EA Shuts Down ‘SimCity’ and ‘The Sims’ Developer Maxis • Hacker News Board

Re: EA Shuts Down ‘SimCity’ and ‘The Sims’ Developer Maxis

#201

Post by guncheck » Fri, Mar 06, 2015, 4:29 PM UTC

frik wrote: post #200

guncheck wrote: post #106

Earlier quoted context omitted.

EA did a fairly poor job with SimCity, I agree. A very, very poor job. EA was named the worst company to work for in the US, but that was years and years ago. They've really done a better job at keeping their developers happy (I worked there two years ago as a dev). I mean sure, Alpha and Beta can still be brutal, but what game studio isn't like this? Overall, I enjoyed working at EA and would work there again if the…

> EA was named the worst company to work for in the US, but that was years and years ago Apr 09, 2013: EA wins Consumerist's Worst Company in America poll for second year in a row http://www.polygon.com/2013/4/9/4205402/ea-wins-consumerists...

there's a difference between "worst company" and "worst company to work for". worst company is voted upon by everyone. Everyone on the internet, which is the most vocal group, hates EA which is totally understandable.

Worst company to work for is voted by employees. Most people who work at EA enjoy their time there. They might not agree with some company decisions, but overall, it's a great place to work.

Please realize there is a difference and that list is also fairly biased. I mean, its fucked up how a video game company is worse than banks who take billions of money from people through fees, interests, and all other random shit.

Re: EA Shuts Down ‘SimCity’ and ‘The Sims’ Developer Maxis

#202

Post by guncheck » Fri, Mar 06, 2015, 4:34 PM UTC

yoklov wrote: post #173

guncheck wrote: post #106

Earlier quoted context omitted.

EA did a fairly poor job with SimCity, I agree. A very, very poor job. EA was named the worst company to work for in the US, but that was years and years ago. They've really done a better job at keeping their developers happy (I worked there two years ago as a dev). I mean sure, Alpha and Beta can still be brutal, but what game studio isn't like this? Overall, I enjoyed working at EA and would work there again if the…

Worse than average for the game industry? I'm making less than 60k over here :( (But honestly I'd rather do something I enjoy and make less than something I don't even if it pays more)

yeah :( they offered me starting pay of 60k, which granted is not the worst. It's alot more than other jobs, but I just had a better offer somewhere else that I couldn't say no to (though not in games). I had other priorities that had to come first than my love for games :(

Re: EA Shuts Down ‘SimCity’ and ‘The Sims’ Developer Maxis

#203

Post by warfangle » Fri, Mar 06, 2015, 6:22 PM UTC

m_mueller wrote: post #199

warfangle wrote: post #171

Earlier quoted context omitted.

So cancer, then.

I like how it all just went worse and worse for EA - from virus to a predator shitting out bad games to a cancer of gaming.

To be honest, the virus might actually be more apt, if you change the kind of virus.

Take HIV for example: it attacks the immune system of the host, but is fairly difficult to transmit and relies on insufficient protection for that.

A studio that accepts a buyout from EA is like a person mainlining heroin using a needle that's been passed around a hundred different HIV+ heroin addicts. It gets the bug.

Sometimes it takes years for symptoms of illness to show. Some studios last decades before they waste away - and they last longer if they have proper treatment (in the case of Maxis, this was having Will Wright stay on board). But in the end it's incurable and terminal once treatment ceases, and the studio becomes weaker and skeletal before finally passing.

Re: EA Shuts Down ‘SimCity’ and ‘The Sims’ Developer Maxis

#204

Post by sesqu » Mon, Mar 09, 2015, 8:30 AM UTC

Pent wrote: post #198

sesqu wrote: post #103

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Mass effect 2 was perhaps the best game in the series, but it was a very different game than mass effect 1. While the core mechanics were the same, it was extremely episodic and the plot was flimsy. I recall ME3 reeled it back a bit, doing away with some of the annoying exploration stuff, but suffered from third installment syndrome.

Can you expand on the idea of the third instalment syndrome?

The short of it is that while the second installment is always a challenge, being forced to face the reality of being a sequel instead of a stand-alone story, the successful sequel usually ends up passing the buck by focusing on buildup and universe expansion. Often the sequel jumps genres or settings. The third installment is then charged with culmination, building up tension even more before tying it all up in a satisfying manner, without the option of switching it up yet again. If it's in 3D, that means they couldn't figure it out and opted for a second sequel instead. The fourth installment is, of course, practically impossible, and tends to be a prequel or a spinoff.