Soon-to-be Activision CEO Eric Hirshberg, the same who said he wanted Activision to be a "more loved" brand, has already boarded the Activision Arrogant Statement Express.
In a recent interview with IGN, Hirshberg boasted, "The Call of Duty franchise is a force of nature. I think it is the closest thing this generation has to a Star Wars. I think it's unique and bigger than any musical act or any movie franchise in that capacity."
Really? First of all, that doesn't make any sense - Star Wars is a movie franchise. And secondly, I mean, like, come on. Come on. No one will dispute that the Call of Duty series has made a sizable cultural dent - it's a massive phenomenon, for sure. But it's not Star Wars, or even close. Star Wars is 33 years old. In 33 years, no one will give a rat's ass about your Black Opses or your Modern Warfares. Nobody will dress up like Captain Price for Halloween. And if they do, people will think they're Chuck Norris. Yes, even he'll be more remembered.
Star Wars was a seismic event, and we're still feeling its aftershocks. It's an insult to this generation to say that CoD is the "closest thing" it has to Star Wars. That's like saying that The Da Vinci Code is the closest thing this generation has to To Kill a Mockingbird. Not that Star Wars and To Kill a Mockingbird are equal, I just, right... you know what I mean (I see how these CEO-types get in trouble).
Star Wars is the closest thing this generation has to Star Wars. And if we were going to list more recent cultural phenomena that approached the impact of Star Wars, CoD might not even be in the top ten.
Maybe someday CoD will become that "force of nature," but right now, it's just an impressively popular game series. And if you want to make Activision appear friendlier, willfully ignorant overstatements probably won't do it.
Jul 20, 2010
