Activision to buy Mortal Kombat?
According to a recent statement made to Bloomberg, Mike Griffith, President and CEO of the Activision side of Activision Blizzard, stated that Activision is in a great position to expand its stable of gaming properties:
The combination of Activision holding a fair amount of cash and presumably prices being depressed, not only for publicly traded companies, but also likely for new intellectual property licensing rights, should certainly create opportunities.
Activision is going shopping. With $3 billion in cash and almost no debt, they’re one of the few buyers in a market full of sellers. One of the most prominent sellers: bankrupt Midway with their Mortal Kombat franchise ripe for the picking.
The combination of Mortal Kombat and a powerhouse like Activision is intriguing. While Mortal Kombat used to be the premiere fighting franchise in gaming, other games such as Street Fighter, Soulcalibur and Dead or Alive among others have eclipsed it. Those games now have their own signature characters (e.g., Chun Li from Street Fighter, Ivy from Soulcaliber, Ayane from DOA, etc.) And they boast special moves and effects that rival the finishing moves of the Mortal Kombat series. In addition, they’ve leaped past Mortal Kombat in their use of camera angels, unlockable costumes and much more immersive environments. Mortal Kombat could use a reboot and the series (even the latest one where the Mortal Kombat crew are fightingt DC comic superheroes) looks tired.
Also, the Mortal Kombat IP could end up in some interesting permutations at Activision Blizzard. I’d love to see a Mortal Kombat MMO for example or even a Diablo-esque third person perspective RPG. There’s so much that could’ve been done with this franchise other than just a straight fighting game.
From Silicon Valley Insider via Game Culture
Bonus for Mortal Kombal founder
In the midst of bankruptcy proceedings for Midway, court documents reveal that the company plans to pay over a million dollars in bonuses to Ed Boon, the creator of the Mortal Kombat franchise. The Mortal Kombat IP is the most important (and most sellable) asset left to Midway, and losing the franchise creator could deal a catastrophic blow to the company’s capability to sell off the franchise to a monied suitor. Boon is reportedly working on a new Mortal Kombat game and the bonuses not only pay for his past work on the series but is also sort of a contingency fee to keep him at Midway. Apparently, Boon earned these bonuses yearly.
I’ve made my opinion clear that I think Midway is behaving outrageously and unethically in paying bonuses to management and key insiders instead of paying off employees who have been let go. My opinion on that remains unchanged. I understand that in keeping Boon in house, Midway maximizes the value of the company’s assets, which in turn, may mean that creditors (which now include Midway’s former rank and file employees) have a better chance of getting paid. However, let’s not kid ourselves here. While the move does benefit large institutional creditors who will have first dibs on the shrinking Midway pie, the possibility of shafted Midway employees to get what is rightfully owed them is still slim to none.
Further damning is the fact that while Boon is getting paid over a million bucks, the 110 non-management employees, while they were still employed by Midway, were eligible for $325,000 in bonuses per year. That’s $325,000 total for 110 people versus $1 million for one guy. I think that Midway’s bankruptcy has shown its management’s true colors. And the injustice of how layed off employees are being treated by companies who once demanded long hours and sacrifice leaves a bitter taste in all of us.
Outraged by Midway
It appears that outrageous behavior by executives for bankrupt companies have infected the gaming industry. Midway, makers of the Mortal Kombat fighting game series, filed for bankruptcy on February 13 and have racked over $281 million in debt. A complete liquidation of the company assets is currently being conducted with games like Wheelman and the Mortal Kombat franchise up for grabs to the highest bidder.
However, court documents revealed that 29 executives, management and key non-company insiders of the company are eligible for over $3.75 million in bonuses if they meet certain company objectives. Presumably, this means the sale of their intellectual property, the only assets available to the company. It also means screwing over former employees out of earned paid time off (PTO). Read more
