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Activision Blizzard Hires Notorious Union-Busting Firm WilmerHale

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Re: Activision Blizzard Hires Notorious Union-Busting Firm WilmerHale

#31

I've never heard of this news group before, all they offer for contact is a Gmail address with no names, and this domain doesn't even show up when I search Promethean News. I have my doubts about this website.

Is this better? https://kotaku.com/activision-blizzard-hires-union-busting-f...

Re: Activision Blizzard Hires Notorious Union-Busting Firm WilmerHale

#32
post #3

Is there any way to break the stranglehold of large studios and enable smaller studios to build high quality games? I loved Blizzard back when they made their OG triad (Diablo, Warcraft, Starcraft) now it just seems indistinguishable from…EA. How can we enable more scrappy Blizzards?

I think it’s easier than ever. They engines are free and even individual developers can build incredible games. The harder part might be getting enough publicity.

There are some types of games only a big studio with ample resources can make, like two current Blizzard titles: Overwatch and World of Warcraft.

Re: Activision Blizzard Hires Notorious Union-Busting Firm WilmerHale

#33

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Sorry I don't understand your comment, can you expand on it?

Why would influential people leave as a result of such scandals? They built that culture and will benefit from its proliferation.

To what extent are the people acting out the same people who command enough respect to leave and take an elite team with them?

I would be surprised if there was more than, say, 30% overlap. IME people who act out generally aren't the most productive and generally don't command the most respect from the most productive people.

Re: Activision Blizzard Hires Notorious Union-Busting Firm WilmerHale

#34

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Sorry I don't understand your comment, can you expand on it?

Why would influential people leave as a result of such scandals? They built that culture and will benefit from its proliferation.

Because they wouldn't want to work for a company that tries to cover up and ignore culture that is sexist? It might lead to trying to find other jobs and seeing Blizzard on a resume in a negative connotation. Oh you worked for Blizzard? We need to do a check to see if you were one of the people supporting the Bill Cosby hotel room.

Re: Activision Blizzard Hires Notorious Union-Busting Firm WilmerHale

#35

The problem I see with them is the brain drain if the influential people leave. They have options at other companies, and if enough people leave Blizzard they may be stuck. But this is just me looking from the outside in. This also signals they are scared of them unionizing.

I know we don't want to say this but there might be a possibility some of the talent secretly are indeed sexist (wouldn't surprise me in the gaming world) and thus actually prefer to stay at a place that preserves the male dominated culture. That might be part of the strategy behind activisions anti walkout move here. Just a thought (I don't know).

Re: Activision Blizzard Hires Notorious Union-Busting Firm WilmerHale

#36
post #3

Is there any way to break the stranglehold of large studios and enable smaller studios to build high quality games? I loved Blizzard back when they made their OG triad (Diablo, Warcraft, Starcraft) now it just seems indistinguishable from…EA. How can we enable more scrappy Blizzards?

Runic Games (https://www.runicgames.com/) was also founded by a bunch of ex-Blizzard folk. The Torchlight series of games are great, and hold well to their Diablo-like roots.

Re: Activision Blizzard Hires Notorious Union-Busting Firm WilmerHale

#37
post #3

Is there any way to break the stranglehold of large studios and enable smaller studios to build high quality games? I loved Blizzard back when they made their OG triad (Diablo, Warcraft, Starcraft) now it just seems indistinguishable from…EA. How can we enable more scrappy Blizzards?

Check out TheLazyPeon on YouTube who evaluates new MMORPG games all the time. Lots of great looking games coming out all the time but many of them never attract the critical mass of users to make them interesting.

Re: Activision Blizzard Hires Notorious Union-Busting Firm WilmerHale

#38
> "At WilmerHale 1st year counsel makes $350,000. The 24 year old 1st year summer associate still in law school walks into the office in a $1,500 Burberry suit and makes $202,500 that year. Those Amazon workers they swindled out of higher wages make less than $30,000 a year."

The 200k figure is for a first-year associate who has graduated and passed the bar exam [1].

It's interesting to me that you can only hope to crack 300k at a top law firm after working for five years and going to law school for three. I.e., not until you're over 30.

The majority of SWEs at FAANG companies get there in two years. I.e., at age 24 [2]. Some might say the potential upside of becoming a partner outweighs higher early career SWE income, but I would retort that making director or VP are comparable accomplishments; not everyone makes partner.

Social status hasn't caught up to income, though; family and friends outside my tech circle still respect law and medicine more than engineering.

[1] https://www.wilmerhale.com/en/careers/lawyers/entry-level-or...

[2] levels.fyi

Re: Activision Blizzard Hires Notorious Union-Busting Firm WilmerHale

#39

I cut my teeth on Diablo, and played Diablo II for probably fifteen years after its release off and on as a way to stay connected with a friend who loved it similarly. More recently, I have consistently played Starcraft II since its release and enjoy a sense of mastery over that game unparalleled by my experience in any other. I haven't purchased new Blizzard products since the Hong Kong censorship debacle[1] and qui…

They don’t really care that much about the American market anymore really. Something like 90% of League of Legends players are in China. The mobile gaming market is massive over there, hence Diablo Immortal.

China does not care about the West’s uproar over most things. Blizzard does not care if you buy Diablo 4, they care if the East buys Diablo 4 and Diablo Immortal.

Re: Activision Blizzard Hires Notorious Union-Busting Firm WilmerHale

#40

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Not enough people are going to unsubscribe from WoW for it to make a difference, enough of the public is anti-union and many of the rest don't care.

I’m actually seeing a lot of rage directed at them from the gaming forums I interact on, including a lot of people claiming that they’ve canceled. Completely anecdotal, I know, but it was not what I expected at all. I think this one is going to hurt more than usual.

>I think this one is going to hurt more than usual.

I hope that's true. I hope COVID has woken up labor to the power it has if it organizes (see also the restaurant industry).

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