It's still in the news for organizational chaos, union busting, and being part of the biggest gaming acquisition ever, but it's apparently working on its next original gaming world.
This week, the company teased a survival game in an all-new universe, but only for now.
In the art, a hunter wearing furs and a skull helmet crouches with an axe, looking to track something near a fairy tale-esque portal. Two people are looking through a portal to a magical land in a piece of concept art.
The concept does look compelling, particularly for a company that is good at building seamless, creative worlds. The survival game concept would be a very refined entry into the genre popularized by games like Rust and Fortnite. The last major new intellectual property from the company was the mega-hit "Overwatch", which has a sequel on the way at some point in the future.
It is a tumultuous time for one of the world's biggest gaming studios. Last year, a California state lawsuit alleged sexual harassment and discrimination at the company, which publishes hit games like the Call of Duty franchise.
The SEC began issuing subpoenas to employees of the company late last year. Bobby Kotick, the company's chief executive, was aware of the serious allegations of workplace misconduct within his company and failed to do anything about them. Phil Spencer is expected to take over as Microsoft's gaming CEO once the deal closes, as Kotick is expected to leave.
Activision Blizzard won’t voluntarily recognize the historic Raven Software QA union
Microsoft announced plans to acquire the company for $68.7 billion earlier this month. The deal would set records, consolidate a number of the biggest games under one of the biggest console makers and tempt fate at a time when federal and state regulators are more wary than ever about tech companies building unstoppable monopolies.
It didn't need another reason to make headlines, but it did need a reason to refuse to recognize a union created by a group of testers at a division of the company. The group at Raven had been on strike for a month to protest the firing of contract workers.
The new ownership of the company could help stabilizing the company while also setting it on a better path, leaving its history of toxic workplace culture behind. If the deal with Microsoft goes through, the gaming giant will have one of the most established tech companies in the world calling the shots, and that kind of maturity and stability surely won't hurt as it seeks to hire up for its next major intellectual property.
Raven Software testers at Activision Blizzard form the first union at a major US gaming company
Activision Blizzard won’t voluntarily recognize the historic Raven Software QA union
Microsoft to buy Activision Blizzard for $68.7 billion
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