Blizzard doesn't have a tradition of Mike [Morhaime] or me or anyone else in the top position telling the world, "Hey, Blizzard should create a kind or game." This is not WOW WOTLK Classic Gold how Blizzard operates. What it does is that an entire team of developers who truly believe in an idea or specific genre are given the opportunity to develop and experiment and create something we believe is excellent. This is how it's always beenand is still the way it is now.
I'm trying to find how to ask this without blaming Activision. My question is what are the current business realities of the present as your relationship to your parent firm, Activision, such that you are able to continue to operate in this manner? Are you able to say that Blizzard independent enough to say, "We do not think this is an ideal idea, so we're going to end the game, and we're going to return to the sketch board ... You might not ever see us again in five, ten years or whatever it might be?' Do you find yourself in the situation in which you are able to do that?
There were a few questions I asked when Mike told me, "Hey, you should consider taking on this job." There were a few questions I asked Mike, as well as a few questions I asked Bobby Kotick, the CEO of Activisionas well as the other employees working at Activision Blizzard. The topic you're addressing is something that's crucial to the meaning of to be a Blizzard in both an engineer's perspective, and, more importantly as a community and fan perspective.
Let me know what I'm going to tell you. We're here, and we are getting ready for an event called the World of Warcraft League Finals that was developed in collaboration with a few of the folks at Activision Blizzard, and the goal they have for it is similar to the one that we do that is to see our games viewed and enjoyed by millions of players across the globe.
I believe we all have different methods of thinking about the best way to achieve this goal, however our goals are similar and closely aligned with them.
The concern from a player's standpoint is that if there's any point at which it appears that the World of Warcraft League can't maintain the level of interest it requires, will Activision abruptly shift its focus to "Well we're going to provide us with the next thing right now," and that's where the clash of ideologies could occur, when it's like,"Well we operate in an environment where you may not see an additional World of Warcraft for another 10 years." Are you still in a position to decide the direction of your gamesand don't be told what to do with the games or even be required to create them in a different manner to satisfy demands.
Yeah, yeah, absolutely. I believe that's the way that Blizzard has always worked. this bottom-up approach to what the games that we'd like to develop and develop are, and that's what's crucial. It's so ingrained and deeply embedded in the very DNA of Blizzard I'm not sure what other buy WOTLK Gold way Blizzard succeeds in any other way.
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