Bobby Kotick Labels John Riccitiello as Gaming Industry's Worst CEO

Former Activision Blizzard CEO Bobby Kotick didn't hold back his criticism of ex-EA CEO John Riccitiello, labeling him as "the worst CEO in video games" during an appearance on the podcast Grit. Joined by former EA chief creative officer Bing Gordon, who hinted that Riccitiello's leadership led to his exit, Kotick acknowledged that EA's business was "in a lot of ways better than [Activision's]," yet humorously remarked, "we would have paid for Riccitiello to stay a CEO forever."

Kotick's comments were not just aimed at Riccitiello's tenure at EA, where he served as CEO from 2007 to 2013. Riccitiello's departure from EA came after the company faced poor financial results and numerous layoffs. Notably, Riccitiello once suggested to shareholders that players might pay a dollar each time they reloaded their guns in Battlefield, a move that didn't sit well with many.

After leaving EA, Riccitiello took the helm at Unity Technologies in 2014, but his time there ended in 2023 amidst controversy over proposed install fees, which were eventually retracted. His tenure at Unity was also marked by other contentious moments, such as when he controversially described developers not embracing microtransactions as "the biggest f*cking idiots."

Kotick, who oversaw Activision Blizzard during its historic $68.7 billion acquisition by Microsoft in 2023, revealed that EA had attempted to buy Activision on multiple occasions. "They tried to buy us a bunch of times. We had merger conversations a bunch of times," Kotick shared, adding that he believed EA's business was "more stable" than Activision's.

Despite Kotick's successful financial leadership at Activision Blizzard, his tenure was not without its challenges. The company faced allegations of a toxic work culture, sexism, and even employee walkouts over claims that Kotick failed to inform the board about serious misconduct allegations, including rape. However, Activision Blizzard stated that independent reviews found no substantiation for claims of systemic sexual harassment or improper board handling of misconduct.

In July 2021, California’s Department of Fair Employment and Housing (now the Civil Rights Department) sued Activision Blizzard over a retaliatory "frat boy" culture. The lawsuit culminated in a $54 million settlement in December 2023, with the department concluding that no independent investigation had substantiated allegations of widespread sexual harassment or improper actions by the board, including Kotick.

During the same interview, Kotick also critiqued Universal's 2016 adaptation of Activision Blizzard's Warcraft, calling it "one of the worst movies I've ever seen."