I think the video game industry is literally run like the movie industry except there is no union to help the people who make the actual magic happen unlike say the entertainment industry. I realize that some hate unions but some things on this world literally could not happen unless we respect people, their time, and their families. Some things are worth more than money and I"m grateful for the games I get to play.…
Are you seriously suggesting government funding for video game development? There's no way I'd be willing to have my tax dollars wasted on that.
Yes. Are you not aware now that kids are more likely to play video games than watch television yet we pay into PBS. Are you not aware that much of what we enjoy and work for in life was because of the awareness brought by an artists passion. Arts are just as important to fund as research. Otherwise life is not worth living.
Are you seriously suggesting government funding for video game development? There's no way I'd be willing to have my tax dollars wasted on that.
Yes. Are you not aware now that kids are more likely to play video games than watch television yet we pay into PBS. Are you not aware that much of what we enjoy and work for in life was because of the awareness brought by an artists passion. Arts are just as important to fund as research. Otherwise life is not worth living.
Life can be lived just fine without video games. Anyone can enjoy public art without needing access to a particular type of device.
Gamers seem to have a growing sense of entitlement.
When he was ten years old he would write letters to his favorite game developers and publishers describing his love for their games and seeking advice on how to become a game maker.
Yea I did that too.
I fondly remember one such response from Seth Robinson, the creator of the Dink Smallwood PC RPG. I was asking him how to get into making RPGs and if I could help him on some project in the future maybe. I believe I was 14 at the time and had done some mods to MCM, Carmageddon and was working on a space shooter with the 3DRAD and the just unveiled Unreal engine.
His curt response was that he wouldn't start talking with me for less than $100,000.
Always a great way to interact with kids who are trying to get into your industry.
"The Games Industry" is a shit hole of illegal corporate exploitation. I am one of those rare "long term game developers" - but not, because I left after 15 years of trying to develop some/any collaboration against the exploitation. I was one of the OS developers for the 3DO and the first PlayStation, a lead tech at both E.A. and Sony, lead engineer of games I know you played, and I can state first hand the illegal e…
God bless you. I was the only person I ever met with a R.E.A.L 3DO, but I loved it even though everyone else had a Playstation.
Gex, Way of the Warrior, Alone in the Dark, Another World and Fifa 95 were my life after school etc...
One other parallel that interests me comes up in this article. Frank D’Angelo got into games because he loved them as a kid. And that's ultimately what guaranteed that he'd be treated poorly: so many people want to get into games that there's always another sucker to take his place. It's the same thing with acting. The number of people who want to be Hollywood actors is much smaller than the number of people who end…
>The number of people who want to be Hollywood actors is much smaller than the number of people who end up succeeding. *larger
"The cornerstone of the case against unions isn't that we should stop respecting people, it's that unions are often no longer the best way to accomplish that goal." But those making that argument never bring up a workable alternative for accomplishing that goal, other than everyone should quit their jobs. "I'm glad we had unions, but they also have a dark side, where they can function more like a corrupt cartel over…
> I cannot take this argument seriously when the management side of things is acting in the exact same manner, and no one seems to bat an eye. Because it isn't the case. Short of actual slavery, management does not hold a monopoly on an individual's employment. If someone's employer is crap, they can move to another job. If they don't like their industry, they can try going into a different one. At least here in the…
"Because it isn't the case."
Yes it is.
"Short of actual slavery, management does not hold a monopoly on an individual's employment."
If they decide to fire you, you've now lost your ability to feed and house your family.
"If they don't like their industry, they can try going into a different one."
One other parallel that interests me comes up in this article. Frank D’Angelo got into games because he loved them as a kid. And that's ultimately what guaranteed that he'd be treated poorly: so many people want to get into games that there's always another sucker to take his place. It's the same thing with acting. The number of people who want to be Hollywood actors is much smaller than the number of people who end…
This comparison goes further - the vast majority of people who want to be actors suck at being one. Or musicians. Or writers. Or any other artists. Few who have talent/luck/x-factor get money and fame, the rest wash out. Yet, somehow, it's believed that games are completely different and everyone who wants to make games is good enough to be able make living off it.
It took me along time to realize this but, Actually, the exact opposite might be true. Look at the consumer reviews of most games: over and over you see "uhhh, great way to kill time... etc". On the weekend, I can see my brother playing yet another iphone game, repeatedly tapping away at the screen mindlessly clicking the same spot over and over. Most consumers simply aren't that selective. They go with whatever game they happen to find within 30 seconds (usually whatever's at the top of the app store listings). And guess what, that's more than good enough. So all those indie devs and video game companies trying to innovate beyond the current state of gaming often just end up wasting their time. The problem isn't that many games aren't good enough, it's just, that there's too many games available. And, for consumers, if the top games are good enough to "kill time", there's no reason to go searching for more.
> I'm glad we had unions, but they also have a dark side, where they can function more like a corrupt cartel over time. someone standing up for your rights and asking for compensation to do it is a lot more than any kind of ridiculous disruption mode you can imagine. so much of the next generation is being told coding is the only job skill they'll need, what do you think will happen when they've flooded the market? w…
Eventually, whether through unions, politics, or guns, the people who can’t code are going to demand more than zero-wage Uber driving.
Why do you assume the people coding are making more than zero-wage Uber drivers?
Easy to say, hard/impossible to do. When you're paycheck to paycheck(which I was in gamedev, yay high col) "not crunching" isn't really a choice when you risk getting labeled "not a team player" and slow-rolled towards the door.
This is partly because most gamedevs lack confidence. There's nothing stopping you from walking out from abuse -- the door is right there. It's harder to admit to yourself when your job is abusive. Harder still: admitting you don't really like your job, and you're ok with finding a new one. Finding a new job can be difficult for gamedevs, but transitioning out of gamedev is surprisingly easy. At the end of the day, i…
>There's nothing stopping you from walking out from abuse
What magic world do you live in that doesn't have rent and grocery expenses?
"The Games Industry" is a shit hole of illegal corporate exploitation. I am one of those rare "long term game developers" - but not, because I left after 15 years of trying to develop some/any collaboration against the exploitation. I was one of the OS developers for the 3DO and the first PlayStation, a lead tech at both E.A. and Sony, lead engineer of games I know you played, and I can state first hand the illegal e…
In the past, I've read so many horror stories of working at EA, that I always steered away from the gaming industry for nearly a decade.
Then one day, a recruiter contacted me and told me all about a notable exception: Kabam. I ended up working at Kabam for 5 years and I have to say it was one of the best places I have ever worked, with decent pay and good work life balance, with lots of perks. I realize this is a rare exception, in the games industry.