Players worldwide have lengthy questioned whether or not Microsoft’s historic acquisition of Activision Blizzard would result in structural and organizational adjustments for the World of Warcraft developer. Now, six months after the acquisition’s finalization, a higher-up at World of Warcraft has revealed that the Xbox maker has “let Blizzard be Blizzard.”
Speaking with Video Games Chronicle, World of Warcraft government producer and vp Holly Longdale revealed that builders’ day-to-day operations have remained largely unchanged.
“There’s nobody asking us to do something,” Longdale informed VGC. “World of Warcraft is doing very properly and so they’re very proud of what it’s been in a position to accomplish, so it’s virtually like simply let or not it’s, and let it maintain being superior. They’ve been tremendously supportive and it’s like ‘let Blizzard be Blizzard.’ ”
Longdale went on to laud the corporate’s post-acquisition life as a useful enterprise relationship permitting Activision Blizzard to speak and entry data with fellow Microsoft-owned studios.
“We obtained time with Helen Chang from Mojang, and we had been sharing data, so it’s virtually as if we’ve entry to what labored for them,” Longdale stated. “We obtained to talk to the Elder Scrolls On-line workforce and share what we’re as much as and what’s been working, it’s virtually like we get a profit.”
Microsoft acquired Activision Blizzard for a clean $68.7 billion final October. With it got here possession of main online game franchises like Name of Obligation, Overwatch, and Diablo. Regardless of Longdale’s anecdotes about Microsoft’s acquisition not altering the best way the studio operates, it has been hit with layoffs for the reason that deal closed. In January, Microsoft laid off 1,900 employees members throughout its gaming division, together with Activision Blizzard. The mass layoffs noticed the cancellation of its long-in-development survival sport, Odyssey.
In different World of Warcraft-related information, Blizzard not too long ago unveiled the subsequent growth of World of Warcraft, World of Warcraft: The Warfare Inside. In our preview, we stated, “Whereas it is not as earthshattering as its predecessor, Dragonflight, we suspect there’s lots of undiscovered potential lurking beneath the floor.”
Isaiah Colbert is a contract author for IGN. You’ll be able to observe them on Twitter @ShinEyeZehUhh.