Former Activision CEO Bobby Kotick blasts “fake lawsuits against us and Riot Games”, claiming union workers used harassment claims to drum up members

“I mean, think about it. I dated Sheryl Sandberg.”

Image credit:Kleiner Perkins/Grit

Kotick’s statements reference widely reported incidents alleging a company culture of harassment, intimidation, and pay inequity around the time - coinciding with a lawsuit against the company - and the petition referred to appears to be this one to remove him as CEO , which attracted over a thousand signatures.

That petition followed a report by the Wall Street Journal (paywalled) that highlighted several alleged incidents of harassment by Activision staff, alongside reports that Kotick was aware of these allegations but did not inform the company’s board of directors, and intervened to prevent the firing of an alleged harasser. It wasn’t just Activision workers who found these claims alarming: a group of company shareholders called for Kotick’s resignation soon after . Kotick denied any wrongdoing.

After being prompted “2021” by Kotick, the podcast host Joubin Mirzadega says “peak social activism in the workplace,” in reference to that time period. “There was a petition. Like, a thousand people signed it.”

“That was fake,” says Kotick.

“The board. The independent auditors. Everybody was like: this guy’s doing nothing wrong,” Mirzadega goes on, confirming that a petition against Kotick is the subject of the conversation.

Kotick then expands the discussion to encompass the wider claims of workplace misconduct at Activision Blizzard. Some background on that first: the California Department of Fair Employment and Housing filed a lawsuit in summer 2021 following two years of investigation by the DFEH. The lawsuit alleged that the company’s culture was “a breeding ground for harassment and discrimination against women”. A $54.875m settlement was eventually reached in December 2023, with the state department saying that “no court or any independent investigation has substantiated any allegations [of] systemic or widespread sexual harassment at Activision Blizzard”.

In an additional statement made to RPS at the time, an Activision Blizzard spokesperson commented that “the CRD (previously DFEH) has acknowledged that no court or independent investigation substantiated any allegations that ‘Activision Blizzard’s Board of Directors, including its Chief Executive Officer, Robert Kotick, acted improperly with regard to the handling of any instances of workplace misconduct.’”

In this week’s Grit podcast, Kotick argues that the harassment claims and legal case against Activision Blizzard were, in fact, engineered by the Communication Workers of Union in a bid to attract new members.

“I can tell you exactly what happened,” he says. “The Communication Workers of America Union started looking at technology. They kept losing because they represented the news guild, Comcast, and they realised they were losing members at a really dramatic rate, so they gotta figure out: how do they get new union members? So they targeted a bunch of different businesses. Google . Some other tech companies. Tesla, SpaceX and us.”

“It’s the power of unions,” Kotick continues. “I didn’t really understand this until we went through this process. They were able to get a government agency, the EEOC and a state employment agency called the Department Of Fair Employment And Housing, to file fake lawsuits against us and Riot Games making allegations about the workplace that weren’t true.”

Some further context about Riot: in 2022, they agreed to pay out $100 million to settle a class-action suit brought against them for “systemic sex discrimination and harassment”, after both the DFEH and the California Division of Labor Standards Enforcement objected to an original $10m proposed settlement.

“They’re so clever,” Kotick continued on the podcast. “They realized that would be a thing where they could come into a company - because we pay well, we have great benefits - and they could say, hey, the culture is bad! People are harassed or they’re retaliated against. There’s discrimination. The guy and the lady who ran CWA, they are really smart.” Kotick is likely referring to Chris Shelton and Sara Stephens here, the president and secretary-treasurer of the CWA at the time.

“They came up with this plan, hired a PR firm, and they started attacking our company. They got these two agencies to file these lawsuits to claim there was some sexual harassment. We didn’t have any of that. Ultimately they had to admit that this was not truthful.”

“Did you know this was all happening?” asks Mirzadega.

“I’ve seen in another company they knew in advance,” adds Gordon, without specifying the company in question. “A lot of the press was made up by union activists.”

“I didn’t know any of it,” says Kotick. “I’m one of those people. I think it’s probably from my upbringing, but when I heard about things that were inappropriate conduct in the workplace, I just fired people. Like on the spot. My view is: you don’t want to have a culture where there was any kind of discrimination, retaliation, misconduct. It’s bad for recruiting and its bad for retention.”

“I mean, think about it. I dated Sheryl Sandberg,” he laughs. “You think we had a problem with pay equity and gender pay at Activision? She literally wouldn’t do a ’lean in circle ’ at the company until I showed her our pay equity fillings.”

If Kotick’s suggestion here is that his association with ex-Meta COO Sandberg - who has advocated for equal representation in the workplace - is proof that the allegations against him are unfounded, it’s perhaps worth noting that Sandberg herself is the subject of allegations that she worked with Kotick to shut down reports about his treatment of women. According to a 2022 report by the Wall Street Journal, Sandberg allegedly pressured UK tabloid The Daily Mail to drop stories about a restraining order against Kotick from an ex-girlfriend, while Kotick and Sandberg were dating.

“Working with a team that included Facebook and Activision employees as well as paid outside advisers,” wrote the WSJ, “Ms. Sandberg and Mr. Kotick developed a strategy to persuade the Daily Mail not to report on the restraining order, first when they began dating in 2016 and again around the time they were breaking up in 2019, the people said. Among other concerns, Ms. Sandberg’s legal and public-relations advisers, both inside and outside Facebook, worried that a story would reflect negatively on her reputation as an advocate for women.”

Kotick denied the allegations and the ex-girlfriend later retracted some of her claims.

As well as detailing several instances of abuse by employees within Activision Blizzard, the Wall Street Journal article also highlighted other instances where Kotick himself has been sued for alleged misconduct. In 2006, one of his assistants “complained that he had harassed her, including by threatening in a voice mail to have her killed.” Kotick reportedly settled the matter out of court. “Mr. Kotick quickly apologized 16 years ago for the obviously hyperbolic and inappropriate voice mail, and he deeply regrets the exaggeration and tone in his voice mail to this day,” an Activision spokesperson told the WSJ.

Kotick has also faced suggestions that he considered buying out press to ensure positive coverage for Activision. In 2022, another Wall Street Journal report wrote that Kotick suggested buying Kotaku or PC Gamer to “change the narrative” around the company. From the WSJ :

“Mr. Kotick has been eager to change the public narrative about the company, and in recent weeks has suggested Activision Blizzard make some kind of acquisition, including of gaming-trade publications like Kotaku and PC Gamer, according to people familiar with him. The Activision spokeswoman, Ms. Klasky, disputed that Mr. Kotick wanted to make the acquisitions. A spokesman for G/O Media, the parent company of Kotaku, declined to comment. PC Gamer didn’t respond to a request for comment.”

We’ve reached out to the CWA for comment on all this.

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All 75 Arc Raiders Blueprints and where to get them

These areas have the highest chance of giving you Blueprints

Image credit:Rock Paper Shotgun/Embark Studios

Looking for more Arc Raiders Blueprints? It’s a special day when you find a Blueprint, as they’re among the most valuable items in Arc Raiders. If you find a Blueprint that you haven’t already found, then you must make sure you hold onto it at all costs, because Blueprints are the key to one of the most important and powerful systems of meta-progression in the game.

This guide aims to be the very best guide on Blueprints you can find, starting with a primer on what exactly they are and how they work in Arc Raiders, before delving into exactly where to get Blueprints and the very best farming spots for you to take in your search.

We’ll also go over how to get Blueprints from other unlikely activities, such as destroying Surveyors and completing specific quests. And you’ll also find the full list of all 75 Blueprints in Arc Raiders on this page (including the newest Blueprints added with the Cold Snap update , such as the Deadline Blueprint and Firework Box Blueprint), giving you all the information you need to expand your own crafting repertoire.

In this guide:

• What are Blueprints in Arc Raiders?
• Full Blueprint list: All crafting recipes
• Where to find Blueprints in Arc Raiders Blueprints obtained from quests Blueprints obtained from Trials Best Blueprint farming locations

What are Blueprints in Arc Raiders?

Blueprints in Arc Raiders are special items which, if you manage to extract with them, you can expend to permanently unlock a new crafting recipe in your Workshop. If you manage to extract from a raid with an Anvil Blueprint, for example, you can unlock the ability to craft your very own Anvil Pistol, as many times as you like (as long as you have the crafting materials).

To use a Blueprint, simply open your Inventory while in the lobby, then right-click on the Blueprint and click “Learn And Consume” . This will permanently unlock the recipe for that item in your Workshop. As of the Stella Montis update, there are allegedly 75 different Blueprints to unlock - although only 68 are confirmed to be in the game so far. You can see all the Blueprints you’ve found and unlocked by going to the Workshop menu, and hitting “R” to bring up the Blueprint screen.

It’s possible to find duplicates of past Blueprints you’ve already unlocked. If you find these, then you can either sell them, or - if you like to play with friends - you can take it into a match and gift it to your friend so they can unlock that recipe for themselves. Another option is to keep hold of them until the time comes to donate them to the Expedition.

Full Blueprint list: All crafting recipes

Below is the full list of all the Blueprints that are currently available to find in Arc Raiders, and the crafting recipe required for each item:

Note: The missing Blueprints in this list likely have not actually been added to the game at the time of writing, because none of the playerbase has managed to find any of them. As they are added to the game, I will update this page with the most relevant information so you know exactly how to get all 75 Arc Raiders Blueprints.

Where to find Blueprints in Arc Raiders

Below is a list of all containers, modifiers, and events which maximise your chances of finding Blueprints:

• Certain quests reward you with specific Blueprints .
• Completing Trials has a high chance of offering Blueprints as rewards.
• Surveyors have a decent chance of dropping Blueprints on death.
• High loot value areas tend to have a greater chance of spawning Blueprints.
• Night Raids and Storms may increase rare Blueprint spawn chances in containers.
• Containers with higher numbers of items may have a higher tendency to spawn Blueprints. As a result, Blue Gate (which has many “large” containers containing multiple items) may give you a higher chance of spawning Blueprints.
• Raider containers (Raider Caches, Weapon Boxes, Medical Bags, Grenade Tubes) have increased Blueprint drop rates. As a result, the Uncovered Caches event gives you a high chance of finding Blueprints.
• Security Lockers have a higher than average chance of containing Blueprints.
• Certain Blueprints only seem to spawn under specific circumstances: Tempest Blueprint only spawns during Night Raid events. Vulcano Blueprint only spawns during Hidden Bunker events. Jupiter and Equaliser Blueprints only spawn during Harvester events.

Raider Caches, Weapon Boxes, and other raider-oriented container types have a good chance of offering Blueprints. |Image credit:Rock Paper Shotgun/Embark Studios

Blueprints have a very low chance of spawning in any container in Arc Raiders, around 1-2% on average. However, there is a higher chance of finding Blueprints in particular container types. Specifically, you can find more Blueprints in Raider containers and security lockers.

Beyond this, if you’re looking for Blueprints you should focus on regions of the map which are marked as having particularly high-value loot. Areas such as the Control Tower in Dam Battlegrounds, the Arrival and Departure Buildings in Spaceport, and Pilgrim’s Peak in Blue Gate all have a better-than-average chance of spawning Blueprints somewhere amongst all their containers. Night Raids and Electromagnetic Storm events also increase the drop chances of certain Blueprints .

In addition to these containers, you can often loot Blueprints from destroyed Surveyors - the largest of the rolling ball ARC. Surveyors are more commonly found on the later maps - Spaceport and Blue Gate - and if one spawns in your match, you’ll likely see it by the blue laser beam that it casts into the sky while “surveying”.

Surveyors are quite well-armoured and will very speedily run away from you once it notices you, but if you can take one down then make sure you loot all its parts for a chance of obtaining certain unusual Blueprints.

Blueprints obtained from quests

One way in which you can get Blueprints is by completing certain quests for the vendors in Speranza. Some quests will reward you with a specific item Blueprint upon completion, so as long as you work through all the quests in Arc Raiders, you are guaranteed those Blueprints.

Here is the full list of all Blueprints you can get from quest rewards:

• Trigger Nade Blueprint: Rewarded after completing “Sparks Fly”.
• Lure Grenade Blueprint: Rewarded after completing “Greasing Her Palms”.
• Burletta Blueprint: Rewarded after completing “Industrial Espionage”.
• Hullcracker Blueprint (and Launcher Ammo Blueprint): Rewarded after completing “The Major’s Footlocker”.

Alas, that’s only 4 Blueprints out of a total of 75 to unlock, so for the vast majority you will need to find them yourself during a raid. If you’re intent on farming Blueprints, then it’s best to equip yourself with cheap gear in case you lose it, but don’t use a free loadout because then you won’t get a safe pocket to stash any new Blueprint you find. No pain in Arc Raiders is sharper than failing to extract with a new Blueprint you’ve been after for a dozen hours already.

One of the best ways to get Blueprints is by hitting three stars on all five Trials every week. |Image credit:Rock Paper Shotgun/Embark Studios

Blueprints obtained from Trials

One of the very best ways to get Blueprints is as rewards for completing Trials in Arc Raiders. Trials are unlocked from Level 15 onwards, and allow you to earn rewards by focusing on certain tasks over the course of several raids. For example, one Trial might task you with dealing damage to Hornets, while another might challenge you to loot Supply Drops.

Trials refresh on a weekly basis, with a new week bringing five new Trials. Each Trial can offer up to three rewards after passing certain score milestones, and it’s possible to receive very high level loot from these reward crates - including Blueprints. So if you want to unlock as many Blueprints as possible, you should make a point of completing as many Trials as possible each week.

Best Blueprint farming locations

The very best way to get Blueprints is to frequent specific areas of the maps which combine high-tier loot pools with the right types of containers to search. Here are my recommendations for where to find Blueprints on every map, so you can always keep the search going for new crafting recipes to unlock.

Image credit:Rock Paper Shotgun/Embark Studios

Dam Battlegrounds

The best places to farm Blueprints on Dam Battlegrounds are the Control Tower, Power Generation Complex, Ruby Residence, and Pale Apartments . The first two regions, despite only being marked on the map as mid-tier loot, contain a phenomenal number of containers to loot. The Control Tower can also contain a couple of high-tier Security Lockers - though of course, you’ll need to have unlocked the Security Breach skill at the end of the Survival tree.

There’s also a lot of reporting amongst the playerbase that the Residential areas in the top-left of the map - Pale Apartments and Ruby Residence - give you a comparatively strong chance of finding Blueprints. Considering their size, there’s a high density of containers to loot in both locations, and they also have the benefit of being fairly out of the way. So you’re more likely to have all the containers to yourself.

Buried City

The best Blueprint farming locations on Buried City are the Santa Maria Houses, Grandioso Apartments, Town Hall, and the various buildings of the New District . Grandioso Apartments has a lower number of containers than the rest, but a high chance of spawning weapon cases - which have good Blueprint drop rates. The others are high-tier loot areas, with plenty of lootable containers - including Security Lockers.

Spaceport

The best places to find Blueprints on Spaceport are the Arrival and Departure Buildings, as well as Control Tower A6 and the Launch Towers . All these areas are labelled as high-value loot regions, and many of them are also very handily connected to one another by the Spaceport wall, which you can use to quickly run from one area to the next. At the tops of most of these buildings you’ll find at least one Security Locker, so this is an excellent farming route for players looking to find Blueprints.

The downside to looting Blueprints on Spaceport is that all these areas are hotly contested, particularly in Duos and Squads. You’ll need to be very focused and fast in order to complete the full farming route.

Image credit:Rock Paper Shotgun/Embark Studios

Blue Gate

Blue Gate tends to have a good chance of dropping Blueprints, potentially because it generally has a high number of containers which can hold lots of items; so there’s a higher chance of a Blueprint spawning in each container. In my experience, the best Blueprint farming spots on Blue Gate are Pilgrim’s Peak, Raider’s Refuge, the Ancient Fort, and the Underground Complex beneath the Warehouse .

All of these areas contain a wealth of containers to loot. Raider’s Refuge has less to loot, but the majority of the containers in and around the Refuge are raider containers, which have a high chance of containing Blueprints - particularly during major events.

Stella Montis

On the whole, Stella Montis seems to have a very low drop rate for Blueprints (though a high chance of dropping other high-tier loot). If you do want to try farming Blueprints on this map, the best places to find Blueprints in Stella Montis are Medical Research, Assembly Workshop, and the Business Center . These areas have the highest density of containers to loot on the map.

In addition to this, the Western Tunnel has a few different Security Lockers to loot, so while there’s very little to loot elsewhere in this area of the map, it’s worth hitting those Security Lockers if you spawn there at the start of a match.

That wraps up this primer on how to get all the Blueprints in Arc Raiders as quickly as possible. With the Expedition system constantly resetting a large number of players’ Blueprints, it’s more important than ever to have the most up-to-date information on where to find all these Blueprints.

While you’re here, be sure to check out our Arc Raiders best guns tier list , as well as our primers on the best skills to unlock and all the different Field Depot locations on every map.

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ARC Raiders

PS5 , Xbox Series X/S , PC

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