Did I miss this on the lounge or what? Here I am getting harassed by my peeps at gamedev.net to write about this nonsense and I don't even see a discussion up in here. So: Is Activision an evil empire or are West and Zampella trying to recover from poor decision making and a failure to cover their tracks? Discuss. A cleaner version will be on Gamasutra tomorrow.

Quote: Original post by madelelaw
So: Is Activision an evil empire or are West and Zampella trying to recover from poor decision making and a failure to cover their tracks?

Activision is most definitely an evil empire and West & Zampella are probably trying to cover their tracks from trying to get away from the evil empire.

Courts can determine legality but everyone I've talked to hates Activision for all this and tearing apart their top development studio was a patently idiotic idea regardless of what side of the dispute you stand on.

The next Activision shareholders meeting should be most entertaining.

I don't care who you are, if you make an agreement you'd better be prepared to hold yourself up to it. It sounds to me like Activision is just trying to weasel their way out and save some money in the process. Even without all the documents, the whole thing just reeks of greed and money grubbing.

I'd love it if West and Zampella went off, started their own franchise, and beat the next Call of Duty game in sales.

Quote: Original post by Moe
I don't care who you are, if you make an agreement you'd better be prepared to hold yourself up to it. It sounds to me like Activision is just trying to weasel their way out and save some money in the process. Even without all the documents, the whole thing just reeks of greed and money grubbing.

I'd love it if West and Zampella went off, started their own franchise, and beat the next Call of Duty game in sales.

The irony of this isn't lost on me, at least.

There's just as much likelihood that West and Zampella breached as Activision. Contracts are a two-way street; and if West and Zampella signed a deal saying they're only entitled to the bonuses and royalties of past releases contingent upon continued employment, that's kind of dumb. You just don't sign contracts like that. And if you do, don't do anything that will get you fired. Start getting emotional over creative control AFTER you've received your money.

Relations between IW and Activision have been sour for a while now, so there's certainly plenty of motive for those two to breach. And Activision may not officially be in breach until the end of the month.

Again, haven't seen the contract, but that's what the complaint implies.

I guess I shouldn't be so hasty, but the whole thing just seems a little... off to me. I can't say I've ever heard of anyone actually being fired for insubordination (not to say that it doesn't happen), but it seems like a rather convenient thing for Activision to do in order to save a pile of cash.

Even if West and Zampella were somewhat insubordinate, they still managed to pull off a heck of a job, and should be rewarded accordingly.

Maybe both parties are equally guilty - Activision for wanting to save a bundle of money, and at the same time ditch some insubordinate employees, and West and Zampella for being insubordinate and attempting to bite the hand that fed them.

In the court of public opinions public lynchings, there is a strong case to be made: Two people were responsible for bringing in boatloads of money and they were fired right before bonuses were handed out. The verdict is simple: The company is greedy and should pay these people who flooded the coffers.



There is always the difference between "moral" and "legal". Too many people are either unwilling or unable to grasp the difference.


One frustration with at-will employment is that you can be fired at any time for any reason, or for no reason. Promised bonuses and benefits simply vanish.

This is a risk that goes along with the benefits of being at-will. The ability to leave a job with no notice is amazingly powerful. Just ask any mid-level manager who is considered a critical employee during a merger; they generally become contractually bound to the job for a period of time, and have serious penalties for leaving early. The restriction can be rather painful.


If a company promises big bonuses and then fires many at-will employees right before bonus season, chances are the former employees have no recourse.

It may not be moral but it certainly is legal.

Unless there is a contract in place that binds them to give the bonuses the former employer has no legal obligation to pay. Those who were fired have a very difficult battle. They need to prove that the company had offered the bonus, prove that it is a non-discretionary bonus or that a specific bonus is customary for their exact situation, prove that they complied and qualified for the bonus, and lastly --- hardest of all --- prove that the company acted in bad faith.

Without seeing the contracts, based only what I have read, I would have to side with Activision's legal right to fire their employees and terminate their benefits.


I have a story that goes with this, but I'll save it for a second post.

Story time!

(see my post just above for more.)

When I was young, there was a nearby amusement park that hired a lot of teenage workers every summer. The company paid a bonus to the people who worked the entire season, something like from April to October. The bonus was included in their employment contract, and included termination conditions. They told their workers that they lay off a bunch of people at the end of summer, they gave the exact formula used to determine the termination order, and they were very clear up front about the scheduling policies.

Employees could go to the main office and find out where they fit on the layoff chart, which was mostly based on total hours worked.

Right on schedule, every year the company laid off a bunch of the summer workers as demand dropped, exactly as they said they would. Many teens who worked hard over the summer would quit because they couldn't maintain the hours they committed to due to school. Invariably there were complaints about breaking contracts and not paying the promised bonuses.

But since the company was very clear about their intentions, clearly stated their criteria, and then followed them, they were acting in good faith.


There are no bounds for a lawsuit, just a bunch of upset teens. The workers only recourse was to educate their peers the following year.


Just like the amusement park was able to legitimately get rid of workers before paying the promised seasonal bonuses, so to are most employers able to legitimately cut their workforce before the bonus season.

The lesson to be learned is that you should understand the rules of your employment. Understand that companies are interested in their bottom line. Understand that their only OBLIGATION is the legal requirement, not the moral requirement. They may do more, they may meet the moral demands, but they generally are not required to do so.

Whatever the case is Activision are idiots. They've got rid of the most profitable developers on the planet.

Whether they were pimping around the MW2 ip to other developers, why would they do that? Would they not know that it probably isnt viable?

Why havent Activision done all they could to keep the cash making monkeys on side, why throw them out, isnt that just playing into their hands? Giving them to the enemy.

Supposedly they are holding back the bonuses for the remaining staff to stop them leaving, thats actually illegal but, I'm doubting thats true, the remainder of the staff wouldnt be that stupid to accept it surely.

As you guys said above whom would be stupid enough to sign a contract where if they get fired they dont get their bonuses. They completed the work they have to get fully paid for it from what was agreed from the start even if they are fired.

The bonus's must be a drop in the ocean compared to the 3 billion or so they made.

It appears Activision really believe IP is all the matters, its nothing to do with the developers their just background noise. Once you have a name you can print money.

There's a hell of a lot of stupid. Activision is guaranteed stupid, the rest its hard to say.

[Edited by - Calabi on March 18, 2010 6:27:21 PM]

Quote: Original post by Calabi
As you guys said above whom would be stupid enough to sign a contract where if they get fired they dont get their bonuses.

Me and everyone at my company...

I'm not a developer but I've never worked at a company where your right to additional compensation wasn't revokable at any time for any reason including termination.