Activision Blizzard CEO Kotick Praises Tencent and ByteDance: A Dig at His Ex-Partner?

Recently, Activision Blizzard CEO Bobby Kotick made a headline-grabbing statement in an interview. He declared that Tencent and ByteDance are the top-tier gaming companies in the world today, further noting that Chinese and Japanese developers have become their biggest rivals.

This comment immediately stirred up a storm in the gaming community. Netizens quickly pivoted to the name Kotick conspicuously left out: NetEase. Given the recent, messy termination of their 14-year partnership, this deliberate omission was interpreted by many as a calculated jab—a 'petty' move against his former partner.

Furthermore, Kotick’s elevation of ByteDance as a top gaming giant left many players scratching their heads. Critics in the comment section asked, 'Does ByteDance actually have any notable games?' and pointed out that their gaming division, Nuverse, seems to have a stagnant product pipeline. Some dubbed this move as 'corporate sycophancy,' joking that the CEO is simply kneeling to new prospective moneyed partners.

In summary, the community consensus is that Kotick’s remarks are less of an objective industry analysis and more of a hostile business signal—using public praise for other giants as a strategic weapon to alienate his former Chinese partner.