While Activision and Infinity Ward have collectively made enough money to buy a small island nation with sales from the recent Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2, that doesn't necessarily mean that their relationship can't be strained; case-in-point, reports coming in from Kotaku say that the top men at Infinity Ward (which is owned by Activision) may be on the way out.
Reports are that Vince Zampella and Jason West met with Activision leadership, after which they weren't seen again by Infinity Ward workers but hired security guards were. West and Zampella then updated their LinkedIn profiles saying they were no longer at Infinity Ward. Activision made an SEC filing about "insubordination" and "breaches of contract" at the developer, mentioning "two senior employees.”
Stay tuned for more details on this story as it develops. We've pinged Activision for official comment.
UPDATE: Activision has yet to comment but Double Fine's Tim Schafer, who had his own spat with Activision concerning Brutal Legend, had this humorous comment on Twitter: "Getting mad at Activision for this kind of thing is like getting mad at an ape for throwing feces. It's just how the beast communicates."
3 Comments
March 2, 2010
LOL Classic Tim Schafer!
March 2, 2010
Let's give credit where it's due. Props to Patrick Klepek at G4 for breaking this story.
March 2, 2010
That Tim Schafer quotes needs to be on a "best quotes of video game industry pros" list.