Activision Blizzard continues to be embroiled in controversy amid its lawsuit with the state of California and new details about the company continue to emerge. One of the recent bits of information that has released suggests ex-Overwatch director Jeff Kaplan protected his team from the corporate issues.
According to one of the Overwatch producers on Twitter spotted by Dexerto, Kaplan was able to protect his team from "corporate BS" while he was with the company. Producer Tracy Kennedy recently stated that Activision Blizzard's corporate culture was at odds with the Overwatch team prior to Jeff Kaplan's departure, which was an attempt to rectify the issue. During his goodbye speech, Jeff Kaplan referenced Activision Blizzard's cultural issues, according to Kennedy, and the ripple effects of his leaving are still being felt.
Specifying some of the "corporate BS" that he protected the team from, Kennedy stated that Kaplan would resist corporate culture and business pressures to change things that he felt would compromise Overwatch or the team behind it. Kennedy attributes the positivity of the Overwatch team to Kaplan's ability to shield the team from Activision Blizzard, and since his departure, several Overwatch team members have also departed. According to Kennedy, this is mostly due to the public ongoing Activision Blizzard lawsuit revealing several concerning details.
Kaplan left Activision Blizzard back in April, leaving the Overwatch team unshielded from the corporate issues that Kennedy suggested he protected the team from. Kaplan isn't the only key Activision Blizzard figure to have recently departed, as Blizzard President J. Allen Brack also left the company as a result of the ongoing lawsuit. Although it's currently unclear if the corporate restructuring is helping the issues at Activision Blizzard, the recently appointed co-leader of Blizzard Entertainment Jen Oneal has also confirmed that she's stepping down.
On top of all the recent departures doubtlessly impacting the teams at Activision Blizzard, CEO Bobby Kotick has also been implicated in the ongoing lawsuit. According to more information coming out about the lawsuit, Kotick allegedly said demoralizing things to several employees. Activision Blizzard has since made a statement rebutting the allegations, but several fans are still worried that the allegations are true.
Because Jeff Kaplan unveiled nearly every Overwatch update over the years, the title felt very close to him and Kennedy's statements seemingly confirm it. Overwatch 2 was recently delayed and part of that may be due to the loss of Kaplan and his leadership. It remains to be seen what other leadership may depart Activision Blizzard as its lawsuit with California further unfolds.
Overwatch is available right now for PC, PS4, Switch, and Xbox One.
Source: Dexerto