Activision Blizzard CEO drops hint to Grand Theft Auto brothers: come work for us

Posted Sep 22, 2008 at 2:36AM EST by QJ Staff

Listed in: Wii, PS3, Xbox 360 Tags: Activision, Activision Blizzard, Blizzard, Sam Houser, Take-Two Interactive

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Dan and Sam Houser are the founders of Rockstar Games, and the brains behind the Grand Theft Auto series. If you were a video game company, you'd want them on your team.

Hell, I'm not developer and I want them on my team.

Anyway, moving on. Their contract with Take-Two Interactive will expire this February. When that happens, a bidding war for the brothers is likely to take place. It seems that Activision Blizzard's CEO Bobby Kotick is already dropping some strong hints that he wants the brothers on the payroll.

At an investor conference, Kotick mentioned that he can't talk about the Houser brothers. That didn't stop him from making a play for them though, as just a second later he said that:

We (Activision) really embrace the individual studio model. We know how to take studios and talented teams and appropriately incentivize them. WeÂ’ve definitely become the destination location for independently minded entrepreneurial talent.

Smooth, Kotick. As the Silicon Alley Insider remarked, Kotick might as well have said "come work for us." We don't know what the brothers think about Kotick's remark, but it's still fun to ponder: what would the creators of the Grand Theft Auto come up with, working for the studios that gave us Guitar Hero and Warcraft?

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Related Articles:

• Michael Pachter: Take-Two might lose Houser siblings
• Electronic Arts ends talks with Take-Two: merger no go
• Rockstar's Dan Houser doesn't like casual games
• Rockstar's Dan Houser explains 'defining moment' in GTA IV

Via Alley Insider

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Comments 

 

# I hope they don't leave Rockstar. — CHUCKINGROCKSATSPACESHIPS 2008-09-22 06:17

But if they do leave Rockstar, I hope they open up their own company and make kickass games like the ones they are famous for and ones the ones we like to play.

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# oh bessy — DiscoStew592 2008-09-22 07:37

imagine... a mmorpg were you go around and shoot people aimlessly while using a guitar as a controller!!!

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# The question is... — 3vi1 2008-09-22 11:27

Would they be given carte blanche to create whatever they wanted, or would Blizzard water-down their creations into something "family-friendly".



If it's the latter, stay where you are boys! The industry needs more people that will take risks.

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# Yeah! — PR Disaster 2008-09-22 11:43

And drive bys with magic spells and paying rock stars to come in your car and have some "hot coffee"!

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# reply from first comment — Binary 2008-09-22 16:38

Yeah like Guitar Hero battle during a GTA Mission.

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# What about Diablo — Uplink 2008-09-22 16:47

I would'nt say hacking and slashing the Devil in hell "family-friendly"

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