"Harassment, abuse, or mistreatment of any kind in the workplace is unacceptable and must never be tolerated," the Entertainment Software Association told GamesIndustry.biz today, joining Nintendo, Sony, and Xbox in the chorus of voices condemning the allegations consuming Activision Blizzard, but stopping short of directly calling out the publisher itself.
The ESA's response comes just a day after reports that Nintendo CEO Doug Bowser circulated an internal memo calling the harassment allegations "distressing and disturbing." In that same message, Bower said that Nintendo has been working with the ESA since last week to "strengthen its stance on harassment and abuse in the workplace."
The ESA did not specifically name Activision Blizzard in its statement, choosing instead to say that when "allegations arise, people impacted need to have their voices heard." The ESA went on to to say that any allegation "needs to be acknowledged, thoroughly investigated, and addressed with meaningful consequences."
"The vitality of our industry requires that everyone in the workplace – and in our — feels valued and respected. As an industry association, the ESA convenes its member companies to create dialogue and shape actions to ensure that these beliefs are realized," the ESA statement said.
The ESA is a lobbying group in which both Nintendo and Activision Blizzard are members. In a separate message to IGN, a Nintendo representative confirmed Bowser's statements, but did not offer further comment.
The Activision Blizzard controversy recently flared up again following a damning report by the Wall Street Journal alleging that CEO Bobby Kotick was fully aware of the company's culture of harassment, and personally intervened to block the removal of a high-level employee. Kotick remains at Activision Blizzard, but has said that he will step down if its problems weren't fixed "with speed." In the meantime, more than 1000 Activision Blizzard employees have signed a petition calling for Kotick's removal.
You can read our full timeline of the allegations here.
Kat Bailey is a Senior News Editor at IGN