Jeff Kaplan, the creative force behind popular games like Overwatch, revealed the reasons behind his unexpected departure from Blizzard Entertainment several years ago in a recent interview with Lex Fridman. Kaplan cited significant shifts in the company’s internal culture and an increasing focus on financial targets as key factors in his decision.
Kaplan spent nearly two decades at Blizzard, playing a pivotal role in the success of franchises such as World of Warcraft and, most notably, Overwatch, where he frequently served as the public face of the game.
According to Kaplan, a particularly impactful event served as a turning point. During a meeting with a Blizzard executive, he was informed that failure to meet specific financial goals for Overwatch could result in the layoff of up to 1,000 employees, with the responsibility falling squarely on him.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H9rF1CSSh-w/
“What ultimately broke me and my time at Blizzard was being called into the CFO’s office and he sat me down and told me – he gave me a date that at the time was 2020 that would slide to 2021, but at the time it was 2020 – and he said: “Overwatch has to make [redacted] in 2020, and every year after that we require to have a recurring revenue of [redacted]”, and then he tells me: “If we don’t hit [redacted], we’re going to lay off 1,000 people, and that’s on you.’ And that was the biggest f**k you moment I’ve had in my career, it felt surreal to be in that position.”
Since leaving Blizzard, Kaplan has maintained a relatively low profile and is currently developing a new project with a Wild West theme, as detailed by GameReactor.
