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burny26

In bruges giving good tumbles
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Sep 10, 2010
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Like a lot of guys probably I wanted to become a gamedeveloper after High School . Fortunatly it was at the time I met a guy who was already doing such a job and I even had a cousin following the University courses here in Belgium after which I decided that this wouldnt be something for me. As well as some articles and movies about the absolute, inhumane harshness of the gamedeveloping world made the choicem ore clear than ever .
In the end I didnt chose that path and I dont feel sad about it to be honest . Especially after reading another article that I wanted to share with you guys.
Also how is it to work for Paradox ( I know it is very likely I wont get an honest response ,yet still ...) Is it sometimes as described in the aformentioned article ?
Or is Paradox a gamedev heaven where creativity is promoted and peoples input is very much appreciated and translated into games? Though I know that the 'low'profits in Paradox dont allow much relaxation probably...

Article : http://www.gamespot.com/features/wh...AaaGameDeveloper;WhoWantsToBeAAaaGam;ReadMore
Why would anyone ever want to be a AAA game developer?

I've been asking myself that question a lot lately. I asked it when 38 Studios collapsed and former employees were stuck with second mortgages thanks to the company's gross neglect and/or lack of conscience. I asked it when Street Fighter X Tekken producer Yoshinori Ono talked about how Capcom mercilessly overworks its developers. I asked it when Ono suggested in the same interview that he doesn't ease up on his own subordinates, reasoning that they are younger and should be better able to deal with the workload. And I asked it last week when Activision thanked Radical Entertainment for the chart-topping Prototype 2 by shutting down the studio (or just gutting them to a skeleton crew who will lend a hand to the publisher's other projects, depending on which Activision statement you believe).
Making a game like Prototype 2 could get you a gold star and a pink slip.

Getting into top-tier game development these days seems like a losing proposition. Maybe you wind up working on a game that reviews well and sells enough to top the retail sales charts, but not enough to make it worth the publisher's while to keep the studio around. Maybe you spend years plugging away on an ultimately forgettable licensed action game and make the holiday release window, only to find pink slips in your Christmas stocking. Maybe a dysfunctional work environment and numerous delays keep you in a perpetual state of crunch, and maybe your complaints make headlines, but then nobody cares about it once that exploitive formula produces a blockbuster Game of the Year. And of course, there's always a chance you'll wind up working for a self-styled auteur who views you as a disposable and interchangeable cog in a machine designed to service his vision, one who doesn't consider the people he completely burned out along the way worthy even of simple acknowledgement in the game's credits.
"The AAA game developer doesn't get enough respect to make the gig worthwhile."

And that strikes to the heart of the issue. The AAA game developer doesn't get enough respect to make the gig worthwhile. At best they get well compensated, with decent pay and lush offices full of amenities that would make them comfortable places to live, in part because they will be expected to live in them. Being a game developer must be like being a proctologist. Sure, the pay might be nice, but does it really make all the crap they have to put up with worthwhile? Actually, proctologists have a leg up in this analogy, considering there aren't legions of fresh-out-of-college kids with a passion for peeping up people's behinds.

Think back to 2009 and Activision CEO Bobby Kotick telling investors he wanted to take all the fun out of making games, saying, "I think we definitely have been able to instill the culture, the skepticism and pessimism and fear that you should have in an economy like we are in today. And so, while generally people talk about the recession, we are pretty good at keeping people focused on the deep depression."

Kotick understood that Activision had many talented developers working for him, and his strategy to retain them was to keep them fearful and unhappy. This is the winning attitude in the AAA game market today. It is a management style that identifies value in its employees, but seeks to punish that value, to make those employees that have brought it such success so timid and fearful of testing the waters that they'll continue to slave away in their current role because it's slightly better than the worst-case alternatives. To do that to another person is bad enough; to do that to a person specifically because they have contributed to your success is practically sociopathic.

It's baffling to me that even with the continued quality-of-life issues the industry faces, I don't hear more developers publicly floating the idea of a union. Even though a Google search for "game developers union" brings up the International Game Developers Association website at the top of the list, the page doesn't even include the word "union," and the group itself seems to have a hard enough time fighting to have developers credited for the games they work on, much less organizing them into a group capable of sparking necessary changes.
For Red Dead Redemption development, Rockstar reportedly turned to the Rooster Cogburn method of equine motivation.

I asked International Game Developers Association executive director Gordon Bellamy about the lack of public discourse regarding a possible game developers union, but the ordinarily gregarious and available Bellamy let multiple inquiries go unanswered. Former IGDA executive director Jason Della Rocca was more accommodating, telling me that unions had been a frequent point of contention among IGDA membership when he was in charge of the group, even if that debate wasn't always aired in public.

"I think fundamentally there's a certain embarrassment over the whole topic," Della Rocca said. "There's an embarrassment and a degree of fear."
""I think fundamentally there's a certain embarrassment over the whole topic. There's an embarrassment and a degree of fear."--Della Rocca, on the industry's reluctance to talk openly about quality of life issues."

The embarrassment stems from the fact that these issues keep cropping up, which indicates mismanagement in project leadership that can only be offset by actions detrimental to developers' quality-of-life (like prolonged crunch). The fear on developers' part is rooted in possible retribution.

"If you speak out over time on quality of life issues, poor project management, etc., you have the potential of being seen as lazy, of not having the passion to put in the effort everyone else does, of not being as committed," Della Rocca said.

One problem is that the sad state of affairs has become accepted as the norm, Della Rocca said. Some game development schools have programs that replicate crunch time conditions so students are prepared to handle it as a matter of routine. Other developers romanticize crunch as a bonding experience, proudly accepting the challenge with bravado. Still others don't have the confidence to speak up to their managers, which only helps perpetuate exploitive working conditions.

"You know that if you're seen as a slacker that there are 10 other kids knocking at your window, staring at your seat, just waiting for you to keel over so they can jump in your chair. That kind of supply and demand doesn't help the situation. If there wasn't a lineup of kids out the front door, I think the attitude would be slightly different. The managers would be treating each worker a little more preciously."

As for unions specifically, Della Rocca doesn't think the issue is fully understood in the industry, and isn't convinced it would actually solve the problem. While it might address some symptoms, he said it wouldn't address the core problems. Many of those would be relieved by proper project management, which Della Rocca says needs to be taught in game development schools. One of the behaviors he said feeds into poor management is the industry's habit of promoting from within, ignoring that a great artist or coder doesn't necessarily have scheduling and leadership abilities in their skill set.

So if you're dead set on becoming a AAA developer, you need to understand that you're likely signing up for a dysfunctional relationship. Many employers don't want or need to treat you with respect. You will be expected to sacrifice for them: your weekends, your health, maybe a marriage or two. In return, they will look at you as an expendable resource, and one that can be easily replaced when depleted. They will foster an atmosphere of skepticism, pessimism, and fear because their employee retention plan is to limit your perceived options. If you dare to speak up or try to improve things, you will face entrenched resistance, both from your employer and from the very co-workers who would benefit from better conditions.

Again, why would anyone choose this?
 
We don't make AAA games though. You know, the big multi-platform releases that have a multimillion dollar PR campaign and takes four (or more) years to develop. We are not even close. We are a small studio with people who like each other (for the most part) play board games together and have a very functional and healthy relationship with our publisher. :D
Most of us work none to very little overtime, women and men alike can go on long parental leaves and have a life outside of the office. I have not worked on a weekend since they sent to me present games in London a couple of months ago, and not for a very long time before that. I didn't mind very much being sent to London btw. ;)

Also, I'm in a union, one for engineers that fits me well enough. It's not that big of a deal in Sweden at least.

Of course there is some truth in the article, but I do believe it is worse in the states than here, and as with all industries, some companies are going to be better/worse.
 
Well I did clock up 250 hours of overtime last year, but to be honest no one put a gun to my head :D Had I really not wanted to work those extra hours I wouldn't have had to (for most part). On the other hand hopefully some of those hours helped make Divine Wind, Sengoku and Crusader Kings II better games, and since we have a bonus system, that overtime not only benefits the company but myself as well :)

And as Kallocain said, we have a nice and friendly atmosphere at work and many of us hang out with each other outisde of work as well.
 
First of all each company, country, publisher and developer is different. Both sides of the coin exist everywhere.

Sweden in particular has very, very, very solid laws in place to protect employees - so I'd say that the Swedish game developers are amongst the most "content" and that Paradox is truly a game development heaven. Not only because of a great team, management but also since we're publishers there are entirely other options and freedoms we enjoy.

Paradox - being privately owned and hugely successful means that we have no fear of going belly up any moment. I say this because it's said fear of meeting deadlines that have companies push their employees to the brink.

I know for a fact that there's a lot of crunch at the bigger game developers in Sweden (not to mention the indies) and cases where it's not game dev heaven.

So Paradox is perhaps not a fair comparison.

The only way to know is to talk to people who've worked and are working at company X to see if it is heaven or hell.

Lastly heaven and hell very much depends on what you value in life - Again Swedish law provides most of us with a 3 month notice before we're let go (if it ever happens) - compared to US which has much less. But US salaries are way, way higher (especially for mid to high positions) while Swedish salaries are lower and the spread is much smaller. US game dev scene is much bigger and it's easier to find new rad projects/companies.

So what's heaven for you?

/s
 
You guys have always had a good atmosphere and that keeps morale high. Keep up the good work! The job I just left was the complete opposite and I was happy to leave.

I got two friends this week to buy HOI3 because my facebook posts with my conquests caught their interest :)

I'll keep spreading the word because you guys are really the only PC games I have enjoyed on a regular basis in the last 12 years.
 
We don't make AAA games though. You know, the big multi-platform releases that have a multimillion dollar PR campaign and takes four (or more) years to develop. We are not even close. We are a small studio with people who like each other (for the most part) play board games together and have a very functional and healthy relationship with our publisher. :D
Most of us work none to very little overtime, women and men alike can go on long parental leaves and have a life outside of the office. I have not worked on a weekend since they sent to me present games in London a couple of months ago, and not for a very long time before that. I didn't mind very much being sent to London btw. ;)

Also, I'm in a union, one for engineers that fits me well enough. It's not that big of a deal in Sweden at least.

Of course there is some truth in the article, but I do believe it is worse in the states than here, and as with all industries, some companies are going to be better/worse.

Well the title used by Gamespot is overexagerated . I read it as 'who wants to be a gamedev anyway?' My contact for example worked in a 'low profile' company that only made one hit . I forgot its name.
Im very glad to hear you guys have a such a great atmosphere ! You guys make the best games, i have ticked more hours on paradoxgames than anything else. Comes to show how important everyone can be in a company instead of being another cow waiting to be milked by the boss. Does Johan like farming btw? :p :D:D:D;)
I didnt know that engineering unions are also able to protect gamedevs... how come ?

Well I did clock up 250 hours of overtime last year, but to be honest no one put a gun to my head :D Had I really not wanted to work those extra hours I wouldn't have had to (for most part). On the other hand hopefully some of those hours helped make Divine Wind, Sengoku and Crusader Kings II better games, and since we have a bonus system, that overtime not only benefits the company but myself as well :)

And as Kallocain said, we have a nice and friendly atmosphere at work and many of us hang out with each other outisde of work as well.

I love you and want to have your babies!!!! :D:D DW and CK2 are my favs ... you must be the reason ! :D (Didnt try sengoku too much yet ,stuck with ck and dw!

First of all each company, country, publisher and developer is different. Both sides of the coin exist everywhere.

Sweden in particular has very, very, very solid laws in place to protect employees - so I'd say that the Swedish game developers are amongst the most "content" and that Paradox is truly a game development heaven. Not only because of a great team, management but also since we're publishers there are entirely other options and freedoms we enjoy.

Paradox - being privately owned and hugely successful means that we have no fear of going belly up any moment. I say this because it's said fear of meeting deadlines that have companies push their employees to the brink.

I know for a fact that there's a lot of crunch at the bigger game developers in Sweden (not to mention the indies) and cases where it's not game dev heaven.

So Paradox is perhaps not a fair comparison.

The only way to know is to talk to people who've worked and are working at company X to see if it is heaven or hell.

Lastly heaven and hell very much depends on what you value in life - Again Swedish law provides most of us with a 3 month notice before we're let go (if it ever happens) - compared to US which has much less. But US salaries are way, way higher (especially for mid to high positions) while Swedish salaries are lower and the spread is much smaller. US game dev scene is much bigger and it's easier to find new rad projects/companies.

So what's heaven for you?

/s

I already had a chat with my friend of the beauty of the Swedish state. How much better it is than our privatized european society. Ever since the Thatcher years it has been going downhill here unfortunatley.Sweden/ Scandinavia really seems one of the best places to live .

BTW my heaven is not being married . *ZING!!!!!* Congrats again :p


Thx for the big respnses ,very much appreciated ! You guys have to be the devs who are the closest to their community, didnt see CA on TWC having such a presence .
 
I didnt know that engineering unions are also able to protect gamedevs... how come ?

They help all engineers. I have a M.Sc in engineering. It's not more complicated than that. For those who are not engineers, there are other unions too. If there were one specifically for gamedevs, I probably would not join it anyway. The engineering union is very cheap to be part of, since we have so low unemployment rates. I think the average gamedev have a slightly higher risk to be unemployed at times.
 
I love you and want to have your babies!!!!

That's... somewhat disturbing. And technically impossible as far as I know.
 
They help all engineers. I have a M.Sc in engineering. It's not more complicated than that. For those who are not engineers, there are other unions too. If there were one specifically for gamedevs, I probably would not join it anyway. The engineering union is very cheap to be part of, since we have so low unemployment rates. I think the average gamedev have a slightly higher risk to be unemployed at times.

I see ,but what for example of graphical designers who do textures or concept art?

That's... somewhat disturbing. And technically impossible as far as I know.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jw2w07W8rkA ;)

Not if burny26 is a female? We do have females here you know. ^^

As far as i can tell I dont have a vagina . It might be interesting to have one for a couple of days ,but im glad with my package.. it would make for interesting times with the gf though:p

Are you questioning my internet skillz in finding that out? ;)

Im curious ,what could you find out ? You have my consent ;)
 
Wish I could be a paradox dev. :( Unfortunately I only know about graphics, not coding...
 
Wish I could be a paradox dev. :( Unfortunately I only know about graphics, not coding...

Who do you think make our graphics, the coders...?
 
Who do you think make our graphics, the coders...?

The core paradox games seem to place more emphasis on coding and superior game mechanics than they do on the 3D.
 
I see ,but what for example of graphical designers who do textures or concept art?

I have no idea, I'll leave that up to the graphics people to answer. Most of them are on vacation though. Also, like I said before, we do have unions that take care of you regardless of your line of work.
 
Being a paradox dev is pretty good...besides the weird threads on our forum.

What's your take on that whole pinko communist labour law and union stuff Kallocain is talking about, seeing as you're not a native? ;)
 
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