Infinity Ward's West and Zampella Reveal Their Grievances
Ousted Infinity Ward heads Vince Zampella and Jason West have remained silent since their unceremonious dismissal on Monday. However, the duo's lawsuit against Activision, filed yesterday afternoon with the California Superior Court, speaks volumes.
The 16-page legal document, obtained by Kotaku, is short on legal jargon and long on lucid accusations. Zampella and West, represented by a legal team from the law firm of O'Melveny & Myers LLP, accuse Activision of "unbridled greed" and "Orwellian tactics."
The plaintiffs' case largely rests upon a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU), a formal alternative to a handshake agreement but not necessarily a binding contract. Zampella and West say they signed an MOU with Activision on March 31, 2008 and agreed to work for Activision for three more years and deliver Modern Warfare 2 by November 15, 2009. The MOU allegedly granted:
1. West and Zampella creative authority over the development of any games under the Modern Warfare brand or any Call of Duty title set in the post-Vietnam era, the near future, or the distant future.
2. Complete control over the Infinity Ward studio.
3. The right to choose to develop new intellectual properties after completing Modern Warfare 2.
4. Standard bonus and royalty compensation for Modern Warfare 2 as well as additional compensation, including a pool of Restricted Stock Units, stock options, a royalty for any Call of Duty game sold, a technology royalty for any Activision game using the Infinity Ward created CoD game engine, and rewards for Infinity Ward employees.
Zampella and West allege they held up their end of the MOU, delivering Modern Warfare 2 five days early. Immediately after the game was delivered, Zampella and West say Activision began to renege on its promises:
This lawsuit is solely and regrettably the result of the astonishing arrogance and unbridled greed of defendant Activision. Plaintiffs Jason West and Vince Zampella are among the most talented and successful videogame developers in the world. They created for Activision two videogame franchises, Call of Duty and Modern Warfare, that became the most successful in the company's--indeed, the industry's--history, lining Activisions pockets with billions of dollars in revenue and creating a die-hard fan base in the millions.
Just weeks before Messrs. West and Zampella were to receive the royalties for their hard work on Modern Warfare 2, Activision fired them in the hope that by doing so, it could avoid paying them what they had rightfully earned, and to seize control of the Infinity Ward Studio, to which Activision had previously granted creative control over all Modern Warfare branded games and had, apparently, decided it no longer wanted to live with.
The complaint alleges that Activision launched an investigation against the studio heads on February 3, stating, "From the very beginning, it was clear that the purpose of the investigation was not to uncover any facts concerning any actual wrongdoing, but to manufacture a basis to fire West and Zampella." Activision refused to reveal what specific acts were being investigated, the pair state, instead being told they "already have a clear understanding of what they have or have not done."
Activision's investigation allegedly included a six-hour interrogation of West and Zampella in a windowless conference room. The plaintiffs state numerous Infinity Ward employees were also questioned and some even brought to tears during the interrogation. When West and Zampella refused to turn over their personal computers and cell phones, Activision's attorneys allegedly stated the pair was being insubordinate.
West and Zempella's complaint then states the studio heads were summoned "to a sham meeting" at Activision's Santa Monica headquarters "during which they were fired on the basis of false and trivial charges, and then quickly escorted out the back door." The pair stated Activision refused to confirm that it would make the payments for Modern Warfare 2 agreed upon in the MOU.
Activision has adopted the corporate strategy of forcing Messrs. West and Zampella to sue for their pay -- in the hopes of either getting away with not having to pay them anything, or maximizing its leverage to reduce that pay. Such actions are not surprising, given that Activision is run by a CEO who has been publicly quoted as believing that the best way to run a videogame studio is to engender a culture of "skepticism, pessimis, and fear," and who prefers to pay his lawyers instead of his employees.
In closing, the complaint states West and Zampella were terminated in bad faith and without proper cause. Activision refuses to pay compensation owed and refuses to recognize Infinity Ward's rights to exercise creative and other contractually-gained control over the Modern Warfare brand. The developers are seeking damages "to be determined in court" but in excess of $36 million.
I have no idea how he did that but that was super slick.