Kotick: 60% of XBL subs exist for COD

By Wesley Yin-Poole Published 5 July, 2010

Wants to make money out of them.

60 per cent of gamers who subscribe to Xbox Live do so primarily to play Call of Duty, Activision Blizzard's head honcho Bobby Kotick has said.

And now Kotick wants to make money out of them.

"We've heard that 60 per cent of [Microsoft's] subscribers are principally on Live because of Call of Duty," Kotick told the Financial Times.

Microsoft charges £39.99 for a 12-month UK Xbox Live Gold subscription, which enables Call of Duty owners to play the shooter online.

Kotick said: "We don't really participate financially in that income stream. We would really like to be able to provide much more value to those millions of players playing on Live, but it's not our network."

Activision's phenomenally successful Call of Duty series has throughout its existence done the business primarily on home consoles.

Kotick wants that to change.

"[Consoles] do a very good job of supporting the gamer," Kotick said. "If we are going to broaden our audiences, we are going to need to have other devices."

Kotick said Activision Blizzard will "very aggressively" support devices that connect PCs to tellys.

Kotick's mentioned broadening Call of Duty's audience before, of course.

Last month he told the Wall Street Journal COD fans were "clamouring" for an MMO-style experience.

"I would have Call of Duty be an online subscription service tomorrow," he said.

For now, though, Call of Duty remains a successful traditional packaged goods product.

Call of Duty: Black Ops, due out for PC, PS3 and Xbox 360 on 9th November, is expected to be 2010's biggest game.

Picture of Wesley.

About Wesley Yin-Poole

Wesley is Eurogamer's news editor. He likes news, interviews, and more news. He also likes Street Fighter more than anyone can get him to shut up about it.

Read more articles from Wesley by visiting the Wesley Yin-Poole archive page.

You may also like...

Comments (127) Latest comment 2 years ago

Comments threads automatically close after 30 days, but please feel free to continue chatting on the forum!

  • Ignatius_Cheese #1 2 years ago

    Bobby Kotick in finding ways to bleed more money out of gamers SHOCK!!

    More at 10...

  • dpb135 #2 2 years ago

    Any chance of EG interviewing Bobby & telling him what a muppet he is :)

  • M_of_the_sys #3 2 years ago

    *runs for cover*

  • Quint2020 #4 2 years ago

    I just couldn't care less about anything this guys says.

  • Markitron #5 2 years ago

    You already DID make money from them, WHEN THEY PAID FOR THE FUCKING GAME. Tosser

  • Setaro #6 2 years ago

    Kotick is a surgically-altered Ferengi, it's the only explanation.

  • mcmonkeyplc #7 2 years ago

    Fuck off you cunt. I dont even have your CoD game anymore.

  • Fab4 #8 2 years ago

    99% of the people behind XBL subs are utter cunts though.

  • AphoticCosmos #9 2 years ago

    Bobby Kodick - ruining gaming for everyone.

    Most people have Gold to play a variety of games, not just your trumped up cash cow.

  • the_dudefather #10 2 years ago

    'Kotick said Activision Blizzard will "very aggressively" support devices that connect PCs to tellys.'

    what? a cable?

  • tobsen #11 2 years ago

    Hahaha, this guy really needs psychological treatment... it's so obvious.

    Next thing is that he will ask MS for a cut from every Xbox sold because "X% of all people primarily buy the console to play COD" supposedly!

  • JahB #12 2 years ago

    Kotick said Activision Blizzard will "very aggressively" support devices that connect PCs to tellys.

    what, like cables?

  • ZuluHero #13 2 years ago

    That figure seems a tad high. A bit like Kotick when he says some of this nonsense me thinks ;)

    /has never owned a COD game, but has borrowed them for a bit to see what all the fuss was about

  • M_of_the_sys #14 2 years ago

    I think Bobby reads Eurogamer all the time and says all this stuff just to see what we will say.

  • HL706 #15 2 years ago

    So I assume you'll need some sort of Activision Live! subscription service for the likes of CoD on the new streaming services like OnLive etc...

    Who'd have thunk it? They can fuck right off tbqh.

  • LHH #16 2 years ago

    If Microsoft know this then why not have dedicated servers for CoD?

  • Lee_Morris #17 2 years ago

    Old Bobby does say alot of stupid stuff but if people see past the red mist he does have point on this one. If some people buy gold for the sole reason of playing CoD, then defacto them people wouldn't buy gold if it wasn't for CoD. So Acti have every reason to believe they deserve some of that cash.

    Sorry badly written but I've got killer toothache and haven't got the patience to think properly : $

    You get my point though

    To clarify, for me he wants some of the gold sub from MS, not a CoD sub on top of Gold.
    Edited by 1 at 05/07/10 @ 14:44

  • bad09 #18 2 years ago

    "Kotick said Activision Blizzard will "very aggressively" support devices that connect PCs to tellys. "

    What does that mean, HDMI leads? They allow you to connect PCs to tellies quite easily Bobby.

    Considering my MW2 is confined to the desk as PC COD doesn't support controllers I smell bullcrap from Bobby anyway.
    Edited by 1 at 05/07/10 @ 14:43

  • linksdad #19 2 years ago

    "We would really like to be able to DERIVE much more value FROM those millions of DIRTY UNWASHED PLEBS playing on Live" -Fixed.

  • Moonprince #20 2 years ago

    "expected to be 2010's biggest game."

    News to me. What is this bs reporting you speak?

  • chrisjm #21 2 years ago

    what next, ms or sony trying to get $ off isp's as [insert made up %] have broadband primarily for their console

  • flaming.carrot #22 2 years ago

    Surely 60% of XBox Live subscribers are ALSO playing Call of Duty, not 60% are subscribers BECAUSE of Call of Duty?!? Bobby seems to think COD is more important than it really is.

  • Redeye #23 2 years ago

    Bet a higher percentage of gamers overall would pay good money to see Kotick take a long walk off a cliff, though.

  • speedjack #24 2 years ago

    "We don't really participate financially in that income stream".

    Am I missing something here ?

    Xbox Live is a SERVICE.

    MW2 and COD are PRODUCTS.

    I pay MS my subscription to cover bandwidth costs and help ensure the service is maintained, consistent and reliable...and whilst I can accept that MW2 is a major draw on XBL, to bemoan the fact that you're not getting a cut of the takings is like BP or Vaxhall moaning that they don't get a share of the road tax.

  • NotSoSlim #25 2 years ago

    As PSN is free he must really hate Sony??? This guy is a douche

  • Fab4 #26 2 years ago

    "Baby placentas and sacrificing virgins...we don't really participate financially in that income stream."

    Kotick wants that to change.

  • LR100 #27 2 years ago

    Almost everything this man says is virtually "I should be making money from ____! Why aren't I?!?!?!?"

  • chasejamie #28 2 years ago

    This is a lie.

  • darleysam #29 2 years ago

    You arrogant, greedy son of a bitch.

  • Editos #30 2 years ago

    60% of people on xbl subscrible to gold purely for CoD?

    Biggest pile of shit i've ever heard, you'd hard pressed to claim that 6% do so.

    Fat prick.

  • Embra #31 2 years ago

    Proud to be firmly in the 40%

  • Toothball #32 2 years ago

    I'm in the 40% too! So relieved.

  • Fab4 #33 2 years ago

    I'll admit that the game I most play is CoD...its just not the CoD that fuckwit wants to shovel down my neck...its a CoD with depth...its a CoD which is fun to play...its a CoD free of fucking perks and killstreaks...its CoD3 :p

  • afghan_jones #34 2 years ago

    what a horrible cunt this bloke is.

  • afghan_jones #35 2 years ago

    what a horrible cunt this bloke is.

  • canoot #36 2 years ago

    This bloke is a fucking arsehole.

  • lambtron #37 2 years ago

    Given I've not touched MW2 since BFBC2 came out (and neither has anyone on my friend's list) I'm having a hard time believing that to be honest.

  • SomaticSense #38 2 years ago

    I'm going to agree with the above sentiments.

    The guy is a prick. A greedy, greedy prick.

    edit: Getting the anger out of the way and thinking about it a bit more, he's talking utter bollocks as well.

    How the fuck does he know that for these "60%" of XBL subscribers CoD is the only reason they pay the money? Does he have a mind meld machine hooked up to every single sub holder (ala Riddler in Batman Forever)? The only way for him to find out if what he says is true, is by having access to every single XBL account and seeing if the CoD games are only games listed in their Achievements list. Which would not only be breaking Data Protection laws, but also 60% would be a complete fucking lie.

    So not only is he an utter greedy twat, he's a fucking liar as well.

    He'd make a great politician.
    Edited by 2 at 05/07/10 @ 15:11

  • Whizzo #39 2 years ago

    It's amazing anyone actually hears what Kotick says as he talks out of his arse.

  • iHAZaCHEEZ3burger #40 2 years ago

    What a cock.

  • Amblin #41 2 years ago

    Lol Kotick now wants a slice of MS's pie? Seriously, that guy is gonna get into trouble soon. Basically he is saying we want more money and possibly a slice of the MS sub pie because we sell games?

    Rofl can't wait for the fallout of basically saying you owe us MS! I wonder, did Kotick get trained in Scilly? Fucking mobster.

    Edit: forgot to mention how come so many of those subs are kids under 12? I wish to god MS would ban the children then Kotick will have no argument.
    Edited by 1 at 05/07/10 @ 15:09

  • TeaFiend #42 2 years ago

    I want some of the drugs he has bought with his fat wads of cash, it seems an awesome world he lives in.

  • GamesConnoisseur #43 2 years ago

    I subscribes to XBL to play games online such as excellent L4D2, Rainbow Six etc with mates, and I havent touched COD online for a pretty long time. I refused to even consider the rip off DLC that Kotick advocates and yet he want to make more money?

    Why should I agree to hand over a share of my subs? I got it for the service and now pretty likely never to touch COD even again, especially with the direction Acti taking it.

  • Der_tolle_Emil #44 2 years ago

    Personally I don't even own CoD. Come to think of it, I'm a gold subscriber since I got my 360 but I can't remember a single game that I played on live! the last couple of months. I guess the time to finally cancel gold has come (and I'm almost sure that two weeks after I cancel I'll find a reason to subscribe again).

    That said I don't want the current subscription model to change. Stick to DLC if you want to rip off gamers but don't impose arbitrary new fees just to get more money.

  • Phreez #45 2 years ago

    Twat.

  • davisorle #46 2 years ago

    Dear Mr Kodick,

    You have managed to sell more and faster than any other crossplatform tittle while doing so in the most expensive price in the gaming history. You manage to sell millions of overpriced expansions which are 35% sad older lvl remakes and 65% new actual maps. You have VAC ( Valve Anti-Cheat ) for the PC version which can actually be even dissabled ( only possible to non Valve games to bypass ) which I hope lets you understand the magnitute of fucktards ruining the experience online for others...

    And now you are telling ME that you want to have access to that income and be able to GIVE something to the gaming audience when you dont do shit for the platform you could easily give a hand to? Did you not make or steal enough so far ( if true for Respawn's new heads -.- ) that you got the nerve to ask for money from every left over service existant? Maybe from Steam too from their own steamcloud? And maybe make MW2 accessible only from PSN Plus from PS3? Am I missing anything?

    Oh, and on a sidenote dear Mr Kodick...

    60% currently PREFFER to use their 360 online to play COD. You assuming what you do is plain stupid. We all know that if MS had a 60% increase just for your godlike products on its online service they would have been showing it off all over the pages themselves. And to make things simple, you didn't have the fucking decency to offer dedicated servers in the PC version and you wanna come out as if you care enough to take more money by doing what you were meant to in the first place?

    Sensiarly yours,

    Manos :)
    Edited by 2 at 05/07/10 @ 15:18

  • kangarootoo #47 2 years ago

    There is a difference between 60% of Gold sub owners buying Gold in order to play CoD, and 60% of Gold sub owners playing CoD among a raft of other online games. Several publishers could make similar claims from the same stats, quickly showing an impossible overlap.

    "We've heard...". Source?

  • sneetch #48 2 years ago

    "We've heard that 60 per cent of [Microsoft's] subscribers are principally on Live because of Call of Duty," Kotick told the Financial Times.

    I've heard that 60 per cent of [Microsoft's] subscribers are principally on Live because they prefer the Gold colour to Silver. :p

    This is obvious nonsense people subscribe to the service to play online games and although 60% may be playing CoD now before that it was something else (possibly Halo 3) someday it'll be another game. Maybe the next CoD maybe not.

    I sincerely doubt that 60% of the people on Live now are on Live purely to play CoD.

    Edit: I wanted to make the "What? A HDMI cable?" joke too but I see just about everyone else thought the same thing. :(
    Edited by 1 at 05/07/10 @ 15:31

  • Deckard1 #49 2 years ago

    60% of XBL subscribers arent very bright.

  • CaptainQuint #50 2 years ago

    Heh heh, you got to hand it to the fella: he wears his cunt label like a badge of honour. I even think he gets off on the thought of enraging his customers whenever he opens his mouth - he's probably a sadist gimp, on weekends.

    "Bring out the gimp"

    "but the gimps sleeping"

    "guess you better go boot up Call of Duty then, won't you"
    Edited by 1 at 05/07/10 @ 15:35

  • TheLittlestHobo #51 2 years ago

    Ever since the Infinity Ward debacle I've boycotted Cacktivision. I mean what am I missing? Shitty Guitar Hero, and constant CODs. Rock Band and BC2 have those genres sown up for me now anyway so why do I need to bother with providing "revenue streams" for those cunts. Shit like the above makes my stance all the more satisfying.

  • Dylbot #52 2 years ago

    CLAMOUR CLAMOUR CLAMOUR

  • LondonSquare82 #53 2 years ago

    If we're allowed to ask for things we want my top five would be:

    - A sensible RRP for the next COD game
    - Less stories about Bobby Kotick making me hate myself for working in the games industry as I feel filthy by association
    - Better value for money from DLC from the COD franchise
    - Less plastic "tat" used as an excuse to charge a higher price for games
    - A girl on girl baby oil fully nude lapdance from Kelly Brook and Scarlett Johansen

    Not much to ask for... and since 60% of my time is spent dreaming about option 5 above, then by Bobby's logic surely I deserve it?

  • CaptainQuint #54 2 years ago

    By his logic, I must be in the 40% of XBL's who will be buying Halo Reach then.

    Yeah right, tell me another one, Bobby! You're such a kidder!

  • CaptainQuint #55 2 years ago

    Anyone else here trade their MW games in ages ago?

  • Dreddnaught #56 2 years ago

    Kotick really is a c*nt.

    End transmission.

  • andywilkie35 #57 2 years ago

    This bloke is an absolute cunt isn't he? Every other day he's spouting off, spewing his bile on how he actively loves the fact that the great unwashed are lining his pockets by playing shootyshootywargame72.

  • Acrid #58 2 years ago

    More than 60% of people think you're a peadophile Bobby, and so by your logic the police should be with you any minute now

  • sfp_noodle #59 2 years ago

    Lmao! More than half the subscribers on Gold play it primarily for COD? What the hell are you smoking cuntick!? Are you trying to say that 60% of Gold subscribers are stupid as they could very well play the EXACT same game on the EXACT same servers on another console for absolutely nothing. Noone buys a console for one game. It's the stupidest myth I've ever heard. I mean c'mon cuntick how daft does this sound -

    "I spent £250 on a 250gb Elite 360 console, plus £40 on a Gold subsciption and £60 on a Wireless Network Adaptor just to experience the sugar rush that is Call of Duty"

    We're not that pathetic you knobcheese

  • RelaxedMikki #60 2 years ago

    Think there is a grain of truth in what Kotick is saying.

    A neighbour of our's is 13. He only plays MW2 and it seems it's all his freinds play also. They play all these odd home made rule variants like 'No Scope' and 'Michael Myers'. Like junkies trying to get one last high from a crack pipe that's long since run empty.

    He has not played through the single player. He will get hold of other games, play them for a couple of evenings, then return to MW2.

    You know what my theory is? MW2s popularity is down to the fact it only takes about 15 seconds from putting the disk in to being online. Some of the people out there have short attention spans.

  • Derblington #61 2 years ago

    Wow, you guys are angry.

    ""We've heard that 60 per cent of [Microsoft's] subscribers are principally on Live because of Call of Duty," Kotick told the Financial Times."

    Does that mean they sub to the service just to play it? Not necessarily, no. Do 60% of the people subbing to the service play MW2 more than any other game they play on Live? Possibly, that's really not that hard to believe considering it's popularity.
    Edited by 1 at 05/07/10 @ 16:12

  • mcwildcard #62 2 years ago

    "We've heard that..."
    Well I heard that Bobby 'Money lust' Kotick uses puppies as toilet paper and kills anyone who uses the word 'no' in his presence.

    Doesn't mean it's true.

  • keano #63 2 years ago

    seems gaming industry is tiring of frequently pushing and developing new media to the every hungry consumers.

    talk of focusing on sequels and tapping into subscription type payments seems to show the decline in this "creative" industry.

    maybe it's signaling the slowing of the massive technological revolution that has seen huge changes in last 20 years. People are now asking where do we go next especially when interaction with games is still based on a screen, a system that has barely changed since the beginning of computer gaming. hence this recent drive of changing the way we play games.

    a dynamic story or simple gameplay mechanic has been the key to many a great game so i hope they stop pissing around securing the future of gaming and give the power back to the developer and start being creative!
    Edited by 1 at 05/07/10 @ 16:15

  • ignatiusjreilly #64 2 years ago

    I also know plenty of people that play literally nothing else and might not even have an Xbox if it weren't for Call of Duty, let alone a Gold sub. He might be more correct than people like to think.

    talk of focusing on sequels and tapping into subscription type payments seems to show the decline in this "creative" industry.

    maybe it's signaling the slowing of the massive technological revolution that has seen huge changes in last 20 years.

    It's simply the fact that games are mainstream now, and most of the mainstream don't care for creativity. You might as well ask where has the creativity in pop music gone? It's not that they've run out of ideas, it's that the industry knows exactly what works and what doesn't, and if your aim is to make money you'd be silly not to just go with what works.
    Edited by 1 at 05/07/10 @ 16:20

  • beastmaster #65 2 years ago

    He's just blowing smoke out of his ass. What he wants and what he gets are 2 different things. If he slaps a sub onto MW then just watch the numbers drop off. I'll stop playing it and there's plenty of other quality titles on all other formats to play online with friends.

    It's a bit of a missed opportunity for EA. The beta (I know it's a beta but still) wasn't that well received. Assuming they clear up all the bugs EA should release a demo of the game (SP & MP) to try and steal some of Activision's thunder. The way I see it (and this will piss some people off) but if DICE make it as MW as possible then people will switch over.

  • Nephirion #66 2 years ago

    I am glad Activison are nothing to do with the Live network, Modern Warfare 2 has to have possibly the worst network code ever seen in a multiplayer game I can't see what value they could add to the user experience

  • Derblington #67 2 years ago

    MW won't just get a sub, they will change the model of the game along with it. And people will pay and play it, as long as it's done well. Just like WoW.

  • Daeltaja #68 2 years ago

    The legions of retarded kiddies playing this game will pay a sub to continue. I work in a game shop and personally sell at least 1-2 Live Points cards per day to zombie headed, square eyed kids, who come to the counter looking like they are in desperate need for a drug fix. Seriously, they are quivering at the counter while asking for points, I always ask them "no prob, what you getting?" always the response is "MW2 maps", every single time. Its actually sickening how addicted these kids are to MW2. They seem to have lost all interest in everything else.

  • BritishBlue1 #69 2 years ago

    First they screwed the PC in favour of consoles because they weren't making enough money, now they want to screw consoles in favour of PCs because they're not making enough money...What...?

  • mc_mclovin #70 2 years ago

    If i was on the board at activision, or a shareholder, i'd be doing my level best to stop this idiot from having any contact with the public or press!! Surely his idiotic, money grabbing comments are just damaging the activision brand!

  • Kami #71 2 years ago

    Like others, I just get the sense Kotick gets off on spouting crap like this. I bet he says it whilst sat in an oversized leather chair with an evil grin on his face and an albino cat in his lap.

    Something tells me Kotick is just pissed off he never got to be James Bond...

  • KDR_11k #72 2 years ago

    Should've bought it on the PC, no need for a subscription there. It doesn't require great hardware either, MW2 is surprisingly undemanding when it comes to hardware.

  • Gambit1977 #73 2 years ago

    Shareholders must love this shit!

  • MrJonez #74 2 years ago

    Awww man, someone should have warned me today was "pull-random-numbers-from-your-arse" day today, I would have been a lot less factual at work...

  • X3Entente #75 2 years ago

    somebody should explain to him the existence of modding communities who will deny him the chance to fleece people with terrible dlc. He'll probably try to villify them next, what a disgusting display of self entitlement

  • Sharzam #76 2 years ago

    So let me get this right, he now wants a piece of microsoft ? As much as we as gamers dont like him as a businessman he sure has ambition. Not enourgh to shut down studios and charge stupid money for free items (maps) but now wants to take part of 'Live'.

  • kentmonkey #77 2 years ago

    You do Q&A with industry people quite regularly. Can you not arrange one with Kotick where we can all take the opportunity to tell him exactly what we think of him and his business model, and his drivel that masquerades as PR.
    Edited by 1 at 05/07/10 @ 17:42

  • smirny #78 2 years ago

    I actually LOL'd.

    He should move into comedy.

  • gnrlstuart #79 2 years ago

    imagine if activision made a 'CODsole'. lol it would probably take a tenner off your credit card everytime you boot the bloody thing up. a bit like xbox then...
    Edited by 1 at 05/07/10 @ 17:53

  • Dezm0nd #80 2 years ago

    You know what, people would pay. People would pay XBL, CoD Subs and even be raped/charged for map packs. Oh well, not for me Mr Evil.

    Edit: Oh and why you're making so much money how about promoting other games of yours like Singularity you cunthead.
    Edited by 1 at 05/07/10 @ 17:51

  • Drpwnage #81 2 years ago

    People still play CoD?

  • Turambar #82 2 years ago

    Weren't they getting a piece of this pie with cod4 through dedicated server royalties? Or did they not collect royalties?

  • TopKatt #83 2 years ago

    Anyone else think an Activision console may be on the horizon?

    The Activision Robust Sensory Engine or something.

  • Rack #84 2 years ago

    Since the guy has lost Infinity ward that particular ship has sailed. If he wants to charge a subscription for CoD it's going to take a very convincing improvement and the people capable of making those improvements left because they couldn't stand the way he kept trying to fleece them. As you sow...

  • woodnotes #85 2 years ago

    To be blunt: Kotick should STFU and release his own console instead of whining.

  • StooMonster #86 2 years ago

    Eurogamer: Kotick said Activision Blizzard will "very aggressively" support devices that connect PCs to tellys.

    Oh dear, Activision are going to be promoting OnLive and similar then. :(

    Gambit1977: Shareholders must love this shit!

    Do you know how much Kotick is paid? Source REUTERS.

    Basic pay
    Annual compensation: $1,453,650
    Bonuses: $1,697,350
    Total Cash for fiscal year: $3,151,010

    Options
    Excercisable: 7,769,432 shares of $81,793,600
    Unexercisable: 902,833 shares of $5,326,690
    Excercised (to date): 10,106,654 of $107,460,000

  • BlinxHDD #87 2 years ago

    If people are stupid enough to pay to play online (XBL Gold) why wouldn't they pay again for this?

  • LudusSolers #88 2 years ago

    "Blah blah blah...Call of Duty franchise...blah blah blah... innovation... blah blah blah... revenue streams... blah blah blah... value add propositions... blah blah blah... clamouring gamers..."

    Change the record, Bobby - we've heard it all before and we know you have no concern for consumers, other than seeing how much more cash you can shamelessly try to part from them.

    Muppet.

  • Emmit_Assassin #89 2 years ago

    Fuckin dick. As if Activision don't make enough millions out of COD already. Fuckin greedy motherfuckin twats, the lot of them. I fuckin sold COD:MW2 for fuck all to a mate and its one game I've never regretted selling. He was going to go buy it brand new, but I refused to let him give the wankers anymore money.

  • RodHull #90 2 years ago

    Uh oh, spaghetti-oh!

  • TheBrow #91 2 years ago

    Good old Bobby Kotick; everyone's favourite pantomime villain!

  • makeamazing #92 2 years ago

    The device to the TV is basically talking about a TV Game system.... Like the cheap tacky Sega tv games systems, what they intend to do is release a crappy MW tv game gun or something.. (and a Guitar Hero one)...

    Hes a total muppet if he thinks that will net him millions and millions.
    Edited by 1 at 05/07/10 @ 19:56

  • FuzzyDuck #93 2 years ago

    Getting a bit sick of hearing shit from this complete cunt of a human being.

    I work part time in a videogame shop to keep myself afloat while i'm studying and it never ceases to amaze me how much junk there is in there that's Acti branded.

    Even EA at their worst couldn't compete with these fucks.

  • captainrentboy #94 2 years ago

    Jesus Christ could this guy be the biggest cunt in the gaming industry, pretty much, ever?
    It's like he's actively going about trying to be more hated than Hitler :)
    I've never seen such hatred and fury spilling from EG's commenters!!

  • paulf #95 2 years ago

    it all depends how they do it, if they take the wow approach and provide a ever changing world with great community etc etc then it might be worth a monthly fee. However if they just provide the same old same old people will just clear off and play halo or bad company

    for the record I think he's a twat - actiblizzard need to be more like the blizzard side and less like him

  • Skywise #96 2 years ago

    This man has been done a great injustice!
    I hope Microsoft are generous enough to give him some of the Live profits they owe him (morally speaking).

  • StooMonster #97 2 years ago

    Activision console ... for the lose!

  • Soton4084 #98 2 years ago

    Just recently I recall Eurogamer posting an article on how Activision were trying to improve their image. Comments like these made by an absolute cock will not help.

    I only purchased COD:MW 2 because of the good reviews and like a lot of people, I was disappointed. Never again.

  • Milkman1 #99 2 years ago

    Kotick loves fucking gamers in the ass. Gamers are loving it. Great deal for everyone :).

  • metallicorphan #100 2 years ago

    not sure about everyone else..but it was Star Wars Battlefront online play that got me into Xbox live gold..so take that Kodick :)

  • WizenWolfBain #101 2 years ago

    Is this Kotick guy paid a 6 figure salary just to sit there thinking about ways to irritate virtually anyone who will listen? What an utter imbecile. I can't wait for Reach and the raft of new titles to knock MW2 out of the top 3. It's so overrated. Then fingers crossed the new CoD will bomb thanks to Treyarch's track record... Making way for more Battlefield and MoH games ;)

  • Ryze #102 2 years ago

    What a fool. Now - when Gears, Halo and the next GTA come along - they'll be the main reason that people pay for Live.

    So one of your teams made a VERY popular online game - it's been done before and will be done again by other people.

    What a muppet.

  • dudefella #103 2 years ago

    Haha what, you want to make money off of a game run over peer 2 peer hosting when you're already selling for 60 euros a pop and selling map packs for 15 a pop? Lay off the drugs, Bobbie.

  • kimchibaka #104 2 years ago

    Eurogamer must love it every time this tit opens his mouth...the advertising revenue must go through the roof!

  • metroid455 #105 2 years ago

    Harbringer, DIRECT INTERVENTION IS NECESSARY
    Kotick, ASSUMING DIRECT CONTROL
    lol this wanka is so far up him its just not amusing anymore

  • alcides #106 2 years ago

    That Microsoft allows you to run your game on their console is the very reason you make money on Xbox, Kotick you piece of SHIT.

    Going back to PC now? Not trying to kill that platform lately?

    GREEDY, GREEDY PIG.

  • xenoss #107 2 years ago

    Kotick isn't wrong; it is his job and responsibility to make money for the company and shareholders; his greed and ambition are justified.

    The thing that is messed up about Kotick, is that he is a bad businessman, and a worse gaming businessman. He doesn't seem to understand anything about the gaming industry. He goes about it in the worst ways possible. Just because he is bad at the gaming business, doesn't mean he has to suck at business in general. And yet, he sucks at that too. I know it seems rather funny to say that seeing the many billions Activision made, but they managed that not because of Kotick. IW was popular, and console fans love them. Kotick is just riding the wave, and well... he is riding it to the ground. IW is gone now, CoD as a franchise is over saturated. And fans hate them. That's just bad for business. All the while, he wants to charge subscription fees for regular FPS games. He honestly thinks that CoD is THAT big. I wonder if people are stupid enough to do it. May be console gamers, but PC gamers? I'd like to see them try.

    Also funny how he wants a piece of XB Live's pie, and the way he said it is "provide more value". "Charging people money" is in the gaming industry "provide more value". These people even fail at lying now. Come on, saying it doesn't make it so, and people are just going to believe exactly what was said. As the head of a corporation, you'd think he'd at least know how to spin a bit better.

  • man.the.king #108 2 years ago

    "Call of Duty: Black Ops, due out for PC, PS3 and Xbox 360 on 9th November, is expected to be 2010's biggest game. "

    Really?!? Who is expecting that? Bean counters, or gamers? Personally, I think, after MW2 and the Activision-IW fiasco, at least some gamers (in addition to me, of course) might not be awaiting Black Ops with bated breath like Yin-Poole suggests.
    Edited by 1 at 06/07/10 @ 05:44

  • PlugMonkey #109 2 years ago

    I've heard that 99% of people who buy COD do so to play online.

    If the Xbox Live service didn't exist, Bobby would't have done $1,000,000,000 in copies of COD this year.

    I wonder if that's a "revenue stream" that Microsoft would like to be "more active" in? It makes about as much sense.

  • Kerome #110 2 years ago

    Lol, suuuuure booby (see what I did there?)... So what about Halo? L4D2 co-op? Red Dead?

  • skuzzbag #111 2 years ago

    Maybe activision should pay a fat lump of cash to Microsoft who developed the 360 and live network in the first place. This is only fair if they want to leech off the profits.

  • orangpelupa #112 2 years ago

    'Kotick said Activision Blizzard will "very aggressively" support devices that connect PCs to tellys.'

    "what? a cable? "

    ---
    Kotick : Here we released OFFICIAL Call of duty branded HDMI Cable only for 99.99................................................... -__-

  • jebus #113 2 years ago

    Glad to be in the 40% to be honest. I'd like to see how FIFA, LFD2 and Battlefield factor into all this over a protracted time frame. Granted on the first couple of weeks of release the amount of Gold/COD players was probably staggering but I doubt it stayed that way for too long.

    Hit the greedy retard where it hurts folks - just don't buy any more COD games in future.
    Simples

  • carlitoswagon #114 2 years ago

    I don't think we pay enough. In fact, a strongly worded letter to Bobby informing him of my decision to forward half my monthly wages directly into his bank account is the only course of action.

    Not joking.

  • IronCladChicken #115 2 years ago

    'Kotick said Activision Blizzard will "very aggressively" support devices that connect PCs to tellys.'
    So, supporting the HDMI port that comes with pretty much all modern laptops/graphics cards then?
    Sounds a genuine as Microsofts intention to heavily suppport PC games after Vista was released.

  • actionfitz #116 2 years ago

    " We would really like to be able to provide much more value to those millions of players playing on Live"

    ok bobby, you can start by not fucking charging a tenner for 3 COD maps packaged with 2 old ones...
    prick.

  • Widge #117 2 years ago

    100% of my fist exists for his face

  • geeza2020 #118 2 years ago

    This guy is sooo tiresome, and a disgrace to humanity. Will someone please assassinate him so the human race can breath a collective sigh of relief??

  • hypersp #119 2 years ago

    60% probably isn't the case, but my brother plays Cod all day. In fact he brought red dead about a week or 2 ago and hasn't even touched it. On top of that, anyone I know under 14 plays cod relentlessly.

    Still, Kotick is a money grabbing dick.

  • Bursk #120 2 years ago

    Kotick: I have Bad Aids
    Everyone else: Yay!

  • scorpius45 #121 2 years ago

    They do get a cut of the subs though when M$ pay to have the dlc exclusive for a month.

  • sneetch #122 2 years ago

    @notmyrealname
    He certainly has a ponit.

    If a majority uses xbl for cod only he should ask xbawx for a fee.

    Yeah, but you can see that he has absolutely no grounds on which to ask for a share?

    Activision sold games, people bought those games, some play those games online using the Xbox service. The service is what you pay your LIVE subscription for (patches, voip, multiplayer matchmaking, chat and so on) but not CoD. Playing CoD is just one thing you can choose to do on that service but it is not specifically part of that service.

    What if the next CoD sells badly and no-one plays it online, could Microsoft then claim damages from Activision if their Xbox LIVE membership dropped? No, the two things are unrelated and Kotick knows this that's why he's not asking for a share from Microsoft. He just wants to explore his CoD MMO idea (which could be good, if well done).

    But no, he would have as much legitimacy asking for a share of the LIVE subscriptions as he would if he asked those people's ISPs for a share.

  • sneetch #123 2 years ago

    @orangpelupa
    Kotick : Here we released OFFICIAL Call of duty branded HDMI Cable only for 99.99................................................... -__-

    Is it a night-vision cable? If so: sold!

  • cdammers #124 2 years ago

    You know what, Bobby? A significant proportion of Xboxes are only bought to play Madden. Maybe EA should get a cut of each Xbox sale, by your logic.

  • Quixz #125 2 years ago

    I do not pay for GOLD LIVE just to play COD you annoying little man!

  • dutzan #126 2 years ago

    "Last month he told the Wall Street Journal COD fans were "clamouring" for an MMO-style experience.
    "I would have Call of Duty be an online subscription service tomorrow," he said."

    I believe he's wasn't thinking of developing a whole new COD themed mmo but just charging ppl for playing the already released games online. I mean in the exact instance he made that statement.
    Edited by 1 at 06/07/10 @ 16:53

  • IronCladChicken #127 2 years ago

    Has there been a 60% boost in XBL subscriptions since COD4 was released?