Wouldn't giving one guy special treatment just make other employees expect the same treatment? Also, I doubt any PR would come out of a guy not getting fired since you wouldn't see either side talking about it.
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Chris Pranger, Out-Spoken Nintendo Treehouse Localizer, was Fired
- Thread starter Tom Nook Sawyer
- Start date
The Reloader
Member
I'd feel like shit if I was one of the podcast's host.
Septimus Prime
Member
Here is an excerpt from a relatively weak NDA:
I guarantee you Nintendo's NDA is stronger than this, too.
I bolded some parts to make it easier to parse, but this says that in the event of a breach, you are doing irreparable damage to the Disclosing Party, and they can issue an injunction to have you stop what you are doing, as well as pursue monetary reparations.
I guarantee you Nintendo's NDA is stronger than this, too.
They'll also think twice about hiring someone who cries on Facebook after getting fired, stirring their customer into saying "Hey Nintendo, why you gotta be so mean?"
All of his Future Employers know full well that they're going to be his Former Employers sooner or later, and it's not good to know that if you quietly fire him, he's going to make it loud.
Imbarkus
As Sartre noted in his contemplation on Hell in No Exit, the true horror is other members.
In a Technopoly like the U.S., human beings are as expendable and interchangeable as defective parts, true. However I would surmise this to be more a case of discipline being leveraged to make an example in order to prevent similar transgressions from others.
I would hope he could actually find an environment with a more open PR stance, where, after some time, he would come to realize he is actually a better fit.
He's got Dan Adelman's support.
Dude, If they save him. Who gonna save them ? Investor, 3rd party, translate job,... who gonna help them with all of that.
And also. They left him go in silence, they don't make a huge announcement that they fired him because of x y z. In retrospect, if he didn't post on Facebook, and he a nice enough guys, maybe he still can go and work in the video game industry. Right now though, he basically have to find another job in another industry.
NoA's eShop policies and indie initiative changed so much after he left...
Bog
Junior Ace
What is nintendogal.com
I wonder if he should have at least asked his boss if the podcast was ok to publish as it was, he did reveal a LOT of stuff about the company future and his Sakurai anecdotes sound, well, private. He should have at least showed the podcast to his higher ups and said "Hey, I made this thing, but wanted to be sure it was ok to publish."
If they had say no, he would be able to keep his job, if they had say yes, maybe with a few edits or omissions, he could have opened the doors for more Nintendo employees to come out and talk to the public about games.
I feel bad for Chris, his podcast appearance was really interesting, but his actions were naive and if he infringed his contract... then its all on him.
If they had say no, he would be able to keep his job, if they had say yes, maybe with a few edits or omissions, he could have opened the doors for more Nintendo employees to come out and talk to the public about games.
I feel bad for Chris, his podcast appearance was really interesting, but his actions were naive and if he infringed his contract... then its all on him.
Tom Nook Sawyer
Member
Do you have a link? I couldn't find it
Interceptor
Banned
Yep, going puplic again(!) with his facebook post was even worse than the initial podcast.
Xaero Gravity
NEXT LEVEL lame™
Call me a heartless bastard, but I'm finding it hard to feel sympathetic towards a guy who breaches an NDA, pays the price, and then posts about it on both Facebook and Twitter.
D
Deleted member 17706
Unconfirmed Member
Support from a guy who chose to very publicly badmouth Nintendo after leaving the company. Not particularly surprising.
KingHenrik30
Member
That's not heartless. That's living in the real world.
You're not, I'd say at least half the thread agrees (to varying degrees).
It's terrible to be let go from a job, but it's a personal and professional matter, Facebook should not be your first stop after getting the news.
NintendoGal
Member
Well it forwards to another site now for other reasons, but it used to be a Nintendo news site that I own. Started around 2005 or 2006 or something. I don't remember. I got tired of dealing with the run around from GH, so I just closed up shop.
Edit - Sorry, it's just Golin now apparently.
Of course. This is why most things that hit the public are seriously trimmed and shaped.
Hmm. I think most likely, people would say they're bummed publicly, but behind closed doors most people in this position would be very happy about the boost in traffic.
scorcher59
Member
D
Deleted member 17706
Unconfirmed Member
I agree, but at the same time I find it easy to feel sympathetic to a guy who was obviously very passionate about his work and also has a family to support.
He made a mistake and paid for it. I just hope he can learn from it and move forward without too much damage done to his livelihood.
Funkyhamster
Member
I feel bad for the dude and sympathize with him worrying about his livelihood... But, like, how do you work at NOA and not realize speaking out without permission like that will end badly? Just from following news, it's obvious to me that NOA highly values being a tight ship.
Not by being candid if it makes the entity you represent look bad in any perceivable way. They're afraid with reason. They should be.
pixel monkey
Banned
Having only listened to the first ten minutes of the podcast previously, I just went back and listened to the whole thing... and while Pranger's comments about Sakurai being a workaholic are certainly a bit much, particularly where Japanese culture is concerned, it's just a painful listen.
At one point, they joke about his newfound "job security" since he's doing a couple voices in Starfox Zero. Pranger even mentions how NoA's media policy had recently been relaxed a bit, hence his ease in discussing so much perhaps?
Whatever the case may be with the policy, the guy's love for his work, and for Nintendo just comes through in every story, every game he talks about.
This is unfortunate... all around.
At one point, they joke about his newfound "job security" since he's doing a couple voices in Starfox Zero. Pranger even mentions how NoA's media policy had recently been relaxed a bit, hence his ease in discussing so much perhaps?
Whatever the case may be with the policy, the guy's love for his work, and for Nintendo just comes through in every story, every game he talks about.
This is unfortunate... all around.
I mean, bad PR and presentation to the public can sink a company. There's a reason companies are protective of their images and, unlike you or me who are individuals, a company has many employees and has to set down rules to try and be "safe" for its own sake as well the sake of all its employees.
Treehouse guys are, in general, candid people in their appearances (go watch them when they really get heated in their games, lol) or with their own lives/twitters, but they won't talk about the company or competition in a negative (or even, really, positive) light on their own time. Treehouse runs YouTube at this point for Nintendo of America (and have roles tied closely to NCL), you'd think someone working at Treehouse would be aware of what their position is even from a simple "face of the company to many people" position. That's not even getting into NDA issues.
Heck, how many other big shots in AAA-gaming do you know of who go to local smash events to play with the players?
Speaking strictly for the corporate world, and AAA gaming is definitely a part of the corporate world:
You will learn to "play the game" or you won't advance. You will learn to assimilate, you will learn to fall in line, or you won't be successful.
The employees who are "candid" are disliked because they act like they are some great truth-teller, like most of the other people in the room doesn't know the exact same fucking thing but have the sense to keep their mouths shut (at least around the bosses).
Alternatively, you can try to run your own business or not work in a corporate environment.
Back on topic, there is no way this guy didn't know about the NDA. It's a huge form you have to sign (typically on every page) that is separate from all of your other HR paperwork.
Every AAA game company has another rider specifically for social media policies, which podcasts fall under. Game devs at AAA companies have to undergo media training to even be allowed to post on the official game forums. Rule #1 is pretty much always "DO NOT GO OFF SCRIPT. DO NOT BADMOUTH THE COMPANY, OUR PARTNERS, OR PLAYERS." Yes, often times in all caps.
entremet
Member
Yep. I still like Edelman, but not really surprising.
pixel monkey
Banned
Have you listened to the podcast? Because while he may have been a bit more candid than NoA may have liked, he certainly doesn't "badmouth" anyone.
I mean, we got a lot of weird mixed messages from his departure. First it was about how backwards NoA's indie stuff was and the state of the eShop (which were true, to a comical degree even) and he did a lot to turn it around but the system was still in a big rut, but then when Baker took over... we got absolutely unprecedented moves at a breakneck speed from NoA on Indies (Nindies, Humble Bundle) and the eShop is a lot more active and promoting of the developers.
So...
balladofwindfishes
Member
Eh... his stuff on Smash teetered a little close to being a bit negative. Especially about how hard Sakurai is to work with and some of the stuff he said about Melee.
Look at this statement he made:
That is bad mouthing a group of Nintendo's customers, with him (without sanction) speaking for Nintendo. Notice the "we's" in his statement
pixel monkey
Banned
There's a difference between "bad mouthing" and being honest. Was he entirely too candid calling out the Xenoblade nerds? Certainly. That doesn't change the fact that he's right.
Of course, nobody saw this one comi- Oh! He is also quoting that Kotaku article...
I like how the Kotaku calls it "speaking on a podcast" like he was just shooting the breeze, man, not someone who ran his mouth and burned his own bridge.
It a difference in saying "In my opinion" and say "We" (as in Nintendo), while being employed there, and not clear by Public Affairs. Right or Wrong
We can argue if it was candid or bad mouthing (I can tell he was just talking hypothetically). The point is that it can be perceived as bad mouthing, and perception is everything
..
That can certainly be heard/read as devaluing a group of the customers
pixel monkey
Banned
Pagusas
Elden Member
that doesn't matter at all, he was an idiot and said things representing his employer, things that, true or not, were not how Nintendo wanted to present it self.
Massive Duck. C.M.
Banned
He was presenting his opinions, not facts. A random loc guy is not privy to that kind of info
This.
If I spat "the truth" about my company, I'd be dealt with similarly. His punishment was both predictable and preventable.
He went on record using his own name and is representative in Nintendo in the same way we all are for our employers.
pixel monkey
Banned
This one was. He specifically discusses how NoE footed the tab for the localization... which you'd know if you actually listened to the podcast and didn't just latch onto quotes that offend you.
Treehouse is privy to a lot of information... which of course also makes breaking their NDA all the more severe.