Main Menu

Tip jar

If you like CaB and wish to support it, you can use PayPal or KoFi. Thank you, and I hope you continue to enjoy the site - Neil.

Buy Me a Coffee at ko-fi.com

Support CaB

Recent

Welcome to Cook'd and Bomb'd. Please login or sign up.

March 29, 2024, 03:41:03 PM

Login with username, password and session length

The Crunch

Started by bgmnts, June 13, 2022, 12:34:23 PM

Previous topic - Next topic

bgmnts

So yeah, the game industry, like all industries really under capitalism, are awfully run and the unique nature of The Crunch has reared its ugly head again, this time with Fallout 76.

Original Kotaku article:

https://kotaku.com/bethesda-zenimax-fallout-76-crunch-development-1849033233

Sterling's inevitable caustic video on this:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YBKbJG_Sw5w

This is the real kicker though, it's not just the executives and the company itself, it's the culture, this bit was especially nauseating:

QuoteThe testers also coped with the pressures of being surveilled. A couple of sources told Kotaku that QA workers would have their breaks timed or sometimes even be followed into the restrooms by non-management employees described by one source as "chronic snitches." According to them, these otherwise normal testers, designated as "coordinators," did not have a real title or pay bump, but felt that micromanaging their peers would help their career standing at ZeniMax. Another did not recall if people were specifically followed, but knew testers whose bathroom breaks had been timed.

Imagine being that person? Jesus Christ.

oggyraiding

Must be so disheartening to work 60+ hour weeks, only for the game you've slaved away on to be met with nearly universal negativity. At least with Red Dead Redemption 2 you could maybe have the buzz of it being well received. It's positive that many game industry workers are pushing for unionisation, QA seems a miserable department to be in, shit pay and no respect.

Pink Gregory

If the reports of snitches are true, then the big publishers and developers needn't worry about unionisation; there'll be enough black hearted little scabs crawling around to work 100 hour weeks because of 'passion'.

Pink Gregory

It's not even about getting games out on time - crunch is a sign of poor management more often than not, and I don't imagine the management layer in games is particularly professional, hence the constant reports of sexual harrassment and embarrassing frat boy behaviour.  How are you supposed to work under that?