Sure, I barely buy EA games anyway, mostly 'cause their games are generally boring rehashes and the same sports games they’ve been producing for the past x years with new statistics, but after reading this (Courtesy Penny Arcade), I’m up for an outright boycott of EA games.
It’s not much, but we’ve got to start somewhere.
Why are they complaining about such a light workload?
I’m not kidding. That’s pretty normal in high tech.
I think there must be a lot more of this going on in the industry. Development teams want to create. Publishers want to get games out to make holiday seasons and deadlines. There must be so many people working extra hours trying to finish their projects before they’re forced to release it.
I wouldn’t boycott EA games to help those workers, they’re free to leave the company if they want. And I think not buying their games wouldn’t really help the ones who are willing to work the extra hours to keep their jobs. I do however support class-action law suits http://www.gamesarefun.com/news.php?newsid=3857 to get them better working conditions.
But yeah, I don’t really buy any EA games because they pretty much all suck.
I agree.
No reason to complain. If he can not handle the work he can still come to Taiwan and teach.
Don’t worry. Soon EA and the other big name game publishers (read: software sweatshops) will move their operation to India and China where they can hire developers (read: slaves) at a fraction of the cost.
Then all those currently employed can enjoy a long rest on welfare, or go on the EFL circuit; like this software developer did.
[quote=“robi666”]I agree.
No reason to complain. If he can not handle the work he can still come to Taiwan and teach.[/quote]
Worked for me.
Just because it’s normal doesn’t make it right. I mean shit, at points beating women, owning slaves, and treating diseases by bleeding were normal too.
Disgruntled employees could easily put secret features into the games to get back at their employer. Either secret sex pics, or in the case of the Tiger Woods PGA Tour 2005, an error that forced a recall of EA video games.
Honestly, I still don’t get the “well, everyone else does it” justification. Why should anyone be expected to have to choose only between putting up with what is, let’s face it, fucking terrible treatment, or quitting.
Honestly, I still don’t get the “well, everyone else does it” justification. Why should anyone be expected to have to choose only between putting up with what is, let’s face it, fucking terrible treatment, or quitting.
Hopefully the suit will work and “everyone else will stop doing it.” I know there are tech companies I have worked for that have “exempted” employees and still been forced, by class action lawsuit of course, to pay overtime when it was deemed that the over time was planned by management and not necessary to meet time lines.
There was a time when tech companies were the best places to work on earth, but then the “I just got my MBA” managers moved in and focused on profits and killed camaraderie, creativity, and a willingness to put in long hours without overtime. The documentary “Once upon an Atari” and the history of Apple are great examples of this. I hate to see employees having to sue to return companies to their roots, but sometimes things like that have to be done.
I will boycott EA – mostly because they totally screwed up Battlefield 1942. This is a prime example of how EA and other companies like it work . The original BF1942 from Sweden was awesome, but after EA bought out the company and wanted to make a profit from Battlefield Vietnam and soon Battlefield 2, they turned the game engine and on-line play into a bloated piece of software that does not run nearly as well as the original.
[quote=“MaPoSquid”]Why are they complaining about such a light workload?
I’m not kidding. That’s pretty normal in high tech.[/quote]
Well, apparently the IGDA disagrees with you that they shouldn’t be complaining.
[quote]Quality of Life Issues are Holding Back the Game Industry
Despite the continued success of the games industry, the immaturity of current business and production practices is severely crippling the industry . The recent frenzy of discussion over impassioned testimony about the horrible working conditions within much of the industry attests to the reality of this often unspoken disease.
As the professional association that unites the game development community and serves as its voice, the International Game Developers Association is deeply disturbed by this vicious cycle and is working to better the situation. Improving the quality of life of game developers is an IGDA priority.
In tackling quality of life issues, it is important to realize that poor quality of life is symptomatic of more fundamental challenges within the industry (e.g., consolidation, ever-evolving technology, one-sided contracting, lack of project management expertise, no craft/job standards, etc), which in turn all need to be addressed in order to truly improve our work/life balance.
What’s more, game developers are sometimes just as much to blame for submitting themselves to extreme working conditions, adopting a macho bravado in hopes of
[quote=“MaPoSquid”][quote=“robi666”]I agree.
No reason to complain. If he can not handle the work he can still come to Taiwan and teach.[/quote]
Worked for me.[/quote]
And me. 
dont buy their CDs
Um, you realize that’s exactly what a boycott entails, right?
hmm. im just playing dumb ass 
You play like a champion 
[quote=“Tetsuo”][quote=“MaPoSquid”]Why are they complaining about such a light workload?
I’m not kidding. That’s pretty normal in high tech.[/quote]
Well, apparently the IGDA disagrees with you that they shouldn’t be complaining.
Full piece here[/quote]
Yeah, all eight of them.
Seriously, what it comes down to is, if you don’t want to work at a company, then don’t. The reason that tech companies work their employees to death is because people USED to get filthy rich at tech companies. One of my dear friends from my second-to-last employer has a half-million-dollar house completely paid off, at the ripe old age of thirty-five, with his “homemaker” wife and a bouncing toddler, all because his stock options paid for the whole thing – and that was even after the tech collapse wiped out 93.2655% (just checked the stock quote ) of the company’s value since early 2000 (he hung in until the bloody end, leaving and selling last summer shortly before I came to Taiwan).
That’s pretty fucking all right. Yeah, he worked his ass off for a few years, but he is set for life. He still needs to work, at least enough to pay the taxes on his place, but he doesn’t need to worry about a mortgage, and if the absolute worst came to pass he could relax for a couple of years. That is quite nice for a whole family after a mere 12 or so years in the workforce.
By way of comparison, a few years back, I asked someone out whom I’d known since high school. She turned me down, because she didn’t have the evening free – that or any other. She was working three jobs, two 40-hour/week ones and one part-time one, all of which were minimum-wage deals (I saw her at her fast-food joint job; turned out she also did office cleaning at night, and home cleaning on weekends).
How terrible for her, frankly. I really can’t imagine slaving away for just enough to get by. It’s as bad as the Filipino nanny/maid/slave jobs here in Taiwan, but with no “go home in two years with enough saved to start a business” exit plan.
These game company employees either (a) love their jobs, (b) still hope to make a killing, or © are dumber than a bucket of rocks, if they are working 100-hour weeks just to get by. Either (a) or (b) are sufficient to keep at it.
In short, Tetsuo (what does that mean, anyway??), you are baying at the wrong moon. If you want to pity someone, and demand a change in working conditions, griping about the poor game developers in first-world countries ranks somewhere below griping about the poor septic-tank cleaning service employees in first-world countries.
They’re just taking advantage of dummies that are willing to work for a pittance just because they get to make video games and get all the free Mountain Dew that they can drink.
But that’s just, like, my opinion, man.