Blizzard Entertainment, not what it used to be - Anonymous Blizzard Entertainment Employee Review

3.0
9 Jan 2017
Recommend
CEO approval
Business outlook

Pros

Blizzard is still a great company with great opportunities, but just not what it was 2 years ago let alone 8 years ago. Having worked at Blizzard for over 10 years I was involved in some of the greatest growth for the company and had an amazing team of individuals I worked with day-to-day to help collaborate and grow the business. Unfortunately, almost every single one of them is now gone. Most leaving with comments referring to being pushed out. You want to work on one of the game teams, as profit sharing is considerably better.

Cons

The culture was amazing but has taken a serious kick the last 3 years. At some point, it became more about how can we do this for cheaper when it comes to employees versus how can we get the best talent to get this done. Basically, all the C-suite is very junior to the gaming industry minus two individuals as all the others left. As you can imagine, this would drive serious change if the new executive level staff does not fully believe in the fundamental tenants of Blizzard. It seems like over the last 3 years Blizzard has hired way to many people, especially in management roles. Some are okay, but most I have worked with are very mediocre at their jobs. Your best bet, get onto one of the game teams. All else is now just seen as basically a cost. Profit sharing is not even remotely close to what it was just 3 years ago. A large number of revenue neutral employees have been hired, causing the profit sharing pool to be spread considerably thinner and thinner every year. Blizzard does not want to pay based on your skills and experience. If you want to work at Blizzard, you should be making less than marke value. Sure you get the occasional freebie (sorry, nowhere near what it used to be), but it just does not make up for all that has been lost. Management works hard to get you to buy in on their kool-aid of how great Blizzard is. It seems like the new norm is to take what you learn at Blizzard and quickly turn it into better compensation elsewhere. No brain drain going on with this situation.

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5.0
2 June 2026
Anonymous employee
Recommend
CEO approval
Business outlook

Pros

Really great people, best and kindest in the business

Cons

Compensation is on lower side

2.0
23 Mar 2026
Recommend
CEO approval
Business outlook

Pros

- Depending on the team, you get to work with some great people. - Company events are fun and make you temporarily forget that you're still in a corporate environment. - You're near the games being released.

Cons

On the surface, the company talks a big game about being structured and performance-driven. In reality, it feels pretty chaotic once you’re actually in it. Expectations aren’t clearly defined, and what “success” looks like seems to shift depending on the week or who you’re talking to. You end up spending more time managing optics and trying to stay aligned with moving targets than actually doing solid engineering work. What makes it worse is how management handles team dynamics. Toxic behavior doesn’t really get addressed — if anything, it sometimes feels like it’s enabled. Feedback can feel very one-sided, and when you raise concerns, they’re not always taken seriously or represented fairly. There are definitely moments where the narrative about your performance doesn’t match the reality of what you’re actually doing day to day, which slowly kills trust. At a minimum, leadership needs to get better at clear communication, setting stable and objective expectations, and actually supporting both engineers and managers. Without that, even strong teams start to feel dysfunctional. Compensation doesn’t make up for it either. It often feels like decisions are driven by cost-cutting rather than recognizing real impact, which makes the whole environment feel more transactional than motivating. Overall, I wouldn’t recommend this place in its current state, especially if you’re an experienced professional looking for a stable, well-run role.

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