Activision's Kotick confident next-gen will bring new innovation
"I think we'll excite audiences in ways that they haven't seen before"
The entire industry is gearing up for the launch of Xbox One and PlayStation 4 this holiday season, and while the next-gen consoles will bring more horsepower and more connectivity, will they really yield new gaming innovations, or will it be more of the same but slightly prettier? Activision Blizzard chief Bobby Kotick is excited for next-gen and he's sure that gamers will be able to enjoy something new.
"My sense is consumers are going to be excited about this hardware and I think over the long-term that it will probably be as long as the current cycle. I think you're going to see new kinds of software that has not been available in this current generation. I'm seeing things we're working on and developing that we've never been able to do before and I think we'll excite audiences in ways that they haven't seen before," Kotick said, responding to a question during Activision's earnings call.
Former Electronic Arts CEO John Riccitiello told us that he thinks next-gen will definitely sell more than the last cycle, and while Kotick didn't quite make an outright prediction for the sales volume of Xbox One and PS4, he acknowledged, "If you look back in history what you've seen is that every new cycle is larger than the prior cycle."
Moreover, Kotick seems encouraged by the work he's seen from both Microsoft and Sony in improving the hardware side of the business. That should make it easier for third-party publishers like Activision to support both platforms.
"We have much more visibility today than we had even three months ago and both have made great progress. They've put more money against the launches than ever before and I think they've both learned a lot about how to improve the supply chain and manufacturing efficiencies," Kotick noted.