiots?
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Because Blizzard didnt have a say. They are owned by Vivendi.
 
fortified_concept said:
Dear IW employees,


I know some of you are reading this thread. Please leave that shithole and let it die. If you stick together you can make a much better deal with a different publisher and -most important of all- you can find employment in an environment that appreciates your work and doesn't see you just as dollar bills.

You might not regret it now if you don't leave you'll definitely regret it later though, when the evil Grinch decides he doesn't need you anymore. You're expendable in Activision.

Yours respectfully,
fortifiedc
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Dear fortifiedc,

While we respect and appreciate our friends: West and Zampella; we have bills to pay, kids to raise, healthcare plans. If we resign,we may (and will) lose not only that salary, but other benefits and possible earnings during our stance in the company (as long or short as it may be). I can confirm you that some of us are looking for other alternatives and workplaces.

Be sure, that we may consider a return to work with our dear friends, when they have an stablished company; not just hopes and dreams that in the end don't put our kids through school.

Yours respectfully,
IW employees


P.S.
Unless you send us some money, if that's the case email us with your bank account and credit card numbers so we can quit our job right now and start with something in the meantime
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:p
 
fernoca said:
:p
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It's nice that you're talking on behalf of them
:P
but working in that shithole will eventually get them fired anyway since they're expendable unless they become the automatons who mass produce shit Activision wants their devs to be. It would be smarter for them to bail out now they have the chance. Afterall what publisher in its right mind won't hire these people?
 
How difficult it would be for Activision to buy developers after this? What developer would be stupid enough to sell to Activision after this?
 
Averon said:
How difficult it would be for Activision to buy developers after this? What developer would be stupid enough to sell to Activision after this?
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Any studio where the management wants to get rich and doesn't really care about the longerterm? So basically anyone that also has the same business strategy as Activision themselves.
 
Averon said:
How difficult it would be for Activision to buy developers after this? What developer would be stupid enough to sell to Activision after this?
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Some majorly successful studios like Bioware and Bungie seem to do OK after a buyout. But I think the word buyout itself, with 'out' in there, is a clue that in most cases, that's not how it goes.

I think any owner has to realize - and should have known well before this - that when you sell the studio, everything changes. It's definitely true for 4 of the 5 independent studios I have any personal knowledge of. The last had the founder stay on and run the place as studio head for ~10 years; three saw the founders leave within a year after the acquisition, and one, I think the founders had a multi-year post-acquisition contract because from what I gather a whole bunch of them left at once a few years after the buyout.
 
beat said:
Some majorly successful studios like Bioware and Bungie seem to do OK after a buyout. But I think the word buyout itself, with 'out' in there, is a clue that in most cases, that's not how it goes.

I think any owner has to realize - and should have known well before this - that when you sell the studio, everything changes. It's definitely true for 4 of the 5 independent studios I have any personal knowledge of. The last had the founder stay on and run the place as studio head for ~10 years; three saw the founders leave within a year after the acquisition, and one, I think the founders had a multi-year post-acquisition contract because from what I gather a whole bunch of them left at once a few years after the buyout.
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Uh Bungie seemed OK? You know they left MS due to being sick of being owned, and incredibly, got away with it.

And the other half of the Bioware-Pandemic buyout got terminated (Pandemic is gone). So uh... OK? Not so much.
 
Jackson said:
Uh Bungie seemed OK? You know they left MS due to being sick of being owned, and incredibly, got away with it.
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"Got away with it"? It's not like they just suddenly decided to be an independent company one afternoon and told Microsoft a week later. :lol Perhaps the sole reason why Microsoft agreed to let Bungie go is because they're still signed on as publisher and retained ownership of the Halo IP. That's about as close to an amicable split as you can get.
 
JaseC said:
"Got away with it"? It's not like they just suddenly decided to be an independent company one afternoon and told Microsoft a week later. :lol Perhaps the sole reason why Microsoft agreed to let Bungie go is because they're still signed on as publisher. That's about as close to an amicable split as you can get.
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And that split was incredibly well managed (is there another example out there of potentially devastating news being handled any better?...can't think of one). The party/ies in charge of PR (and of course, the MS/Bungie folks) for that earned their paychecks.

This shit, on the other hand...
 
fortified_concept said:
It's nice that you're talking on behalf of them
:P
but working in that shithole will eventually get them fired anyway since they're expendable unless they become the automatons who mass produce shit Activision wants their devs to be. It would be smarter for them to bail out now they have the chance. Afterall what publisher in its right mind won't hire these people?
Click to expand...

In the real world, you don't just up and quit unless you've got something else lined up or a bank account stuffed full enough to support you while you go trying to find other work. Crashing in your parents' basement isn't an option for anyone who's graduated to starting their own family.

If someone is, as you say, in their right mind and wants to hire, they can get that all lined up before notices are turned in.
 
fortified_concept said:
Dear IW employees,


I know some of you are reading this thread. Please leave that shithole and let it die. If you stick together you can make a much better deal with a different publisher and -most important of all- you can find employment in an environment that appreciates your work and doesn't see you just as dollar bills.
Click to expand...
:lol An environment that appreciates your work in the gaming industry? Oh, Fortified, you are incorrigible!
 
VALKYRAY said:
very good news. i hope iw closes, and all employees die in starvation.
you fucked up big time with mw2, thousands of controllers were broken. death is too good for you guys
Click to expand...

You won't get a tag for this you know.
 
JaseC said:
"Got away with it"? It's not like they just suddenly decided to be an independent company one afternoon and told Microsoft a week later. :lol Perhaps the sole reason why Microsoft agreed to let Bungie go is because they're still signed on as publisher. That's about as close to an amicable split as you can get.
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Plus they left the rights to the Halo IP behind.
 
Hey bishoptl, I think it's time to change your avatar to your actual photo. Cat's out of the bag. :) You can try to make a slightly more menacing look just to keep the juniors in check if you wish!
 
Jackson said:
Uh Bungie seemed OK? You know they left MS due to being sick of being owned, and incredibly, got away with it.

And the other half of the Bioware-Pandemic buyout got terminated (Pandemic is gone). So uh... OK? Not so much.
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I know Pandemic got closed, but I mean, as far as /Bioware/ went they seem to be doing OK for now under EA, granting that it's early. And with Bungie, they had an amicable split. More often, what happens is the founders are fired or they quit within a year, and the acquired studio begins a quick slide into irrelevance. So I stand by "did OK".
 
Jackson said:
Uh Bungie seemed OK? You know they left MS due to being sick of being owned, and incredibly, got away with it.

And the other half of the Bioware-Pandemic buyout got terminated (Pandemic is gone). So uh... OK? Not so much.
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Plus the KOTOR MMO, which seems to be the only MMO with a shot at competing with WoW, is really Bioware's main value to EA. In fact, that KOTOR MMO seemed to be pretty much the sole reason EA wanted them. If that doesn't pan out, I wouldn't be surprised to see Bioware get the boot as well.
 
Dan Yo said:
Plus the KOTOR MMO, which seems to be the only MMO with a shot at competing with WoW, is really Bioware's main value to EA. In fact, that KOTOR MMO seemed to be pretty much the sole reason EA wanted them. If that doesn't pan out, I wouldn't be surprised to see Bioware get the boot as well.
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No?
 
Dan Yo said:
Plus the KOTOR MMO, which seems to be the only MMO with a shot at competing with WoW, is really Bioware's main value to EA. In fact, that KOTOR MMO seemed to be pretty much the sole reason EA wanted them. If that doesn't pan out, I wouldn't be surprised to see Bioware get the boot as well.
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Yanno...you're completely right.

Dragon Age and Mass Effect 2 have been complete failures.

It's MMOs or nothing people!
 
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