Can we talk about the gaming industry?

Amadeus · July 12, 2015

So, I'm a very casual gamer - I have a small collection of a little less than twenty, I think; I'm not clued into the latest news and don't really know much of anything about the industry. But Ross's comments about EA got me on a trip around the 'net and after having read up a little I'm just wondering... could we maybe talk a bit about the gaming industry? I mean, the stuff I've come across, pertaining to the working conditions for many programmers and graphic artists and so on... I'm sorry, but it's simply spoiling my fun. I can't enjoy playing a game if the people who produced it were forced to work insane hours just to keep a mediocre salary and little to no benefits- only to get laid off the moment a project was finished. So basically, I have two questions:

1) To those more knowledgeable. Do you feel like helping me out with good sources of how bad it actually is - at the moment, most of what I've seen have been scattered among various blogs and while I'm not calling people liars, some of the claims are just too outlandish to believe without some damn solid evidence.

2) Is there anything we can actually do about it, if it's really that bad? I mean, games are supposed to be fun, and I always had this naive idea that it was a fun sector to work in.

Luis · July 12, 2015

You know, there is some form of exploitation in every product you consume. Most of out electronics are manufactured by workers in factories that violate worker's rights, have very low wages for the time they work, and often have heavy psychological consequences on their health (see Foxconn Plant incidents). And that is the tip of the iceberg. Most minerals, including Coltan, gold, silver and diamonds present in our devices are extracted from mines in Africa where guerillas are paid by multinational companies to exploit the local workers, to the point of mutilating them when they defy authority and making women systematic sexslaves.

And that is just what the programmers USE to get exploited. We could talk about Nike factories exploiting children, the meat industry or anything else.. but that's just to prove that point, when it comes to the actual gaming industry I think that when this ''slavish ethic'' gets stereotyped in a field, such as programming or others it is very difficult to eliminate because part of the responsibility falls on the workers themselves wanting to work those hours (because we all need to eat), so there will always be another guy willing to crunch those hours for less money because he needs the experience or the money. and companies take advantage of this to make it a standard, save money and make bigger profit. It happens from DJs in bars and clubs to programmers in video game companies. I don't know how it can be called. .

Blightmare · July 12, 2015

It happens less with video game programmers than it does with the actual artists in a lot of these companies. Programming is a rather desired position so they can get away with a higher salary on an intro position than a modeler or animator could. Modeler's and animators are a majority of the work force trying to get into the industry so companies always look for that one guy who's willing to work harder for less money than the rest.

part of the responsibility falls on the workers themselves wanting to work those hours

Very true, but not exclusive to just needing to eat. So of us in the industry just simply enjoy what we do and have no personal quarrels with dropping several more hours into their work to see it through. On two occasions I've attended the Global Game Jam and both occasions I stayed up long past everyone else working on something. I didn't need to, but I wanted to. Of course not everyone has that luxury. Too many people end up selling themselves short because they need the money.

Btw I'm not excusing that behavior but confirming that indeed exploitation is a widely used tactic amongst just about every company.

Ross Scott · August 17, 2015

1) To those more knowledgeable. Do you feel like helping me out with good sources of how bad it actually is - at the moment, most of what I've seen have been scattered among various blogs and while I'm not calling people liars, some of the claims are just too outlandish to believe without some damn solid evidence.

2) Is there anything we can actually do about it, if it's really that bad? I mean, games are supposed to be fun, and I always had this naive idea that it was a fun sector to work in.

I'm really not trying to bum people out with this stuff, it's more like I don't like how invisible it is.

For #1, I can't say for certain, though with my own "escape from machinima" entries, that was really bad for me and everything on there (not counting my google speculation, since that was just speculating) was true. So it's VERY easy to imagine it getting as bad or worse in the actual industry.

For #2 I'm kind of cynical so I don't think it can be changed through populist or democratic means. If I did, I would endorse boycotts, but there's a history of gaming boycotts not being effective at all. I guess the upside is not ALL games are like that, just higher profile ones it's more common.

And that is just what the programmers USE to get exploited. We could talk about Nike factories exploiting children, the meat industry or anything else.. but that's just to prove that point, when it comes to the actual gaming industry I think that when this ''slavish ethic'' gets stereotyped in a field, such as programming or others it is very difficult to eliminate because part of the responsibility falls on the workers themselves wanting to work those hours (because we all need to eat), so there will always be another guy willing to crunch those hours for less money because he needs the experience or the money. and companies take advantage of this to make it a standard, save money and make bigger profit. It happens from DJs in bars and clubs to programmers in video game companies. I don't know how it can be called. .

Yeah, just to be clear, there are WAY more serious issues going on globally than anything in the realm of gaming, but the more you question our most harmful practices, the more you have to question our whole system overall, which I think a lot of people aren't really willing to do mentally. I just figure gaming is an easier realm to tackle overall.

Also for the record, anyone working on a game who deliberately pushes themselves I don't see as a problem, that's just their motivation. The problem is companies exploiting or demanding that type of behavior with EA Spouse crunch time hours, no overtime pay, routine layoffs, etc. Imagine if EA had to pay time and a half for every hour over 40 that a person spent on a game, it would drastically change their approach to things.

Slimy · September 2, 2015

This reply is a bit late - but I think the Jimquisition show on YouTube is pretty good at exposing dirt in the gaming industry. (Currently on the channel JimSterling, previously on the Escapist channel, although the quality does get worse if you start watching the earlier episodes.)

Here's one on EA:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l-hfRytMLUk

Edit: Oh, and if you haven't heard, Konomi is awful, incompetent, firing Hideo Kojima, believes mobile is the future of gaming, and is turning all their franchises into Pachinko Machines.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iMK-kajdgMA

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ynl4sIFazmM

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rZpg2OViI7Q

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0nwPPYkd8gs

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K-85jO6nRNQ

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uphcEJW-MDA