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[StereoVsn]

So developers have to come into the office and work 8-10 hours more a week to produce a product slice for Sony. The reason they have to do this is that they are have been late on several milestones.

And on top of that they have been told NOT to work 60+ hours.

"The Horror"!

 

[TropicanaTwista]

Beyond tired of hearing these people complain about crunch. Im in my 30s and have worked for 16 straight years in all types of fields. Essentially EVERYWHERE has some type of crunch. And when it comes to something like a white collar job developing video games. You sit behind a desk, most likely in your own home, it's really not all that demanding.

 

[vkbest]

So ND wants a playable demo done by the end of this month? Hmmmmmmm............so we may see it in February 2026 if Sony has a State of Play that month, like they do every year.

Internal demo, basically Sony want to know what they are doing xD

 

[Jinzo Prime]

Why is it that Naughty Dog gets a free pass, but if any other company did this, Schrier and other scumsucking gaming "journalists" would be writing articles on how terrible crunch is?

Because their games have the "right" message.

 

[Instant_Classic]

This game is a long way out.

 

[Haint]

Imagine making 200K+ a year for working 3 days a week and commissioning a slimeball who's slimier than the rotten algae sludge of an abandoned aquarium to write a hit piece on your employer cause you're going to fail to ship a single game in an entire 7+ year console generation.

 

[kaizenkko]

Only 8 hours per week? It should be 8 extra hours per day. That's the only way to make up for all the time they lost on Factions.

 

[Sticks]

 

[mayham2199]

Cool like every 5-6 weeks I have to be on call avaliable to help anyone who puts in a ticket regardless of what day it is. Including holidays if my week falls on a holiday. Sometimes you have to work more big deal.

 

[SlimySnake]

For the past seven weeks, the Santa Monica-based studio behind The Last of Us has been pushing its staff to work long hours to get ready for an upcoming review of the demo by its parent company, according to people familiar with the situation. Starting in late October, staff were asked to begin working a minimum of eight extra hours a week and logging their overtime in an internal spreadsheet, said the people, who asked not to be identified because they weren't authorized to speak publicly. This overtime period was an attempt to get the production back on track after several missed deadlines.

So the game is in development hell which is why it didnt show up at the TGA this year.

Honestly, they had five years of no crunch and accomplished fuck all. This isnt something you go to schrier about. 50 hours a week isnt that bad. Most people work 10 hour days anyway. Cant believe they would go to schrier over this after they have wasted hundreds of millions of dollars of Sony's money while Neil went out and partied with Hollywood stars while the studio sat there doing absolutely nothing for five years. Oh right, they meddled with the VSG remake so much those guys quit and they had to get a 1:1 copy pasta remake out using TLOU2's assets. So much work!

 

[Sebastian1295]

Earlier this year, members of the production team were each given customized metal coins that seemed to capture, purposefully or not, the current state of the studio's workplace attitude. On one side was the company's paw-print logo. On the other, a quote from the trailer for Intergalactic: The Heretic Prophet: "The suffering of generations must be endured to achieve our divine end."

This got a huge chuckle outta me. It's like one big fuck you by saying 'You're going to work overtime and suffer whether you like it or not lol'.

 

[UniformDeliverance]

Okay. I'm salaried, I work crazy hours during peak sessions, it's just part of the job. No one is forcing them to work there. Don't like it? quit.

 

[dottme]

There's a demo?

It's an internal demo based on the article. They have to show progress and let management decide if they continue or not.
The kind of demo which should have got Concord cancelled way before they wasted too much money.

But saying ND with forced return to office and crunch time is really interesting.

 

[kiphalfton]

Mandatory overtime sucks

Some people just want to go home, and not be at work any longer than necessary.

Also let's not pretend like the base working hours (i.e. 8 hours) out of your day is nothing, especially when you factor in commute time and a pointless mandatory lunch break. Shit translates easily to nearly 10 hours (if not more) per day easily. And that's without working overtime.

 

[Sintoid]

Hey!!! I sketched a gun this month!!!!

 

[LectureMaster]

Druckmann surely has the biggest pull on GAF.

Just 15 minutes already 50+ posts. (and two double post threads)

 

[Sethbacca]

I thought it's coming next year ?

If not what Sony has for next year ? Wolverine only ?

So far :
Wolverine
Saros
Marvel Tokon

 

[ChorizoPicozo]

Neil:

My idea. I'm genius

 

[deriks]

Remember that you vote with your wallet

 

[DeepEnigma]

Hide & Seek for a $1000 a week.

You would not be surprised with how much this goes on in game dev.

I've witnessed it countless times with my times at studios. They know this, they take advantage of this since they know OT (crunch) is calculated into their overall game development projections. They know whipping out the cots and bringing the puppers to work is a necessary evil for their years of lounge.

 

[//DEVIL//]

So far :
Wolverine
Saros
Tokon

Yesss I forgot about Tokon. I so want this game. Reminded me so much of dragon ball figherZ. Which is my fav fighting game probably of all time.

 

[StueyDuck]

On a side note, A demo is a smart choice.

hopefully it's not just for trade shows and rather for public consumption.

Druckman and NaughtyDog can't play coy with this one and try be cutesy with the marketing, we all saw how that went for part 2.

just drop a demo in the players hands and let the market naturally decide.

 

[mckmas8808]

OMG!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

For the past seven weeks, the Santa Monica-based studio behind The Last of Us has been pushing its staff to work long hours to get ready for an upcoming review of the demo by its parent company, according to people familiar with the situation. Starting in late October, staff were asked to begin working a minimum of eight extra hours a week and logging their overtime in an internal spreadsheet, said the people, who asked not to be identified because they weren't authorized to speak publicly. This overtime period was an attempt to get the production back on track after several missed deadlines.

The employees were instructed not to work more than 60 hours a week. Staff were also told to return to the office five days a week for this period, up from three previously, sending some employees scrambling to find alternative care arrangements for children and pets. Representatives for Sony and Naughty Dog declined to comment.


Some teams at Naughty Dog worked long hours to finish the game's debut trailer, which was released last December. But this is the first time in recent years that overtime has been mandated across the bulk of the studio. The game is slated for release in mid-2027, according to the people familiar with the schedule, leaving some employees wondering if the overtime requirements will get worse later in the development cycle. For most staff, the recent period of mandated overtime ended this week as Naughty Dog finalized the demo. Management told employees that the company will return to its standard requirement of three days in the office each week through the end of January, according to people familiar with the communications. The company said it plans to provide a more detailed schedule for 2026 after the holiday break.

- 7 WEEKS!?!?! I thought they were gonna say this mandatory OT was happening over the last 6 months
- A minimum of 8 extra hours a week, or 1.5 hours extra per day.
- And they were told to NEVER exceed more than 60 hours a week
- The game is scheduled to come out mid-2027
- The mandatory OT is now OVER for most employees!!!

 

[Mercenary09]

I thought it's coming next year ?

If not what Sony has for next year ? Wolverine only ?

This was never coming in 2026 what gave you that idea? It's been pretty clear Saros and Wolverine are Sony's two big games for 2026. This was always 2027 at the earliest

 

[Roni]

Working overtime is like being cheated on: it happening is bad enough. Enduring it is sad, actually enjoying it is bizarre.

 

[LectureMaster]

Umm..

Tag my old gent just in case he missed his GOAT studio news. Topher

 

[The Cockatrice]

That sucks.

 

[Mercenary09]

Of course that purple forum is having a cow over this. Wow the employees were asked to work 8 extra hours during the week. That's like 2 hours a day big deal. I work almost 60 hours a week at my job every week and would gladly do more if I could.

 

[Ass of Can Whooping]

sending some employees scrambling to find alternative care arrangements for children and pets

 

[Ramiro_Rodriguez]

If not what Sony has for next year ?

Halo, Gears, Starfield and Fable.


Wolverine, Phantom Blade Zero, Code Violet, Nioh 3, Tokyo Xtreme Racer, Saros and maybe one or two other games.
But let's be honest, does it matter?
The PS4 and PS5 are far behind the PS3 when we talk about exclusive titles and both aren't only successful, both destroyed Microsoft Xbox consoles.

 

[Joe Cool]

 

[SlimySnake]

It's an internal demo based on the article. They have to show progress and let management decide if they continue or not.
The kind of demo which should have got Concord cancelled way before they wasted too much money.

But saying ND with forced return to office and crunch time is really interesting.

which is weird because the game has been in develpoment for five years and they are only now just doing that vertical slice. what a waste of time.

 

[sloppyjoe_gamer]

Imagine making 200K+ a year and commissioning a slimeball who's slimier than the rotten algae sludge of an abandoned aquarium to write a hit piece on your employer cause you're going to fail to ship a single game in an entire 7+ year console generation.

Now , now.....those 14 different versions of Last of Us didn't make themselves

 

[Sethbacca]

Druckman and NaughtyDog can't play coy with this one and try be cutesy with the marketing, we all saw how that went for part 2.

Oh no.... something like almost 20 million copies sold.... crushing .....

 

[Alandring]

I work with Finance, and I've been working overtime until 11 pm for the past couple of weeks to deliver November's account closing. Something that I have to do monthly. With no rewards at all. No million of peoples experiencing what I've created, or discussing it online, no TGA prizes, nothing.

But people working in the next game of one of gaming's most prestigious developers can't work overtime?

Seriously

Schreier must "work" 5h per week in order to have such fragile world views.

I work overtime every year during our sales peak, and I'm salary. Where's my article? They work overtime like twice over a 4-5 year cycle.

Honestly, I think no one should work overtime. Maybe a few days, during specific timings, if they are volunteers and paid for this overtime.

Overtime is bad for the balance between work and personal life, and bad for the mental health. Nobody should do this regularly.

It's even bad in business perspective or for us, the players. CD Projekt and Naughty Dog made some amazing games. But how much of the developers of these games still are in these studios?

If you want to stay one of the best video game company for years, keeping your best employees is one of the most important thing. And for that, you must be sure that they won't work too much.

 

[mckmas8808]

Mandatory overtime sucks

Some people just want to go home, and not be at work any longer than necessary (and 40 hours per week is already a shit tone of time, especially considering it's the prime hours of the day).

People like this that you are describing don't like their job.

 

[The_Mike]

Why is it that Naughty Dog gets a free pass, but if any other company did this, Schrier and other scumsucking gaming "journalists" would be writing articles on how terrible crunch is?

Because people in here like Naughty Dogs games, so it's ok they get treated like slaves as long as they come up with a game

However. We've known since at least TLoU2 that they treat their employees like the lowest lifeform on earth, so if the employees don't leave, then nothing really changes.

Their slavery gets rewarded by people buying the products en masse.

They could try to unionize like id software, Activision Blizzard etc, but as an European watching how American companies work, it's more or less just asking to get fired if you come up with that suggestion.

 

[//DEVIL//]

This was never coming in 2026 what gave you that idea? It's been pretty clear Saros and Wolverine are Sony's two big games for 2026. This was always 2027 at the earliest

I dunno why I thought it was a 2026 game. Welp..no big deal . It's gonna be good anyway so worth the wait.

It's just I hate that it will come on PS5 . Then a year later it will be on PS6 as an enhanced port ( assuming the PS6 is still on track for 2027/28 ).

 

[Fbh]

Don't worry guys, Jason Schreier is already working on contacting all the blue haired employees at ND so we can learn how they are basically living through hell on earth and dimond miners in Africa don't know how good they have it.

 

[Hypereides]

(...)
Several missed deadlines
(...)

Sounds worrisome.

(...)
But many of those producers have since left the company, according to the people familiar with the situation.
(...)

Hmm.

(...)
Earlier this year, members of the production team were each given customized metal coins that seemed to capture, purposefully or not, the current state of the studio's workplace attitude. On one side was the company's paw-print logo. On the other, a quote from the trailer for Intergalactic: The Heretic Prophet: "The suffering of generations must be endured to achieve our divine end."
(...)

Those coins will be prophetic if the project lives up to the workload/pressure.

 

[JimmyRustler]

I'm almost 40 and never in my life did I have to do mandatory overtime. Granted, I don't earn 200k a year though.

 

[StueyDuck]

Oh no.... something like almost 20 million copies sold.... crushing .....

Are we just going to pretend like ND and Sony didn't have a huge headache surrounding the game at launch?

can you only understand one thing that happens rather than many things?

 

[mckmas8808]

Honestly, I think no one should work overtime. Maybe a few days, during specific timings, if they are volunteers and paid for this overtime.

Overtime is bad for the balance between work and personal life, and bad for the mental health. Nobody should do this regularly.

It's even bad in business perspective or for us, the players. CD Projekt and Naughty Dog made some amazing games. But how much of the developers of these games still are in these studios?

If you want to stay one of the best video game company for years, keeping your best employees is one of the most important thing. And for that, you must be sure that they won't work too much.

This mandatory OT was only for 7 weeks. They've been making the game 5 YEARS!

 

[Smiggs]

My last job had me working 58 a hours a week, 6 days a week. I did it for about a year, and got so tired of it that I found a new job. I think the solution here is pretty easy if you don't like your working conditions.

Or, just cry on the internet about how unfair it is and do nothing to better your situation.

 

[Sethbacca]

Are we just going to pretend like ND and Sony didn't have a huge headache surrounding the game at launch?

can you only understand one thing that happens rather than many things?

The only huge headache was in forums like this and dudes whining. Everybody else went on with their life. Same ass nothing burger as Yotei which people continue to insist was an issue, which is also selling perfectly fine. The narrative of GAF and the reality of life are often on diverging paths.

 

[Ass of Can Whooping]

If cuckman wasn't being flashless at golden globes they'd have had a demo done already

 

[Danny Dudekisser]

I wish Retro would have had mandatory overtime so Prime 4 could have been good.

They needed a different team, not more work from the same team.

 

[Tg89]

People laughing about this but the reality is you're not attracting the best of the best with these types of policies.

No one would willingly work an extra 20 hours a week when they had a choice to. Anyone worth their salt would just go find a better job.

 

[Gamer_By_Proxy]

Honestly, I think no one should work overtime. Maybe a few days, during specific timings, if they are volunteers and paid for this overtime.

Overtime is bad for the balance between work and personal life, and bad for the mental health. Nobody should do this regularly.

It's even bad in business perspective or for us, the players. CD Projekt and Naughty Dog made some amazing games. But how much of the developers of these games still are in these studios?

If you want to stay one of the best video game company for years, keeping your best employees is one of the most important thing. And for that, you must be sure that they won't work too much.

I get it, but it's also not exactly an Amazon Warehouse. I'm sure ND coddles the hell out of them 90% of the time.

 

[StueyDuck]

The only huge headache was in forums like this and dudes whining. Everybody else went on with their life. Same ass nothing burger as Yotei which people continue to insist was an issue, which is also selling perfectly fine. The narrative of GAF and the reality of life are often on diverging paths.

People at naughty dog were literally getting death threats, the voice actress was literally getting death threats. Druckman had to make a formal statement on the matter.

what magic land with rainbows and unicorns do you live on?