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Last week, Sony Interactive Entertainment and Bungie dominated headlines in the games industry when the house of PlayStation announced the latter’s acquisition for a whopping $3.6 billion. SIE CEO Jim Ryan gave numerous interviews but only one or two publications quizzed him about recent reports involving workplace misconduct at the studio, which resulted in its HR boss stepping down and CEO Pete Parsons issuing an apology.
Speaking to Games Industry, Ryan said that workplace toxicity is something that Sony takes “very seriously,” and both companies will work together to foster an environment that’s inclusive, positive, and welcoming.
Bungie misconduct allegations were acknowledged by its CEO
Issuing a lengthy apology, Parsons outlined extensive steps Bungie has taken to combat toxicity and ensure that offenders are dealt with. He told Games Industry that he’s been “incredibly transparent” with Sony when it comes to this.
“We hold ourselves to extremely high standards throughout the organization, and with the businesses that we partner,” Ryan added. “This is something that I have been incredibly sensitive to, right from the start of the conversations. And I have been nothing but impressed, and I have nothing but the highest praise for the way that Bungie organizes and conducts itself.”
Opinion: Sony and Microsoft have much to fix
Zarmena writes… Sony and Microsoft found themselves in a bit of an awkward corner with Bungie and Activision Blizzard as both companies were lambasted for workplace misconduct just ahead of their respective acquisitions. Many see Activision’s acquisition as an easy escape for CEO Bobby Kotick and the onus of how Bungie conducts itself going forward falls on Sony. Here’s hoping both companies can fix what’s evidently broken because the games industry has had enough of these reports in recent years.
In other news, Ghostwire Tokyo was originally conceived as The Evil Within 3, and Sony plans to make more mobile games with PlayStation IP.
[Source: Games Industry]