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Activision Should Be Loved, says New Publishing CEO

Posted July 14, 2010 by M.H. Williams

Between comments by their executive-level, the destruction of whole franchises, and the treatment of the Infinity Ward situation, Activision has made itself a black sheep amongst gamers. One could even say gamers love to hate Activision. The new Activision CEO of Publishing Eric Hirshberg says that one of his primary objectives is to address the company’s negative standing amongst the gameplaying community.

"I only have my perceptions as a outsider to go on. I think that Activision, based on the number of great gaming experiences they have delivered, should be a more beloved brand than you would think they are by reading the core-gaming blogosphere,” he told Kotaku. “I think I will be helping to kind of find an equilibrium between that and the general tone of the public discourse."

Hirshberg is the creator of current Sony mascot Kevin Butler, so he knows a thing or two about repairing a brand. He also let Kotaku know that unlike CEO Bobby Kotick, he is a game player himself.

"I know you're going to roll your eyes when I say this, but I love Call of Duty," he said. "I think it's the biggest visual feast in popular culture. I'm actually not great at it, but I'm pretty unbeatable on the drums on Guitar Hero. I love LittleBigPlanet, I play that with my kids. I thought it was such a creative use of social media and interaction. I love sports games. I'm a perennial Madden and NBA 2K player."

Hirshberg was not clear about what his first steps would be, but he let Kotaku know that he wasn’t going to shy away from the problem. "The trick is to deal with this transparently and head on. In this day and age with such an engaged and passionate audience, the brand doesn't belong to the company, it belongs to the consumers," he stated.

M.H. Williams has been writing in some form or another for ten years and has been a hardcore gamer since the NES first graced American shores.  You can catch him on Twitter as @AutomaticZen, Google+ as himself, or on his personal Facebook page.