Support NeoGAF

Lime · Mar 4, 2015

Great article by Ian Williams. 10 years after the EA spouse scandal, the games industry is still exploiting its workforce and burning through talent and creativity. It's a good, long and thorough read which I suggest to read in full. I took out some small quotes from it below:

But, a decade after EA Spouse, it’s questionable how much has actually changed. Statistically, things appear better. In 2004, the IGDA – the only large organisation advocating for labour rights in the US games industry – started a regular “quality of life” survey in response to the EA controversy, polling staff on working standards and practices. Its latest numbers from the 2014 report show a decline in intensity.

“Over the last decade, the average amount of crunch time worked has dropped, with 19% of 2014 respondents indicating they haven’t crunched in at least two years compared to 2.4% of 2004 respondents,” says Kate Edwards, the IGDA’s executive director. “Also, 38% of the 2014 respondents reported typical crunch times of 50-69 hours per week compared to 35% of 2004 respondents reporting crunch times of 65-80 hours per week.”

But the take from Edwards is of the glass-half-full variety. Despite the drop in intensity, the industry baseline is that only one-fifth of industry workers don’t crunch at all, and nearly two-fifths still crunch more than 50 hours a week. Furthermore, current and former industry workers interviewed for this feature revealed deep dissatisfaction with crunch and a sense that, even if it’s not as acute as it was a decade ago, it’s still worse than they can tolerate.

On how consumer expectations, among other things, drives crunch

The pressure comes from consumer expectations, as well. With development budgets ballooning, failure can be catastrophic, so the temptation can be to pack in more features – more cool stuff – to appease the demanding audience. This leads to the twin spectres of crunch and layoffs, as studios grow to accommodate ambitious ideas, then downsize or collapse when the resulting game fails to make a profit.

“Generally I feel crunch most often results from the conflict between manpower, consumer expectations and quality of the product,” says an engineer currently working at an EA studio. “It’s the classic two-out-of-three question: you can’t have good, fast and cheap; pick two. There are certain levels of consumer expectations and quality you can’t sacrifice, so manpower gets hit, both in temp workers and in overtime across the board.”

On how crunch harms the project:

Crunch in this sort of working environment becomes a self-perpetuating problem. In Fred Brooks’s book on software management, The Mythical Man-Month, he posits that the more people added to a software project, the less efficient the whole team works, which then extends the project further. Recent data collected by the Games Outcomes Project and shared on the website Gamasutra backs up the view that crunch compounds these problems rather than solving them. The multipart study examined how work practices affect game review scores. In conclusion? “Crunch does not in any way improve game project outcomes and cannot help a troubled game project work its way out of trouble.” And yet the industry still defaults to crunch when a deadline looms.

The acceptance of crunch

“There is a survey question – in the DSS IGDA survey 2014 – that asks respondents to agree or disagree with the statement, ‘Crunch is a necessary part of game development’,” says Legault. “If we look at the responses to that question for people who identified as students and people who did not, we see a quite striking difference. The majority of non-students (55%) disagreed or strongly disagreed to the statement that crunch is necessary. Among student respondents, 26% agreed or strongly agreed that crunch is necessary. Only 38% disagreed or strongly disagreed and over a third (36%) could neither agree nor disagree. There is a higher level of initial acceptance to the notion of crunch.

“Arguably this is what the industry relies upon – the ability to continually take on young and willing new entrants, and to replace those who burn out or otherwise leave for something else. It is fair to say that students and young new entrants to the industry do see crunch and unpaid overtime as price of admission – as ‘the way it is in games’.”

The industry insidiously aligns crunch with passion. It’s a message that is readily apparent in any number of job postings or recruitment videos: if you love games you need to put in the hours. But this combination of passion and expectation can create intolerable pressure. “It’s absurd. It burns out our most passionate workers,” says Tanya Short, head of Kitfox Games. “It makes them believe in the martyr syndrome and pushes out all of those voices that literally cannot afford to give away their personal lives.”

On the role of IGDA

The Canadian researchers were more sympathetic to the IGDA’s predicament than Kazemi or the workers spoken to for this feature. “In its current form, the IGDA is funded by studios and can’t in any way play the role of a union, and couldn’t be expected to do so,” says Legault. “Their primary focus is to promote the industry and support individual workers through training, networking and professional development initiatives. The IGDA relies on volunteers and the activity of its members to join Special Interest Groups on particular topics… The IGDA does not have the resources, or the independence from studio executives, to act like a union.”

On how some developers would like IGDA to function more like a union:

Right now, this change in management approach is reliant on the entrepreneurial spirit of a few forward-thinking studio heads. To negotiate an industrywide change in labour conditions, workers are increasingly looking to collective organisation. The IGDA’s 2014 survey reveals 56% of respondents want unionisation: whether or not the organisation wishes to serve in that role, its constituency is clearly ready for more direct action.

More at the link: http://www.theguardian.com/technolo...ustry-exploiting-workforce-ea-spouse-software

Shaanyboi · Mar 4, 2015

Shit like this won't stop. New talent will always be funneled in, ready to be wringed for all they're worth, only to be tossed aside or to leave out of their own surrender, and the cycle will only continue.

Game development is a poisonous cesspool of exploitation.

The Technomancer · Mar 4, 2015

Was anyone saying they had? I was under the impression that the AAA scene was still hell

BrokenSymmetry · Mar 4, 2015

the ability to continually take on young and willing new entrants, and to replace those who burn out or otherwise leave for something else

This is the main issue here. I work in accounting software, we offer ridiculously high salaries and strict 36-hour workweeks, and it's impossible to find qualified software engineers. "Burned out" game developers are more than welcome!

Lime · Mar 4, 2015

The Technomancer said:
Was anyone saying they had? I was under the impression that the AAA scene was still hell

It's a rhetorical question and Williams looks back on how it has already been 10 years since the EA spouse thing to see how many measures have been taken to change that.

AAA scene is not the only one suffering from crunch. Some indies experience it as well, but they are more flexible and lean in their management and scope (obviously).

BrokenSymmetry said:
This is the main issue here. I work in accounting software, we offer ridiculously high salaries and strict 36-hour workweeks, and it's impossible to find qualified software engineers. "Burned out" game developers are more than welcome!

You should put up a hiring booth at GDC :lol

The Technomancer · Mar 4, 2015

With development budgets ballooning, failure can be catastrophic, so the temptation can be to pack in more features more cool stuff to appease the demanding audience

Wait, is this really how some studios are thinking? Christ, thinking that features drive sales is one of the basic product development pitfalls

Aureon · Mar 4, 2015

Unionize, g'dammit.

JNT · Mar 4, 2015

It is worth noting that this exploitation is a reaction to consumer demand. While it's up to the developers to stop this from escalating any further we aren't exactly helping the situation. Unionizing is looking like a good idea at this point.

The Technomancer · Mar 4, 2015

JNT said:
It is worth noting that this exploitation is a reaction to consumer demand. While it's up to the developers to stop this from escalating any further we aren't exactly helping the situation.

I mean, sort of? The industry has sort of laid its own bed by cultivating a frothing mass of hype-demanding consumers.

PumpkinSpice · Mar 4, 2015

Aureon said:
Unionize, g'dammit.

It would probably be the only thing that will fix this in the long run, but the "AAA"(AAAAAAA) industry is too broken for this to work now, as it's entirely built around cycles of layoffs and "too big to fail" games at this point.

HK-47 · Mar 4, 2015

The Technomancer said:
Wait, is this really how some studios are thinking? Christ, thinking that features drive sales is one of the basic product development pitfalls

Well its also an easy way to foist the blame on some other group for making bad moves and burning up talent on crunch. This is the "gotta have a tacked on mp mode" mentality.

Red Arremer · Mar 4, 2015

Shaanyboi said:
Employment is a poisonous cesspool of exploitation.

FTFY.

It isn't just the games industry, it's basically every industry. It's the same in other office jobs, or retail, or production. If you're not one of the suits, you will, inevitably, get exploited. Of course there's exceptions, but the inherent expectation of the management board and whatnot will always be that their workers will produce the maximum possible results with the minimum time put in and wage they dare to pay.
And in this wave of unemployment and poverty, most everybody will take what they can get.

HK-47 · Mar 4, 2015

Red Arremer said:
FTFY.

It isn't just the games industry, it's basically every industry. It's the same in other office jobs, or retail, or production. If you're not one of the suits, you will, inevitably, get exploited. Of course there's exceptions, but the inherent expectation the management board and whatnot will always be that their workers will produce the maximum possible results with the minimum time put in and wage they dare to pay.

Umm no. From what I understand, other areas of tech and software are not like the game industry in terms of burn out and pay much better for comparable positions. Its because the gaming industry is an unholy combination of the tech and entertainment industries.

Sou · Mar 4, 2015

The Technomancer said:
Wait, is this really how some studios are thinking? Christ, thinking that features drive sales is one of the basic product development pitfalls

Yes, that is exactly how the thinking goes at times.
The worst is when some of these people try to legitimize exploitation by touting self sacrifice as a virtue, and guilt trips people into thinking that they aren't "real" game developers unless they go through the grind and "pay their dues."

Red Arremer · Mar 4, 2015

HK-47 said:
Umm no. From what I understand, other areas of tech and software are not like the game industry in terms of burn out and pay much better for comparable positions. Its because the gaming industry is an unholy combination of the tech and entertainment industries.

Having been in retail for most of my working time, these conditions are exactly what I'm used to. Long hours and coming in for colleagues who are sick/vacating is fully expected - and not based on the employee's goodwill. Rarely will you get paid for your overtime, most of the contracts over here require you to take the compensatory overtime pool, which you will never be able to take off and which expires after a few years (not sure how many from the top of my head).
And if you're not willing to bend to your employer's demands, they'll hire somebody who's younger/cheaper/better looking instead.

Of course there's fields of work where this does not apply (I know for a fact this is the case in the scientific field), but the reality is that most employers will have the above attitude, and if you don't comply, you'll get the boot.

JNT · Mar 4, 2015

The Technomancer said:
I mean, sort of? The industry has sort of laid its own bed by cultivating a frothing mass of hype-demanding consumers.

That could be true as well, and that would come as a direct result of individual studios trying to stand out from the competition by one-upping them. Then there is an aspect of the consumer and industry egging each other on in terms of expectations and delivery as well. Regardless of how I interpret the situation I see our current state of workforce exploitation as the inevitable outcome.

I'm traditionally not a strong proponent of unionization, especially not for industries that seem to work well without it, but this genuinely seems like it would be a net benefit for everyone involved in this case.

The Technomancer · Mar 4, 2015

Red Arremer said:
Having been in retail for most of my working time, these conditions are exactly what I'm used to. Long hours and coming in for colleagues who are sick/vacating is fully expected - and not based on the employee's goodwill. Rarely will you get paid for your overtime, most of the contracts over here require you to take the compensatory overtime pool, which you will never be able to take off and which expires after a few years (not sure how many from the top of my head).
And if you're not willing to bend to your employer's demands, they'll hire somebody who's younger/cheaper/better looking instead.

Of course there's fields of work where this does not apply (I know for a fact this is the case in the scientific field), but the reality is that most employers will have the above attitude, and if you don't comply, you'll get the boot.

That describes retail, but it isn't particularly the norm in most skilled corporate positions. There's a reason many of us consider retail standards shameful compared to the rest of working conditions also

Dunan · Mar 4, 2015

HK-47 said:
Umm no. From what I understand, other areas of tech and software are not like the game industry in terms of burn out and pay much better for comparable positions. Its because the gaming industry is an unholy combination of the tech and entertainment industries.

Come work for a Japanese corporation and you will see that the previous poster speaks the absolute truth.

HK-47 · Mar 4, 2015

Dunan said:
Come work for a Japanese corporation and you will see that the previous poster speaks the absolute truth.

Well I was talking more about western tech companies, not Japan's work culture.

Candescence · Mar 4, 2015

Gaming has to content with the unholy nightmare of being a merger of both an entertainment industry and a tech industry that often requires some serious technical engineering on the software side, and like the movie industry, costs are ballooning out of control to the point where a single project can sink a studio even if it sells decently.

Shamus Young pretty much went on a rant on the Escapist, basically begging people who want to become developers to avoid getting into the AAA industry, because it's not remotely worth it. Quite frankly, I agree. If you want to make a name for yourself in the industry rather than a mere cog in a machine, indies are where it's at these days.

Fantasmo · Mar 4, 2015

This is happening in tons of industries not even close to just gaming. Massive companies showing record profits and workers losing their livelihoods because they can't operate at burnout speeds for months or years on end.

The ones who are trying to keep their heads above water I can understand, but companies like EA?

Someone needs to check them out under a microscope.

Red Arremer · Mar 4, 2015

The Technomancer said:
That describes retail, but it isn't particularly the norm in most skilled corporate positions. There's a reason many of us consider retail standards shameful compared to the rest of working conditions also

It was the same ideology in a logistics company I've worked at for about a year, where I was in the back office.
The only days I was able to take off were Sundays - which was the only day that company was closed - and I often had to work through my lunch break, and an hour or two over my regular time as well.
And I can say the same for many of my friends who work in different fields like insurance, programming, technical design and, ironically, wellness.

Of course a "skilled corporate position", or, as I call them in my initial post, "suit" - that implies you're part of the management chain - will not have to go through this. Even lower management is able to take a lot more liberties than the regular run-of-the-mill employee.

Fantasmo · Mar 4, 2015

HK-47 said:
Umm no. From what I understand, other areas of tech and software are not like the game industry in terms of burn out and pay much better for comparable positions. Its because the gaming industry is an unholy combination of the tech and entertainment industries.

That is an inherent problem, but you're wrong if you think that other industries don't have top earners sucking that hard work and money up and not properly accommodating the ones that actually make the hard work become something special.

Companies like EA hold the stance "well you work for EA, you should be honored to work (burnout) here."

ItsLeebo · Mar 4, 2015

Red Arremer said:
FTFY.

It isn't just the games industry, it's basically every industry. It's the same in other office jobs, or retail, or production. If you're not one of the suits, you will, inevitably, get exploited. Of course there's exceptions, but the inherent expectation of the management board and whatnot will always be that their workers will produce the maximum possible results with the minimum time put in and wage they dare to pay.
And in this wave of unemployment and poverty, most everybody will take what they can get.

Where do you work if you don't mind me prying because this statement is really false and I want to know if you are just talking out of your ass or not.

Like I can't stress enough how terrible software development is in the gaming industry and how much you are asked to give up in terms of your work just to work in a field that is your "dream". I'm talking double/triple the pay with better benefits and more time off and regulated hours (basically no crunch) but I'd like to really hear your argument about how it's the same if you have the experience to show for it.

Longsword · Mar 4, 2015

The Technomancer said:
I mean, sort of? The industry has sort of laid its own bed by cultivating a frothing mass of hype-demanding consumers.

The industry is looking for games selling 8+ million copies to match the raising dev costs. It is very hard to release a game that does not compete with the biggest releases of the year in graphics, MP, amount of content etc.

To simply put, on console every game is on the same starting line as GTA, Skyrim and Assassin's Creed. At least if it wants the sales the publishers are expecting.

There are very few success cases that don't cover these bases, and by a success I mean games that sell sufficient number of copies to make it worthwhile to the publishers.

What we need is several 10-million sellers that did not cost absurd amounts of money. Minecraft was a good start.

entremet · Mar 4, 2015

It's not going away because gamers are insatiable and game development is inherently time consuming. Look how droughts are treated? It's like the sky is falling or something.

th4tguy · Mar 4, 2015

Aureon said:
Unionize, g'dammit.

The industry has tried many times over the years. Every time, it is squished by companies threatening layoffs to those who unionize. The sad fact of the matter is this.

There is an abundance of people wanting to get into the industry. More people then jobs. The higher ups know this and they know that if you can't cut it, they can let you go and higher someone else, generally for cheaper. Until less people want to get into the industry or enough studios pop up that allow for more demand for workers, I don't think this issue will get better.

I would like to add a little footnote that every crunch period I've ever seen was because of mismanagement of deadlines.

Rats Off To Ya · Mar 4, 2015

Game developers need to fucking unionize. I'll gladly accept whatever sacrifices result in the games I play. And if the current business model would be destroyed by hospitable working conditions, then it's not one worth preserving.

Longsword · Mar 4, 2015

RatsOffToYa said:
Game developers need to fucking unionize. I'll gladly accept whatever sacrifices result in the games I play. And if the current business model would be destroyed by hospitable working conditions, then it's not one worth preserving.

We could unionize. Then we'd be kicked out and replaced by graduates. I don't see large publishers budging on this, ever.

Hopefully new breed of companies will emerge that have different morals and break the stranglehold on AAA jobs.

JNT · Mar 4, 2015

Fantasmo said:
Companies like EA hold the stance "well you work for EA, you should be honored to work (burnout) here."

I think it's the opposite. The people looking go get into the industry have an erroneous notion of game development as a glamorous vocation. Big-budget studios have to exploit that fact or be left behind in the competition. And who can blame them? They are working in a business aimed to serve people that can never be satisfied.

More Fun To Compute · Mar 4, 2015

The cause of this is young people without too many goals outside gaming wanting to realise their "dreams" in the industry. Unless that changes the industry will not.

Longsword · Mar 4, 2015

JNT said:
I think it's the opposite. The people looking go get into the industry have an erroneous notion of game development as a glamorous vocation. Big-budget studios have to exploit that fact or be left behind in the competition. And who can blame them? They are working in a business aimed to serve people that can never be satisfied.

Very good angle on this. Once anyone releases new mind-blowing graphics all the other devs have to match them, no matter the cost, or they get crushed in reviews and sales.

ItsLeebo · Mar 4, 2015

More Fun To Compute said:
The cause of this is young people without too many goals outside gaming wanting to realise their "dreams" in the industry. Unless that changes the industry will not.

I applied for a couple programmer jobs in the gaming industry and actually got one offer and that was nice, I was super fucking pumped and I was about to take it until I got an offer from a place that I had interviewed at before the studio and saw that they were willing to pay triple what the game studio was, and actually took the time to explain benefits/pto/overtime for the company while the studio was absolutely silent on any of this.

That's really all it took for me to realize that my "dreams" for working in the industry was nothing more than a fantasy.

KJRS_1993 · Mar 4, 2015

ItsLeebo said:
I applied for a couple programmer jobs in the gaming industry and actually got one offer and that was nice, I was super fucking pumped and I was about to take it until I got an offer from a place that I had interviewed at before the studio and saw that they were willing to pay triple what the game studio was, and actually took the time to explain benefits/pto/overtime for the company while the studio was absolutely silent on any of this.

That's really all it took for me to realize that my "dreams" for working in the industry was nothing more than a fantasy.

For the work you do in games development, you could work just as hard and be just as skilled as a regular programmer and earn so much more money. I was also going to work in games, but the huge increase in pay for the same amount of effort as a programmer is just too big to ignore.

EVH · Mar 4, 2015

Videogames, the most retarded industry ever.

Majority of crap in media.
Majority of crap in jobs market.
Majority of crap in fans.

spared · Mar 4, 2015

I work in Canada and in a completely unrelated industry and it's not any better than the gaming industry.

TheSeks · Mar 4, 2015

spared said:
I work in Canada and in a completely unrelated industry and it's not any better than the gaming industry.

What industry? You can't say that and then not point us in a direction of "just as bad."

WGMBY · Mar 4, 2015

The horror stories I always heard made me not even try to get into Game Development. I took my CS degree and went with a tech infrastructure company instead. We still have crunch time, but it's pretty rare.

Corgi · Mar 4, 2015

mean while I'm on gaf at work waiting for some test scripts to run while making similar pay to your average game dev.

piratepwnsninja · Mar 4, 2015

This is very studio dependent. Oddly, the most crunch I've ever done was probably on the best (worst) game I ever worked on (The Shield - The Game.) Both at Red Storm and here at Volition, they actually place value on having a family and life outside of work. Are there times in which we have to buckle down and work a bit extra? Sure, but I've been doing this over a decade and have never gotten to a burnout point anywhere I've worked.

Brick · Mar 4, 2015

Fantasmo said:
Companies like EA hold the stance "well you work for EA, you should be honored to work (burnout) here."

Having worked for EA in the past, this is a completely accurate statement.

Leaving the industry was one of the best decisions I ever made. I was suddenly making nearly three times as much for the exact same job, with zero crunch, actual benefits, and an atmosphere that wasn't actively hostile.

jackissocool · Mar 4, 2015

No. Are they receiving a wage that is less than the profit they generate? If so, they are being exploited.

Lime · Mar 4, 2015

I feel bad for all the young souls who spend their limited mortal time on this Earth with creating textures for a lamp and bump maps on some gun instead of going home to nurture their social life. All because they love video games that much.

Shame on management and publishers who exploit this.

endtropy · Mar 4, 2015

jackissocool said:
No. Are they receiving a wage that is less than the profit they generate? If so, they are being exploited.

Thats an incredibly limited view of production and capitalism. Workers can only work and receive wages because at some point someone provided working capital. Providing capital has inherent risk, and it won't be provided without return. That return must be made by the differentiation between workers "generated profits" and the wages they receive. This says nothing for the risk that a workers wages will not generate more profit.

I.e. if you made a product that sold for less then the cost to produce it? Should you be paid less? There is absolutely nothing exploitive about receiving wages less then the profit that your labor generates.

Zeouterlimits · Mar 4, 2015

I can only hope unionisation happens.

Every time an industry has unionised, the existing corporations have tried to fight it, it's not a new phenomenon.

Cels · Mar 4, 2015

Who the heck thought it did? Remember the Ryse crunching dinners tweet?

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Betteridge's_law_of_headlines

Prime crotch · Mar 4, 2015

Corgi said:
mean while I'm on gaf at work waiting for some test scripts to run while making similar pay to your average game dev.

That doenst exempts you from OT, hell, where I work it's the norm. You have to say youre sorry for leaving on time lol

kadotsu · Mar 4, 2015

It probably is ten times worse if you work at one of the asset farms.

Shining Sunshine · Mar 4, 2015

Aureon said:
Unionize, g'dammit.

You mean, get all the workers fired?

Cuz unions won't work.

Prime crotch · Mar 4, 2015

Unions won't work in the tech industry, where most people are enablers: "badass, you worked 100 hours?! King of the pit, bruv!"

Support NeoGAF

Crunched: has the games industry really stopped exploiting its workforce?

Member

Banned

card-carrying scientician

Member

Member

card-carrying scientician

Please do not let me serve on a jury. I am actually a crazy person.

Member

card-carrying scientician

Banned

Oh, bitch bitch bitch.

Member

Oh, bitch bitch bitch.

Member

Member

Member

card-carrying scientician

Member

Oh, bitch bitch bitch.

Member

Member

Member

Member

Banned

Member

Member

Member

Banned

Member

Member

Member

Member

Banned

Member

Member

Member

Blinded by the luminous glory that is David Bowie's physical manifestation.

Member

Banned

Member

Member

Member

Member

Neo Member

Member

Member

Banned

Banned

Banned

Banned

Similar threads