Don Mattrick, Microsoft’s President of Interactive Entertainment Business, has been the focus of a lot of backlash recently. The Xbox One has been a huge PR nightmare for Redmond, and it seems it’s taking a toll on the man heading up the Xbox team. Reports are now coming in that Don Mattrick plans on leaving Microsoft in favor of taking on an executive role at Zynga — the troubled casual gaming company.
All Things D is reporting that Mattrick will be leaving Microsoft, and joining the ranks of Zynga. Perhaps, Mattrick could even be named the new CEO of Zynga since its current CEO Mark Pincus has failed to set the world on fire after the company’s initial public offering. While his departure might not necessarily be consensual, leaving Microsoft for Zynga seems like going from the frying pan into the fire for Mattrick in terms of negative PR.
Long before the Xbox One was officially revealed, the “next Xbox will suck” narrative was going very strong for months. Microsoft didn’t nip the always-on rumors in the bud, and the negative feelings towards Microsoft snowballed. After the unveiling, Microsoft employees continued to put their feet in their mouths about the plans for restrictive DRM. It wasn’t until Microsoft decided to do an about-face and completely reverse its strategy that much of anything positive has been said about Microsoft in the press.
Now that Don Mattrick is supposedly leaving, certain things can be inferred about the Xbox team. In one scenario, Mattrick was so passionate about the always-online future that the Xbox One promised, he didn’t want to be a part of a team willing to abandon that core idea. In another, the unfortunate mishandling of the PR kerfuffle cost Mattrick his job. There are still many questions that need to be answered before we have the whole picture, but it’s fair to say that this probably wouldn’t be happening if the Xbox One’s unveiling didn’t cause so much heartburn for Microsoft.
The future of the Xbox team and Zynga are completely uncertain at this point, but the stock market seems to be favoring Zynga and punishing Microsoft. If Mattrick sincerely holds strong beliefs about online requirements, it seems he’ll be a perfect fit for the oft-criticized Facebook and mobile game company. The tech and gaming press love to complain about both Mattrick and Zynga, so it seems like a match made in heaven.