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[Ivan Amiibo]

And how is this not offending fans? You don't tell your customers they are idiots no matter how daft they can be.

He didnt call them idiots directly, he was implying it using humorous voices. Companies constantly call people idiots by implying it via pointing out their customers' collective misunderstandings.

Unfortunately for him, the idiots have zero humility and take their own video game opinions super seriously, because they're idiots.

 

[magnetic]

This is what "pranger" means in German:

The pranger is a German physical punishment device related to the stocks and the pillory. The Middle Low German word means "something that pinches badly". The pranger chained the victim's neck to a pair of leg restraints fastened around the ankles.

How ironically fitting.

I feel bad for the guy.

He didnt call them idiots directly, he was implying it using humorous voices. Companies constantly call people idiots by implying it via pointing out their customers' collective misunderstandings.

Unfortunately for him, the idiots have zero humility and take their own video game opinions super seriously, because they're idiots.

Internet users these days seem to be getting less and less able to take a little jab and directly fly off the handle. Everything is an outrage.

 

[Ivan 3414]

I feel bad for the guy, but hopefully it doesn't silent anyone else from mocking irrational gamers.

It will. And it should, if people are going to lose their jobs over this.

 

[Archaix]

i know you are kidding
but this is the sad truth of the current state of media we are in.

People really need some morals.. these days

There's absolutely no moral or ethical ground for them to take the podcast down, even if somebody's requested it (and I don't know that anybody has). If you want to consider them journalists, the ethical guideline would compel them to leave it up because it's now more newsworthy.

 

[vainglorious]

After reading his Facebook posting, Fuck Nintendo.

That's almost to a level of Disney like control over their employees and what they say and can't say in a public space. I never once thought Chris Pranger was speaking for Nintendo; I only thought he was offering his opinion on their practices. Was his judgment correct in doing the podcast? No, far from it.

Yet he gets fired? Did he once break NDA and talk about games/projects that aren't even out?

If this is the case, Nintendo really is no different than Konami (except with deeper pockets).

Konami comparisons? Ohhh boy.

 

[Nyoro SF]

Next time somebody complains about the lack of transparency and candidness from game companies, just hold up a mirror and point them to this thread.

It's all about delivery, timing, and setting too you know.
Chris brought up the subject and chose to insult people of his own will on a public podcast. He wasn't provoked or led in to it.

That's totally different than say what XSEED does with their candid talking to the fans. They choose their setting and they know when there is good timing to deliver a response to fan questions or thoughts.

 

[Give War A Chance]

That Facebook post is so saddening and one of my greatest fears in life. I feel so bad for him. I wish they could have found some way to suspend him or something. This just feels awful, and I'm not even Chris.

I really hope he gets to continue in the industry, but also that he has learned what can and can't be said, even if he (and I as well) don't agree with how little you can say and the content of what you can say.

Damn. This sucks.

 

[GG-Duo]

I can't believe that some in this thread are acting like the Adam Orth situation is even on the same planet as this one.

He didnt call them idiots directly, he was implying it using humorous voices. Companies constantly call people idiots by implying it via pointing out their customers' collective misunderstandings.

Unfortunately for him, the idiots have zero humility and take their own video game opinions super seriously, because they're idiots.

Exactly.

 

[Verger]

From the other thread:

It got spin so bad in Japan
very very bad spin

http://blog.esuteru.com/archives/8288093.html

and I known it gotta be big deal there (at nintendo)

but as big as firing someone is very sad

Yikes, if it was getting negative buzz in Japan, then it's no wonder he got fired

But yeah, he should have exercised better judgement about giving an interview without being authorized. That said I don't think there was anything wrong at all with what he said.

 

[TheBaronOfNA]

I didn't agree with him but I think is really harsh to fire him for it. If anything I appreciate Nintendo being more honest about their decisions.

 

[Pikma]

Congrats everyone. As shitty as this is of Nintendo, it's not the first time it's happened and when people started to give it as much coverage as it got it was pretty clear it wasn't going to end well.

 

[EloquentM]

Holy shit. With the things he was saying I had assumed he was a FORMER employee. This termination makes complete sense.

 

[Dremark]

Revealing the inner workings and decision making processes isn't usually a good thing unless you're someone high up.

Reggie wouldn't have been fired for this, obviously.

I'm pretty sure he was fired for being insulting to the fanbase, not for discussing localization. If Reggie had done the same I think he would have been fired too to be completely honest.

 

[GwyndolinCinder]

He probably should of predicted something would happen, he's representing Nintendo whenever he speaks publicly.

 

[Vena]

This probably was NoJ/NCL and not NoA, because this blew up in Japan:

http://www.neogaf.com/forum/showpost.php?p=175288623&postcount=815
http://blog.esuteru.com/archives/8288093.html

 

[Deleted member 47027]

After reading his Facebook posting, Fuck Nintendo.

That's almost to a level of Disney like control over their employees and what they say and can't say in a public space. I never once thought Chris Pranger was speaking for Nintendo; I only thought he was offering his opinion on their practices. Was his judgment correct in doing the podcast? No, far from it.

Yet he gets fired? Did he once break NDA and talk about games/projects that aren't even out?

If this is the case, Nintendo really is no different than Konami (except with deeper pockets).

You don't think Nintendo should control the message they put out? Really? They shouldn't control what someone representing their company is putting out? Chris Pranger absolutely WAS speaking for Nintendo, no matter what he said. This is what he did.

 

[antitrop]

That Facebook post is crushing.

 

[KingBroly]

The secrecy around Nintendo is toxic, here's another proof.

It's why seeing Capcom talk about REmake 2 as a prototype feels refreshing. The videogaming industry needs to stop being so secret, Kickstarter development and other projets (like Binding of Isaac: Afterbirth) show that the community can (and should) be involved.

Hopefully this guy finds work soon. I'd hate to have $100k (I'm at around $35k) in student loans without a job (and he has a son, a house, etc.).

Come on, man. REmake 2 was a thing before they even discussed it. It was marketing. Pure and simple. This wasn't.

 

[LeleSocho]

This makes look Nintendo even worse, they should fire the guy who fired this guy.

 

[Dynasty8]

What I find very sad is the tweet he has from a couple days ago before he was fired...about his son just starting to walk. Providing for a family while getting fired is tough, but he'll make it. Hopefully he gets picked up by Sony or Microsoft if possible.

 

[Oppo]

Nintendo fires insanely loyal Nintendo employee for defending Nintendo against other insanely loyal Nintendo fans

fucking amazing. it is his fault but they shouldnt have fired him. makes him look foolish but it also makes Nintendo look like enormous shitheads, so well done guys, PR disaster amplified rather than nullified. what muppets.

 

[gogogow]

Dan Adelman had a much higher position than him and got into trouble for a tweet. Why would this guy think it was a good idea to do a 1+ hour long podcast?

 

[Briarios]

His public contrition is hitting all the right notes, and the pain of this firing will pretty much ensure he won't do anything like the podcast again ... So, if I was Sony or Microsoft, I'd give him a call ... His experience with the success of Treehouse would be very valuable.

 

[atbigelow]

Man, I liked that guy too.

He definitely talked too much business for what Nintendo likes to preach. He knows he did it to himself and that's some powerful emotion there.

I really hope he gets hired somewhere soon. You can feel how strong his passion for work is.

 

[freethoughtbubble]

That fb post

I really feel for this guy. Seems like he truly lost his dream job. Stupid, mean-spirited decision on NOA's part. They just come off looking completely out of touch and hard hearted. So the guy was on a podcast and gave non-canned answers. Many folks appreciated the candid look into the Treehouse and hoped that it was a sign of things to come. Of course it wasn't.

Anyway, I wish him and his family the best of luck going forward.

 

[Gleethor]

I had a feeling that this came with pressure from NCL.

 

[TrueBlue]

After reading his Facebook posting, Fuck Nintendo.

That's almost to a level of Disney like control over their employees and what they say and can't say in a public space. I never once thought Chris Pranger was speaking for Nintendo; I only thought he was offering his opinion on their practices. Was his judgment correct in doing the podcast? No, far from it.

Yet he gets fired? Did he once break NDA and talk about games/projects that aren't even out?

If this is the case, Nintendo really is no different than Konami (except with deeper pockets).

It's generally not a good idea to spout stuff about your employer on social media and the internet as a whole, regardless of their size. I work for a pub chain in England, and if they caught me saying anything untoward, I'd be kicked out of the door.

That said, this is extremely unfortunate for the guy. Hard not to feel sorry for him.

 

[Spukc]

Well a lot of this boils down to people that want to drop information like Chris did need to do so with actual journalists - ones that will honor anonymity, and place value on what they say, and have that moral code that real journalists do - not enthusiast press. Yet we have VERY few of these who are interested in integrity of what journalism actually is.

totally agree man this has to change i can't even understand people defending the guys from the podcast.
and what sickens me even more is that they get more views by leeching of this poor dude.

oh well it's safe to assume that when the industry ages we will have more morals

 

[Deleted member 47027]

Nintendo fires insanely loyal Nintendo employee for defending Nintendo against other insanely loyal Nintendo fans

fucking amazing. it is his fault but they shouldnt have fired him. makes him look foolish but it also makes Nintendo look like enormous shitheads, so well done guys, PR disaster amplified rather than nullified. what muppets.

Just because you're loyal doesn't make you a good fit for the job. His next job should keep him from sensitive information.

 

[diablos991]

That Facebook post is so saddening and one of my greatest fears in life. I feel so bad for him. I wish they could have found some way to suspend him or something. This just feels awful, and I'm not even Chris.

I really hope he gets to continue in the industry, but also that he has learned what can and can't be said, even if he (and I as well) don't agree with how little you can say and the content of what you can say.

Damn. This sucks.

Just take this as a lesson and carefully follow policy when you land your dream job. Use that job for personal fulfillment and don't get the itch to go parading around podcasts for no real gain.

 

[Stone Ocean]

He didnt call them idiots directly, he was implying it using humorous voices. Companies constantly call people idiots by implying it via pointing out their customers' collective misunderstandings.

Unfortunately for him, the idiots have zero humility and take their own video game opinions super seriously, because they're idiots.

I'm not saying I disagree with his opinions. Fuck I work at retail, 90% of my clientelle is made up of people that make me question how long will it take till we live in Idiocracy's world.

But I don't openly say this to their faces, sarcastic tone or not. I feel sorry for the guy and his family and I think Nintendo was too harsh but he dug his own grave and it's their right to act as they see fit.

 

[LQX]

Puts Shane Bettenheusen's absence from podcasts into perspective.

Sorry to quote you so far in the thread, but how? I really liked Shane but I sort of remember him being a MAJOR Sony loyalist/apologist.

 

[Gamer @ Heart]

Dan Adelman had a much higher position than him and got into trouble with a tweet. Why would this guy think it was a good idea to do a 1+ hour long podcast?

Dan was with Nintendo to early. They needed him now, not 4 years ago.

 

[Conan-san]

His public contrition is hitting all the right notes, and the pain of this firing will pretty much ensure he won't do anything like the podcast again ... So, if I was Sony or Microsoft, I'd give him a call ... His experience with the success of Treehouse would be very valuable.

Wouldn't NDAs nuke that idea from orbit?

 

[The Cartographer]

This makes look Nintendo even worse, they should fire the guy who fired this guy.

Or they could just fire everyone in the company!

Get real.

 

[JMDSO]

Just take this as a lesson and carefully follow policy when you land your dream job. Use that job for personal fulfillment and don't get the itch to go parading around podcasts for no real gain.

For all we know he signed something as part of his hiring that specifically said that these types of things SHOULDN'T happen.

 

[vainglorious]

From the other thread:

Yikes, if it was getting negative buzz in Japan, then it's no wonder he got fired

But yeah, he should have exercised better judgement about giving an interview without being authorized. That said I don't think there was anything wrong at all with what he said.

Oh nooo Captain Rainbow did him in.

Damn that's awful. Of all things.

 

[Recall]

So Nintendo is basically the same as Konami

 

[Otakumegane]

He displayed a company's inner workings.

Not really defensible but damn it sucks he lost his job.

 

[Apdiddy]

Konami comparisons? Ohhh boy.

No, it's not the same. I don't think Nintendo would have new employees wait two weeks or more before they get computer access so they can do their jobs.

It's just more the mentality I'm referencing by comparing Konami and Nintendo. I don't think Nintendo will turn their IPs into gambling machines or anything crazy like that.

It's not all 'happiness' and 'dream jobs' in the Mushroom Kingdom. It seems pretty cut-throat. And breaking NDAs as a non-PR person and talking badly about your current employer isn't a great idea.

At the end of the day, what Chris Pranger did he brought upon himself as he admits.

 

[balladofwindfishes]

Nintendo fires insanely loyal Nintendo employee for defending Nintendo against other insanely loyal Nintendo fans

...and also portraying one of Nintendo's most beloved and iconic developers as a crazy diva of a game producer, and somewhat of a spoiled child (Sakurai). And also that the Fox voice acting in Smash sucks, they know it sucks and they feel bad.

It wasn't all positive, good stuff, he was saying.

For all we know he signed something as part of his hiring that specifically said that these types of things SHOULDN'T happen.

It's Treehouse. I don't even think they're allowed to discuss stuff with their spouses lol

 

[Ushojax]

Nintendo fires insanely loyal Nintendo employee for defending Nintendo against other insanely loyal Nintendo fans

fucking amazing. it is his fault but they shouldnt have fired him. makes him look foolish but it also makes Nintendo look like enormous shitheads, so well done guys, PR disaster amplified rather than nullified. what muppets.

No, Nintendo fired a painfully naive employee who revealed internal information without the consent of his superiors. Any company would fire someone for doing that.

 

[EloquentM]

Just because you're loyal doesn't make you a good fit for the job. His next job should keep him from sensitive information.

It's not like people don't sign these kinds of contracts you know oh say the day they're hired. Really, don't understand the surprise here.

 

[KHlover]

Interview/Podcast without getting clearance beforehand? Be outraged at Nintendo all you want but that stunt would have gotten him fired in just about ANY big company. Making unapproved statements is a big no-no.

 

[MiguelItUp]

This is so incredibly sad it's surreal. Personally I don't take any offense to anything he said or the way he presented it. If anything I appreciated his honesty, or just his ability to be open about it so to speak. There's no reason he should've been fired over that, none at all. If anything he should've been warned or whatever, but that's just my opinion. Also, in regards to the student debt thing it's incredibly easy to get that far into debt unfortunately. It's an issue with education in the US, we all want to better ourselves and our future, but the cost is absolutely astounding. I mean, I have an associate's and that alone was about 21k after everything was said and done. Me owing just 18K+ still makes me sick, I can't imagine sitting under 100K, ugh. Sending good vibes to this guy, I hope he gets back on his feet quickly.

That Facebook post was one of the saddest things I've read in a long time. Just a heads up.

EDIT: I will add when it comes to NDAs and information that shouldn't leave the company walls, I understand why he was fired. However it still is a shame, and stuff like this never gets easier. If anything this should remind everyone how severe NDAs and internal information can be, and why you're told to keep it to yourself.

 

[Vena]

Didn't he mention in that podcast that NOA was loosening up policies so the Treehouse guys could be more open about their work (or am I thinking of someone else?). Either way, guess we can say goodbye to that.

The localization comments weren't entirely smart but he did offer a fascinating insight into the Treehouse. That Facebook post was brutal; what a shame he lost his dream job.

I would hope this has no affect on this, it'd be sad to see Bill and the Treehouse folk disappear from twitter and the fandom over this.

 

[GG-Duo]

I'm pretty sure he was fired for being insulting to the fanbase, not for discussing localization. If Reggie had done the same I think he would have been fired too to be completely honest.

I'm pretty sure being insulting to the fanbase is not the big issue here.

And his comments weren't insulting.

No, Nintendo fired a painfully naive employee who revealed internal information without the consent of his superiors. Any company would fire someone for doing that.

Well said.

 

[Wyndstryker]

Too many people in this thread has no clue how nda contracts work.

If Nintendo didnt fire him I'd be surprised

 

[JoeM86]

Such a shame, but it does happen in all companies when you do something like this. Hope he can land on his feet.

So Nintendo is basically the same as Konami

Come on. Every company would fire their staff if they publically (even inadvertently here) insulted their customers and revealed inner workings of the company without authorisation.

 

[Spirit of Jazz]

The people here blaming GAF is pretty damned funny.

He violated a policy and made fun of decisions people way above him made. GAF didn't force him to appear on the podcast and definitely didn't force him to say what he said.

I agree it seems harsh and it sucks for him. But he is right when he says he did this to himself.

But he did nothing wrong because I like to insult people with nasally nerd voices and pretend it's not offensive too...

I feel sorry for the situation that he's ended up in, but he really messed up.