Following on from disputes over Metroid Dread developer MercurySteam's policy regarding the in-game crediting of staff, further allegations have surfaced in the last few days which suggest questionable management practices and handling of employees at the Spanish studio, makers of the Castlevania: Lords of Shadow games, Metroid: Samus Returns, and — of course — the latest entry in the Metroid series.
Spanish website Anait Games has published further information after speaking to multiple former staff members regarding their time at the studio working on Dread. Programmers and artists who worked on the game talk about management and organisation issues, and a negative, stressful culture at MercurySteam.
The article contains no comment or corroboration from current MercurySteam staff, but details various grievances by former employees throughout development. One area involved 'overscope' that necessitated cuts on the part of Nintendo, specifically a period between April and July 2020 when Nintendo reviewed progress on the game and made various cuts to address a supposed bottleneck in the art pipeline. "There were about 120 cinematics to do, it was too big an overscope," says one ex-programmer (via Google Translate) who left the studio shortly after. Another substantial cut is mentioned from the previous year, as well.
Development of Metroid Dread is described as "quite chaotic. Many times, giving me directions, my lead and the game director contradicted each other," says another programmer. Another artist had this to say to Anait of the management style in place at the studio:
They do not trust the worker at all and it shows. You don't feel valued. The bad atmosphere is constant and it is very tense, in general.
Punishments at the studio are alleged to "range from isolating the worker or changing the group to the same sudden dismissal".
Elsewhere, allegations are made of improper treatment of staff and contractors regarding salary negotiation, as well as a negative assessment of the studio's response to the pandemic. One programmer said that the "pandemic has not been well managed. It was total and utter chaos," and describes unsafe anti-COVID measures employed in the workplace as staff were unable to work on the project remotely.
Inconsistencies in the Human Resources department's responses to employee grievances are cited, with one example detailing the workers' right to leave the office to cast a vote for the Madrid community elections — which fell on a working day — questioned due to the current state of development at that time.
The article also touches on the credits debate, with a fear of speaking out in public suggested as a factor which has kept people silent until now:
I think they play a bit with the fact that a lot of people don't dare to speak in public. I know two more people who are not properly credited but I understand that they are afraid to complain because it seems that they are going to sink your career
Another worker elaborates:
The main leaders know a lot of people and they can destroy your career if they have a problem with you. They don't mind talking bad about you and screwing up your career and that's why people don't talk
Metroid Dread launched on 8th October to overwhelmingly positive reviews and strong sales. The credits controversy and these new allegations don't seem to have had an effect on the game's momentum — not yet at least — but it's certainly disturbing to hear stories like this, especially when they mirror similar allegations concerning MercurySteam management and culture made years ago when Castlevania: Lords of Shadow 2 was released.
We discussed the credits issue in a Talking Point article on the subject written before these new allegations surfaced. MercurySteam put out a response to the previous credits issue, although no comment regarding these latest allegations has yet been made. We'll update this article if a statement is released.
[source anaitgames.com]
Comments 223
Sounds like every single office environment I've ever worked in. Stress is a part of a lot of jobs, deal with it.
While not necessarily questioning any of these testimonials, i find it mightily coincidental that all these allegations surface after they released a critically acclaimed title, despite having worked with big IP's for over a decade now, but never causing quite that ruckus. Do the studio was known and present in the mainstream.
Just food for thought i guess.
Breaking news! People complain about their former employers.
Funny how nobody talked about this until after the game took off and is selling like hot cakes, if true Nintendo needs to stop it.
That’s very disappointing to hear. Dread is an excellent game but that appears to be in spite of the environment it was made it. I think MercurySteam has a lot of potential and if Nintendo continues to collaborate with them, perhaps they can better monitor the situation. Unfortunately, I’ll be pretty wary of any games with their name on it going forward.
The game was good, they have to be happy. And Nintendo gave to them 4 years of development, which is a really big period for a game like this one.
Some absolutely terrible comments here - toxic workplace environments are responsible for serious mental health fallout and this needs to stop. Disappointing to see this ignorance reflected in the first few comments on Nintendo life, a decent community. I have two seriously ill children and my wife often has to live long term in hospital. Many families have similar back breaking situations - put a bullying toxic workplace environment on top of that & you’re not only tipping the parent over the edge in a time of deep suffering but you’re hurting the children as well. People need to grow up and realise what it’s like to be an adult with serious responsibilities in this world.
To me this just sounds like some salty ex-employees wanting to get back at the company after a successful release.
They could've said this at any point in time, but specifically chose to do so after the release of their latest game - that screams attempted sabotage, and not "hey im tryna shine a light on all these misdeeds going on guys".
Kinda sad. Could be they're not just talking out their behinds, but you never know.
@Lordplops more workers in more industries are refusing the narrative that stress should be part of the job. please deal with that.
It's distressing how many people will gleefully make excuses for poor business practices, just because the word Nintendo is on the product.
I'm really glad I didn't buy this game, and I probably never will (despite the fact I love me some Metroid). Nintendo has fairly recently spoken up against unfair crunch and inequity in games making. Everything MercurySteam is doing goes against that ethos.
I'll save my $60 for a different game, then. And yes, I'm painfully aware that there's no ethical consumption. But I can sleep better by not having a $60 reminder of shady games company practices on my shelf.
Maybe Nintendo should buy them and fix these issues..? They pulled Retro Studios out of a 'rut', right?
@Blizzia why wouldn’t they speak up at a time when the studio is in the public zeitgeist. Far more likely their story will catch people’s attention.
"There were about 120 cinematics to do, it was too big an overscope"
I was frustrated how much cinematics were in Dread mainly at the beginning. Metroid does not need any cinematics, they just constantly interrupt the flow of gameplay....
"There were about 120 cinematics to do, it was too big an overscope".
Holy heck, I can only imagine how cinematic Dread was going to be otherwise. As much as I liked the cutscenes in Dread, I also like how the environments in Metroid games normally tell the story in a more subtle way.
Welcome to most workplaces in the world!
Look into those unproven claims made years ago this studio attracts a lot of FUD.
@Lordplops exactly...it is just common in the offices
Dread is an amazing game though I'm really curious on what was the actual situation of the Dread team within the studio. We still don't know the full story. We still haven't heard Mercury's side. At the end of the day we only have these "former" employees' words.
Why would a good game be a result of a "mis-managed" team?
Why are we just knowing about this now after Dread released? Too many questions.
I'm not siding with the studio; just saying we still don't know the full story to draw concrete, logical [and non-rash] conclusions. Comments need to chill.
"The bad atmosphere is constant and it is very tense" .. Just like the game itself !!!
@CharlieGirl sure, I'll just use my Charles Xavier-level mental powers to make people grow a thicker skin, hang on GNNNNNN....trying...GNNNNNNNN....right, if you could just check in all the offices up and down the country and let me know if it's worked? Cheers.
Sounds like Mercury Steam have some HR issues to address! Of course it won't reflect sales and won't change my mind on getting the game but I do agree that maybe Nintendo should just buy them seeing as they clearly like their work. Change things from the ground up then. Other than that, HR problems aren't going to change my enjoyment of a game I've been waiting for for YEARS.
Just what the game needs in the home stretch before holiday sales
@CharlieGirl
Stress is part of any job, that's the nature of life. But yes there should be measures or things in place so it doesn't get so bad, of course this varies from person to person. Nothing here is a case of "deal with that".
In regards to the game, you are missing out, if you are not willing to support the developer because of allegations like this, you should probably just stop buying anything corporate, which is incredibly hard not to do.
@Lordplops I would be very careful before you assume that - you may be contributing to the problem.
Sad to see a decade's worth of bad management continue even as their games got better in quality.
I work in office environment, well home office for now but it is great and I never had issues. Maybe it is in the gaming industry only?
Between the article and the comments, it sounds like the folks in the article are making use of a platform available to them to talk about issues that affect many/ most of us in our workplaces.
I don’t see how that’s a bad thing
@Rosona agreed - if people stopped buying things because they found something in the production process morally/ethically questionable I think a lot of people might just find themselves starving to death.
So, a small studio makes a successful game that will likely skyrocket them to new heights, and former employees are coming forward to allege misconduct and a poor working environment? Would these people have even bothered doing this if Metroid had flopped? Opportunists always show their true colors whenever someone or something achieves success.
@DiggleDog Eh I don't buy it. Negative things are always newsworthy and always blow up.
What is being hoped to be achieved with these complaints? All the allegations up to this point seem very minor up to this point. As long as there aren’t major issues like harassment or whatever sounds like these former employees need to just shut it.
Removed - harassment; user is banned
@Lordplops Exactly, it is the same everywhere, nothing new.
@andykara2003 because fanboys have no problem feigning outrage at toxic workplaces in the gaming industry until underrated Nintendo darling Metroid is involved.
Why is any of this my business? This is between the workers and their employer. Bad workplaces bleed good employees, and when all that's left is talent that can't get a job elsewhere the company's quality declines and it risks going under. Why do you think all those EA studios end up closing?
@Lordplops My office job is nothing like this! If we all adopted this attitude then nothing would ever change
@Zeldawakening I don't think this news will affect sales one bit, nor should it.
Retro Studios was in a similar situation, then Nintendo bought them out and settled everything down, and that was before Prime came out.
I’d be happy if Nintendo did the same here, especially as Mercury Steam have proven themselves competent in making truly excellent Metroid games.
@CharlieGirl If you're really THIS confident that not buying the game will do anything, more power to you, but I doubt that a single person not buying the game will completely switch up management, IF it's even true.
Just get a pre-owned copy if you REALLY don't want to support them.
Edit: this doesn't mean I'm ok with a bad work environment or that MercurySteam isn't an awful company. I just don't think that a bad company should stop you from experiencing something. Had to put this here because plenty are mischaracterizing this comment.
What a load of rubbish. A blatant smear campaign. NintendoLife should stick to reviewing video games and stop contributing to cancel culture.
@roz061 good for you - but not all work-places are the same.
Some unbalanced comments in the comments section as expected. That is whilst being some valid points "on one side", to be fair.
Think I'll continue to play dread much like I continued to play WoW
@HotGoomba I wouldn't bother. She already admitted playing games via "other means"
this comment section is yikes can't we just agree that a bad workplace is bad?
@A_WINNER_IS_Mii "Breaking news! People complain about their former employers."
I still complain about my current one 😂
@roz061 Exactly, this attitude is baffling and the reason why things don’t change for the better.
I said on the other thread without so much information about this that the fact that those employees left the company so soon and politely complained doesn't draw a very nice picture of the company.
I speak Spanish and the original article seems 100% genuine. Workers say that their boss told them that there would be work for everyone but before releasing Metroid Dread some employees were fired. It also says that the studio developed too much content and Nintendo cut a big part of it. The development was chaotic, team bosses contradicting each other is bad for workers because they don't know what to do. Bosses don't trust workers, workers are punished for mistakes, punishment include isolation and firing. On top of that, salaries are very low (and the game price is very high).
A bad workplace is bad. Period. Such a shame that the best video game developed by Spaniards according to Metacritic for one of the most important companies in the industry has this story behind.
Absolutely sad comments here! No empathy, support or fight for change or to treat people with decency. Paints a sad picture of society sadly
@andykara2003 "People need to...realise what it’s like to be an adult with serious responsibilities in this world."
You have to be an adult first, though. What I have to remember when I read inflammatory/ignorant comments online is that half of them are posted by kids with no notion of the real world. I have to stop projecting myself onto other people's comments.
@CharlieGirl Good for you - shame others aren’t seeing it this way. Perhaps people don’t like anything bad said about their new shiny game.
@CharlieGirl yeah, maybe. Pretty disheartening though- like the crabs in a bucket that pull the escaping crabs back in. Nobody should have to suffer for their job.
@Lordplops Bringing it to light to get rid of it is also a way of dealing with it, arguably much more so than quietly denying it, 'living with it', and dying from it. Stress is a killer, and no one should normalise it as a part of their or anyone's existence, no company or master or other fictional power is worth such a sacrifice.
@Lordplops "Stress is a part of a lot of jobs, deal with it." BAD take.
Mercury Steam have LOTS of history here. It sounds like the boss is a total tosser. Loads of complaints after Lords of Shadow 1, even more during and after Lords of Shadow 2. Not surprised to see more here.
On the counter side obviously disgruntled employees show things in a bad light, things likely are quite as bad as they say. But that doesn't mean they are good either.
Reading between all the lines it sounds like a bad workplace with a top down toxic culture. That shouldn't be acceptable under "stress is a part of jobs"
@Lordplops Man, when has "Deal with it" ever actually convinced people to drop their complaints? Like, yeah, some stress is normal among some jobs, but it's not sustainable, depending on the amount and industry.
It's especially funny in the gaming industry, because there's a through line between sub-par work environments, game quality/output inevitably suffering, and gamers predictably complaining about the product they get. Oh, but dont you dare tell them to "get over it."
@Patendo @andykara2003 No one is saying that. In a perfect world of course we don't want any "oppression" or "mismanagement" in the workplace. The point is we don't know the full picture. Were the disgruntled employees have solid basis for their claims? Or are these all just something they casually want to do to attract attention since they didn't particularly enjoy their stay in the company?
It's very easy to side with the "accused" even without knowing the full story.
The bottom line is, no company is perfect and you'll never find it. But if you can make a difference in the workplace for the betterment of the employees — awesome. I would do that if I could. But the article is not about poor management [full stop] in general, it's about Mercury Steam being accused of poor management. We are going a bit out of topic.
Is this topic really bad as it looks? Oh of course, no doubt. But it doesn't take away the fact that yes, Mercury Steam need to get their sh*t together, if all of this is true. And also the fact that there were employees/developers who actually did hard work on the game and deserves to be commended. You don't want to buy the game? That's perfectly fine; that's your prerogative and doesn't even warrant an argument IMHO. If you think that's the right thing to do then go for it. Don't let people tell you otherwise.
@Dr_Corndog Look at all the comments here comparing this to their work environments - plenty of adults in work. And nothing wrong with showing younger people the realities of adult life, they need to be prepared for it.
1) Those things were already commented back in the day, when Lords of Shadows 2 was released. This studio has well known problems.
2) Toxic and bad enviroment... "deal with it" you people are disgusting.
3) It's not a small studio. Over 160 employees according to wikipedia.
4) Some people are critizising the employees for speaking about this issues. Do you sleep well at night licking companies asses?
@CharlieGirl Or maybe "I suffer at my job because I love Metroid and really want to be part of the next one and want to create something amazing and hope that people will appreciate it by buying it therefore making my work meaningful"
There are many PoVs but I understand yours. I hate CDPR's false marketing about Cyberpunk 2077 with passion and I'll never buy that game.
Ultimately it feels weird to be deciding what's right for other people who are grown-ups perfectly capable of deciding for themselves. I personally don't have the need to tell how others should live their lives or work in their jobs but that's just me I guess.
@Lordplops You sound like you could be one of those managers! Digusting response to belittle the story like that. They talk about more than simply "stress". Did you even read the article?
I kind of love reading the comments on this site because there are so many illogically bad takes it’s unreal.
First few comments at the top basically suggest a group of workers motivated to tear down the company because they have a critically and commercially successful title. Let’s completely ignore the fact that similar complaints were made about the same company several years ago which is mentioned in the article.
Then we have the hot take that, what the complaints are simply describing is the real adult world and that they just can’t cope.
I can’t help but feel you are telling on yourself and are a terrible person to work under or you are a teenager clueless of how work places should function or you have no standards for yourself and think working in terrible conditions is what work is.
So little empathy and want for change among people who most likely make up the working classes is so sad and pathetic.
Is there an anti-work movement in europe or Spain right now?
I’m in a stressful work environment myself, so I feel for these ex-employees at MS. It’s odd though. If I went on Twitter and started complaining about the stuff at my job (if I quit) there would be no platform. My boss was an incompetent manager who made everyone else’s job harder…disorganized…didn’t plan anything. No media site would care about it. But since this is a prolific game that’s hot right now…we’re acting like MS employed child labor or killed puppies or something. The accusations seem all over the place.
I don’t doubt it’s true.
Stressful work environments suck. Airing this dirty laundry in public might make Nintendo look into it, but it might not.
Idk…lol…just because it’s a game and we like it, doesn’t mean these work problems are actually atrocities…all it means is that MS has a management problem and will continue to have one if they don’t address these issues. It will culminate into high turn over rates, low morale, and crappy products in the future other wise.
@BlackenedHalo Being "common in the offices" doesnt make toxic management behavior any better
@Zyph I've not sided with anyone...... I suggest reading my post.
Do I dare even put out my opinion here? I haven't seen this much disagreement in a long time.
@LUIGITORNADO Whilst it’s natural that those with the bigger platform get the most attention, I read your comment and I’m sorry you have to deal with that workplace.
@andisart I am in management - I employ a David Brent/Willy Wonka-style workplace ethos.
@NintonicGamer Not in a world where people still 'believe' that living animals entering a building, exiting dead and cut up, is somehow 'animal friendly' because it would be inconvenient to believe otherwise when the consumer wants the 'product'. People will deny what would cause them to have to change to have their soul and mind and body in balance. And then they'll take drugs of any sort to suppress the symptoms of the lack of balance. And be surprised if the society they allowed to exist turns against them with the same disconnection, denial, and apathy. A sad, sad truth, for which I haven't found a cure yet, except making as sure as possible that I'm not feeding it or being fed by it.
"As long as their are slaughterhouses, there will be battlefields" - Leo Tolstoi, War and Peace.
@ModdedInkling I disagree- I saw you in the NOS comments section- you’ve definitely seen more disagreement!
@Patendo I did and that's how I assumed it was. If not, my bad. I also added some things in my post.
@Kid_Sickarus
Good point...
@Lordplops Explains a lot.
Yep, sounds like a job. If work was always pleasant we wouldn't work to live. Or at least that should be the sentiment. Too many people think working in video games is some kind of a dream. It's a job.
@CharlieGirl Well said. Very disturbing practice...
Imagine purchasing decisions based on people's choice to stick to a company because they have more passion for what they make than their personal health.
Let's not forget we live in a world where a lot of people have made victim claims on the internet and generated punishments to be dealt before even an investigation to the claims started.
It's contractual, but you can end your employment and go elsewhere.
Well that’s disappointing.
I have worked in a toxic office environment and suffered for it in the past. My current situation is not entirely stress free but it is much, much healthier.
I do not understand those who are pushing the "just suck it up" argument here. There is often a difference between inherent stress of a job and toxicity created by poor management or even (in more extreme cases) outright malice. Conflating the two does nobody any favours and normalises the latter so that change becomes more difficult.
I'm not assuming that we have the full story or that all of the accounts given are accurate but equally there is not enough information to simply dismiss it as "just the way it is" and former employee sour grapes.
@CharlieGirl
Didn't know that I was a cocky person just because I was questioning you. I agree that they shouldn't be treated this way, but I would not personally go to the lengths to not getting the game. Please don't make me look like the bad guy.
@Lordplops True, but does that mean we should just "deal with it", as you said?
If you unpeel the onion about almost anything produced in the arts and entertainment industry, you're going to discover bad practices and/or people angry about something. I've just accepted this and I try to enjoy what I like and trust that serious abuse and malfeasance will sort itself out over time.
Just to further add if you look at this Glass Door reviews it is an abysmal 2.4. That's one of the lowest I could find for a game studio.
Looking at other studios/companies comparatively.
IMO Mercury Steam has always been a badly managed studio.
UPDATE: Konami gets a 2.5. So I guess Jim Sterling had it wrong all along, Konami is not actually the worst. lol
@CharlieGirl if Dread was bad, those folks saying "suck it up" would probably agree with the workers and blame that for the games downfall. But because it's a great game, they don't want to see the warts. Or... They support this practice because they ARE the toxic people in their offices.
Work can certainly be stressful. But you shouldn't feel threatened, afraid or like leadership is out to sink you.
As for Dread, it is an excellent game. Maybe get it used if you don't want to support the studio but still want to play? I hope Nintendo buys them out or something. Didn't they come in and fix Retro Studios during Prime 1's development because the workplace was intense, and after the Nintendo takeover workers were happier and under less crunch?
@NintonicGamer finally, a simple, not toxic comment that neither makes the allegations look false, make the former employees or accusing employees look stupid, or is over the ranks.
If only people could just agree that this is a bad work environment, regardless if it is everywhere or not, and that it should be stopped without yelling at each other in the comment section.
God bless Nintendo Life.
@Jmjfrank I 100% agree with your comment. An awful company shouldn't stop you from experiencing a game.
Some worrying perspectives on life in these comments. Filing "offices are supposed to be stressful" along with "fighting in a relationship is healthy" and "boys will be boys". Hopefully none of you are in management.
@Lordplops yes, but it shouldn't be...
@roz061 unfortunately yourself - and many, many other commenters on here - seem to be under the impression that they live in a world where everyone will hold hands and 'fight the power' unfortunately this is not the case and - as people with actual real-world, office-experience will attest - this will lead to you in most cases losing your livelihood. HR in many companies is a toothless addition that simply dances to the tune of the boss. Put up or shut up, is the way it goes in 99% of companies. And for the record, I never said It was something I agreed with, but yes, it is something you will all have to deal with at some point.
You know, if a project isn't that successful, you can deal with not being credited for it more easily. That's why people might be speaking up about it now that it's popular, nothing wrong with that. It also just makes it more upsetting to those that worked on it, to see that something they helped create is becoming popular.
And yeah workplaces are stressful. That's pointing out another issue though, not excusing it. And as somebody before me already said - this could also just have been the tipping point in people's very stressful lifes. Maybe the previous games weren't as stressful to make.
I'm proud of these people daring to speak up.
@Lordplops But unfair treatment and bullying, such as isolating team members is illegal and should not happen.
I remember seeing similar allegations a few years ago when Lords of Shadow 2 released with no corroborating evidence to back it up, from an employee that was supposedly fired.
It’s important to listen to these allegations with a degree of scrutiny. People will and often do lie to get back at others for perceived wrongs. That doesn’t mean we should disregard the allegations, but we need to make sure the people that are making them can back them up
This sort of frugal reallocation of staff members onto other projects on short notice depending on their performance to the point where the workers felt uncertain and isolated is certainly something that points to a rather nasty general disregard for their workers. Granted, being too hands-on with resource management isn't a crime (though that does not excuse the unneeded stress it causes), and these same devs specifically stated that there were no crunch or payment disputes.
Nonetheless, these reports, in combination with the recent credits debate paints a picture of a company that may not necessarily be overtly malicious, but is most certainly mismanaged and suffers from a worrying lack of respect for the safety of their employees. The game might be excellent, but I'm very hesitant to recommend it to others by this point.
So disappointing. Been very unlucky and still waiting for the special addition to arrive (should be today, fingers crossed) but I have to say stuff like this really can reflect on the game. I'm sure I'll love it, but the games industry needs a major shift. If it wants to be taken seriously then it must take its staff and artists seriously too!
@andykara2003 Unbelievable to read some comments here. I'm sorry to hear that
Something about the internet just makes people so insensitive. I see this a lot. People say the rudest things over email or social media, but then they soften their words in person or on a video call.
As someone who came from an extremely toxic work environment myself, these issues are disappointing to hear. It took me years to find something better — and I finally have. It’s hard work, but it’s worthwhile work, and I have a great group of co workers, and decent bosses.
I can really relate to the “they know people, so they just stay quiet” bit. My old boss was not a nice person at all. And when I say not nice, he’s so petty and small, that if you asked him to be a reference, he’d torpedo you with a perspective employment opportunity, just because you left his “amazing business”. Therefore, I do not list him as a reference, I cannot take the chance, plus, I don’t need him anyway. The point here is, some people are terrible, and some really are as bad as they say.
Metroid Dread is amazing, but I hope that MS can figure out some better practices. Employees, no matter what the job is, deserve good conditions to work in. It’s really just that simple.
@Jmjfrank honestly I could the scenario of Nintendo buying them out actually improving work conditions. The content about overscope, overly large amount of cinematics and so on almost sounded like the game was a success despite MercurySteam management rather than because of it because its nintendo that had to step in to make cuts in these cinematic to clear the literal bottleneck they were causing to development.
Ripped straight from the comments! We’ve been talking about this for a while in the “credits” article.
I’m starting to think Nintendo Life would be better suited as a forum. Aside from the occasional review. the articles aren’t much better than the average post, and the comments section is where all the action is at.
@NotoriousWhiz
And there is something about the internet that makes people anonymously criticize/complain about their workplace to get attention rather than just quitting and finding a better job
Something probably happened to make the person miffed, but who knows what... People even get offended of minor things nowadays.
This whole situation stinks of someone attempting to appeal to the cancel culture for revenge
People are more important than video games.
This what happens when you make a 2d game and sell it for 60$ )))
“I know two more people who are not properly credited but I understand that they are afraid to complain because it seems that they are going to sink your career“
Wow what 🤬 company!
@LUIGITORNADO I live in Europe, and have been on a solitary strike for over 8 years now. Been able to support some individuals, and just happen to have bought a plot of land in Spain, to retreat from society where life is literally considered a (human or otherwise) resource for power and profit, in 'workforce' or 'meat' or cannon fodder and military and / or police force, fighting among each other, and where profit and power literally value one's life in money, or label it 'invalid' if you can't be controlled and / or exploited like me. There's some protesting going on, but even if they 'win' it will be a political movement, not freedom and true equality that wins, as far as I can tell.
The pandemic precautions have been handled poorly everywhere where I live. I can completely relate. I’m sure that will make anyone bitter enough. I hate the company that didn’t stand up for my safety. And it really sucks about people not getting credited. But that IS common in this industry. SO common we all might as well stop buying video games if we’re gonna stop here to stand up for it. I bought the game and don’t regret it. But I do wish the former employees the best.
@CupidStunt should it happen? No. Does it happen? Yes. Will it continue to happen? Until there's some kind of incredible quantum shift in human behaviour, undoubtedly yes.
@Lordplops I'd hate to have you as a friend.
"hey, I'm struggling, and I find this thing to be unfair"
"dEaL wItH iT"
See, when someone highlights an issue, you have two options, you support them in changing the issue, or you do anything else (which is what you did).
You can try to step back a little from what you said but you might as well be the one cracking the whip.
The only thing necessary for evil is for good men should do nothing.
@Zuljaras nah it’s not just video games, I know my current job has a lot of stress and is what I would consider toxic. But the pay is decent, the benefits are great, there is job security if you can keep with agency goals, and their is opportunity for promotion. But you will be worked very hard with little to no thanks and former coworkers say the same things about my current job these people are saying about this devs office culture.
@Chamver loooooool get rekt, banned before I was able to see the comment but get rekt anyway
@PuppyToucher you just get back to filling your quota, PuppyToucher. Those puppies aint gonna touch themselves!
@Lordplops Nobody is saying that it isn't that way. Their problem is your lack of empathy for the employees just because "it happens everywhere". That doesn't at all make it ok to have an awful work environment. I'm not even mad about your constant rambling about how the world isn't perfect and how you'll likely experience a bad workplace in your lifetime. That is 100% true. My problem is how you seem to have nothing but negatively towards this situation, being a huge Debby Downer.
I just realized that both Nintendo Life and Push Square have incredibly toxic comment sections a day apart, both having to do with something controversial a company did, and with both sides of the argument being incredibly obnoxious and stuff, including myself.
Bet they didn’t have any issue taking the paychecks though!
@CharlieGirl Cool - save your money while the rest of us enjoy this masterpiece
I've worked for fantastic organizations with great leadership, yet multiple people would say otherwise in very harsh terms that management had "no clue" and our culture was horrific. The one would even claim abusive. I can't claim to have their experience so maybe that is true but not from my perspective so articles like this, hopefully will lead MS to grow and adjust their approaches, but can just as easily be a few people that just didn't like their job?
I've also worked for some poor managers and felt that way before. Personal relationships are challenging and not everyone mixes. The hope is always that that this leads to a better run company overall, but that needs specific examples, constructive criticisms, and a willingness for both management and staff to want change.
The truth is usually somewhere in the middle and seems to be the case here
@HotGoomba how I come across to you is entirely your problem. I'm not about to dress it up, or try to appear to be some kind of saint to a handful of strangers on the internet, so I suggest you deal with that, too.
Had this not been published by Nintendo, the unempathetic ones wouldn't have cared. But now they have to defend this game and studio somehow. I too have to work in a very high-pressure environment, that does not entitle me to sh*t on others - on the contrary, if their lives improve, that may become an example and improves my industry/organisation as well. So shame on you tough guys!
It's curious that some always seem to see those who complain as virtuous, and those who they complain about as villainous. As the saying goes, there are two sides to every story. At the moment, we're only hearing one side. Perhaps we should all withhold judgement until more facts are known.
@Lordplops Boy, am I glad I don't work for you.
Whole lot of "yet you participate in society, curious" in this comment section. You're all gross.
@Richnj commenting on a thread regarding a subject that most people appear to not have experienced themselves has nothing to do with how I would behave in private. Also please check the spelling on your quotes when you switch into lecture mode.
@Bret that makes two of us.
@CharlieGirl you're just quick to jump on Nintendo as if they have something to do with MercurySteam office policies and environment.
They were contracted to make Metroid Dread for Nintendo. Why aren't you jumping down Konami and Sony? They contracted them for Castlevania: Lords of Shadow, which is a PS4 exclusive.
I feel for those who were affected. I'm still buying the game.
This one kinda falls right in the middle for me:
On one hand it's unrealistic to think that everyone involved in the game's creation had a wonderful time doing it. Workplace stress isn't unique to this developer, or even this field. It's everywhere.
On the other hand it's a hugely disappointing to hear. Dread is a huge success, it's a shame that that isn't reflected in the experience people had making it. However, that doesn't negate the hard work that went into it and it doesn't make it something you should avoid.
There are some serious mental hoops people are jumping through on these comments.
1) Of course there is interest in the game from the media. Whether good or bad, this was a heavily marketed entry in a dormant franchise. Would it get the same airtime if a smaller release? Probably not. This is reality.
2) The message in the article is largely, MS made a great game however, turns out there are accusations they aren't the best employees in the world. There isn't a witch hunt.
3) What do largely anonymous ex-employees get out of giving their story? They won't get money, they won't get attention and they are probably risking their reputation in a competitive labour market. The game has already released and if Diablo 2 sales are anything to go by, poor conditions mean very little in real world sales.
4) Yes lots of industries have toxic and badly managed workplaces. I've worked in some. Does that make it OK? No, we should show solidarity in demanding better. The, 'I suffer as well so why should anyone get it better than me?' is a great way of ensuring nothing ever changes.
5) This isn't saying you shouldn't buy or enjoy the game. Just read and support the broad intent which is that companies like this should do better. How you action it is up to you.
@Kid_Sickarus hahahaha one hand was typing and the other was petting the dog! Never gonna catch me slacking lol
In some fairness, I trust Nintendo is going to look into this given how they reacted to Prime 4's messy development. I doubt they were made fully aware, especially if Mercury Steam's culture encouraged remaining silent.
As for people who refuse to buy the game so to not feel like an enabler's guilt trip, MS already got their money for development. It's too late for that. So just buy the game if you want to play it.
Disgusting how insensitive a lot of these comments are.
Mercury Steam has a terrible reputation among the developer community in Spain. None of this is surprising, all of it is awful.
@Lordplops If you don't like being called out for stupid takes, don't have or share your stupid take.
And I won't change my qoute spelling. Deal with it.
All these articles and yet people still buy and proudly wear Nike, despite being a corrupt corporation.
If you are a worker for anyone else, odds are you are under paid, under appreciated, and over worked.
@Yorumi maybe they have, or there's a lack of authority.
It’s a fairly large project with a lot of personalities. And unfortunately male dominated workplaces tend to be a little toxic
None of this sounds too bad to me, though.. like complaining about getting different directions from different supervisors. Sounds like an entry level employee
Got to 91 per cent completion. That speed shines park thing in Burundia where u have to hit the slopes made sure I quit the game. That was ridiculously hard and couldn’t do it xx good game though xx
@andykara2003 Right, I'm just saying it's easy to get worked up about what strangers on the internet are saying, and forget that a lot of them literally don't know what they're talking about.
@Yorumi Not everything that is abusive is illegal.
Any modern, decent employer knows the importance of promoting a good working environment for their employees. They recognise that if you want to retain talent to make your next project a success.
What's the point of making one good game if no one who made it good wants to work for you again?
And I say this as someone who has recruited for my current employer. Results at any cost, costs more in the long term.
Sounds like most American jobs too.
Not that it excuses it, by any means. It just seems too common
Most of us succeful adults have been there. Only this year, I bailed on a workplace that had developed a toxic culture. People speaking out are trying to do these companies a favor and stop them losing talent. If you can't keep the talent, especially the talent you trained and invested in, then your days are numbered.
Its just really disturbing how people here normalize things like these. Really sad.
Sounds like a pretty dreadful situation...
@Yorumi Given the fact that I and apparently many others in this thread have also experienced abusive or toxic work cultures, the simplest answer would be that yes, these environments do exist across the board and there are not any legal avenues for you to go down.
Dismissing every single complaint as just a disgruntled dev is actually the zebra answer. Since you have to rationalise that not a single one had a valid complaint and that the companies are actually super cool and fair but yet still spit out disgruntled devs.
...and yet they made an awesome game! 🤯 with this new popularity Bring On The Movie!!
@andykara2003
You said something about people needing to grow up and know what it’s like to live in the real world? I’m not sure what you meant by that. I think what you were getting at was that in this era, working at a software developer making video games, people shouldn’t be treated meanly. And, yes… (sigh) but a bit of perspective please, for god sake. i think folks not in 1st world countries would like to have a word with you regarding unpleasant work conditions. Some work conditions are terrible - sitting at a computer coding, while your boss is a pain in your ass? Not terrible... This generation is so flipping precious…newsflash - work is hard. Some times your bosses are *****. get better, become a boss, change the culture. Or, you know, just go on Twitter and bum about it to strangers and hope to go viral.
Make a dread-filled environment to help inspire Metroid Dreads atmosphere? Smart!
It's not because you have a miserable job and are resigned to endure it that everyone should be as miserable as you and just shut up. Are they opportunistic? Well, yeah, if they want us to talk about these issues, the title's launch is the best time.
Proud member of a generation that does not like being yelled at.
@3ric Terrible answer - so far removed from reality. Third world or not, a boss can make your life a living hell. I could comfortably pick apart this point by point but I'm busy.
Well if I wasn't going to.buy this game now, I definitely won't be. Shame on you Nintendo.
I work in mental health and I’ve seen so many Boomers and Gen Xers with significant mental health problems caused by or worsened by poor working environments.
I’m not sure the “everyone’s work environment sucks, deal with it” argument is a solid one.
Edit- the folks I have in mind specifically are retired or made redundant males who didn’t know what the extent of the damage was until they were “free” from the workplace. Depression and anxiety would often manifest.
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The funny part about these commenters who claim they’re happy they never bought the game or regret it, as a result of allegations such as these, will or would wind up playing a pirated version or a friend’s cart of the game regardless. Yet another way of just simply avoiding forking over their own cash under the guise of social justice.
Throwing stones from your glass house.....
Working sucks, I didn't knew those were actual news these days.
It's sad to see so many people defaulting to a "suck it up, Buttercup, work is stressful" attitude towards this. I've been in the workforce for 35 years now, and I'm here to tell you that abusive, stress-inducing bosses are not normal and do not need to be tolerated. They are bad bosses, and if they get good results it's because they had good people working for them, not because they were being good bosses.
Some jobs definitely do involve stress and intense working conditions. I've worked everywhere from call centers to combat zones, and my current job involves danger and stress every day and literally gave me a concussion and five staples in the back of my head less than a month ago. I think I know a thing or two about stress on the job. But good bosses handle the stress with you, they don't add to it. In my time I've definitely worked with people who made the job intolerable, as well as people who knew how to make you feel like you're all in it together and will survive as a team.
I don't know what conditions are like at this studio, and yes there will always be people who are too thin-skinned to survive in the workplace and people who just like to talk smack about former employers. Some or even all of these allegations might just be that kind of thing, I don't know. But I won't automatically assume that, because there are also always going to be bad managers in the real world, and these complaints might just be a genuine response to a toxic work environment.
It's not always true that where there's smoke there's fire, but when you see a whole lot of smoke coming from one particular spot, you should at least acknowledge that there's a chance something is burning, and investigate it properly.
As good as this game is said to be, I'm glad I didn't buy it yet, and I won't buy it until I know the truth about this situation.
It’s funny how quick people are to cancel a small company over some former disgruntled employees when things like this have happened at the biggest corporations in the world for years.
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@Mahatma What phone have you got?
@Kejomo Cancelling would be far too extreme. They just need to be held to account & adjust their working environment.
The question, of course, is all these employees who quit or were fired and are now bitterly speaking out, do they speak for all of the employees who are still working there, perhaps happily?
@Yorumi You're not wrong, this stuff happens for sure. I'm not about to jump on the cancellation train. I just have a problem with everybody just outright dismissing the claims because "work is stressful" (literally one of the very first comments in this thread). Like, maybe we can just not pick a side one way or the other until we've heard more about this?
If this was the first time anyone complained about the studio, I would be way more inclined to dismiss the complaint. People do complain without valid reasons, I've seen this myself. But it's not the first time.
@Yorumi I'm sorry, but I'm struggling to deal with how quickly you went from "look at everyone trying to make out there's some big conspiracy from Corporations" to "look at the big conspiracy from the media and individuals".
I’m surprised at the negative response to the employee complaints, but it goes to show:
You aren’t allowed to say bad things about this game, and the toxic part of the fan base keeps proving it.
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@Mahatma If it's the article I'm thinking, a suicide letter was provided. You think the guy is still running around and is alive, somewhere? You got any proof of that, 'cause NL at least gave a testimony from his (best?) friend, who provided a source to the letter. Just to clarify, I'm talking about the coder for the SNES emulator, is that the one you are referencing?
@Yorumi Counter-point: not all media outlets are like that, and there are some that do continuous updates on certain cases, reporting just the facts. I get you, though. There's a lot of "fake news," but there are still some people with integrity out there, hard as that may be to fathom these days!
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@Nateisawesomeo Good luck.
@BloodNinja It actually shows your bias against the game as this isn't really about Dread's reception. It's a matter of work environment allegations and I do agree with people saying that there's always two sides of the story, although these allegations shouldn't be discarded either. People simply shouldn't jump to a conclusion with so little information on either side.
Also, when are you gonna stop playing victim? People weren't criticizing your comments because you disliked the game as it's being explained to you several times. It's your rude behaviour that bothers others as you disregard anyone that points out the contradictions in your arguments as fanboys and "toxic" despite of you insulting people which is actually toxic and not allowed on the site.
I mean, you are pretty much disregarding any comment that puts these allegations in question as "fanboys". No one can actually be worried of incorrect assumptions which frequently happens on the internet, they are just being "toxic".
@Kejomo A lot of people personally boycott from certain big corporations, I'm not sure if you're aware of that. If you want to stand on principle, you really have to do it as an individual. Sure, the company still does it's thing, but at least you as an individual are no longer participating in what you believe is their bad practice. EA is a great example, haven't bought a game published by them since Cyrsis (original PC release) so while my personal boycott may not break their bank, I get to rest easier at night.
@roy130390 Not interested in engaging with your negativity, please move right along.
@BloodNinja I don't care if you are interested or not or if you feel like it's "negativity"when someone points out what you do and how you behave with others. It's a discuss section, I can address your comments as many times as I want just as you are free to post as much as you want. Feel free to hit the ignore button or whatever but I'll keep replying if I want to.
The current topic shouldn't be derailed to beat the same horse over and over though .
@Yorumi Again, I get you. This article could be the first in many, assuming actual journalism takes place. If that's the case, we will start to see more evidence, as the story seems to be in it's infancy. If not, then we know it's more hearsay.
More employees who don't want to address the issue in the appropriate way so they turn to public internet mobbing where you start out guilty. People just love to air out their dirty laundry!
Oh ***** I knew there was a reason I don’t fully enjoy Dread. Wish I knew this beforehand I have their Castlevania games and they’re just empty shells of games. It’s lacking some soul that other Metroid games have. Even Metroid 4, that everyone online except me, hated to pieces felt like a proper Japanese Metroid game.
Prime series feels like it was made by Americans too.
You can just sense these things. Or at least I can but I’m significantly more intelligent and connoisseur-ish with almost all aspects of my life — including games.
Same reason why I didn’t buy Samus Returns. Japanese devs are just the best at this kind of thing. Take Cave Story. Play the original as much as you can and you can tell it was made by a Japanese person.
Why are they just better over there? Even UK devs who go over there to work WITH Nintendo don’t output games that feel Japanese enough (starfox games).
And no I’m not some gross weeb. For the most part unless the story is unique and amazing I hate those Japanese cartoons. All their characters behave the same, all belong proudly to trope categories. The west is better there as we try to eradicate tropes, at least our best media does so. Why Japan has an addiction to boring cookie cutter characters I’ll never know. But I just know they make better Mario, Metroid, Pokémon games.
Plus I completely HATE their conservative culture. Pathetic how they behave sometimes. Boring place to live.
A great game was produced on time. That tells me everything I need to know about the management and organization of the company. These poor losers who are complaining were given way too many participation trophies.
The ignorance in some of these comments is astounding.
Toxic workplaces are a well-known issue, especially in the video game industry. In many of these cases, addressing the issue with higher-ups or HR resolves nothing. Sometimes drawing public attention to it is the only way that anything is fixed. And it obviously makes more sense to do so when the company is in the spotlight, like after releasing a well-received game.
@progx this may surprise you but this is an article about Metroid Dread for the Nintendo Switch and not Castlevania: Lords of Shadow for the Xbox 360
@somebread gee… really…? I didn’t read. Guess it really is all Nintendo’s fault
Fired workers says negative things about their former workplace surprise surprise.
Maybe we would have something if current employees speak up, but end of the day this just as likely “toxic work place” as it is “disgruntled employees slandering” without anything more.
Toxic workplace environments shouldn't exist, but they certainly do. Those who argue here to "get over it" are in the same camp of thinking that victims need to "toughen up" when they speak up about being abused or worse. It's a disgusting and archaic way of thinking. The correct action after being abused yourself is not to think that others need to suffer the same. It's learn and progress, not regress. If these conditions and transgressions are proven to be true at MercurySteam, then Nintendo should step in to correct things.
@CharlieGirl whatever floats your boat man. I'm still enjoying the game, well worth the price!
You're missing out. 🤷🏾♂️👌🏽
@Einherjar Probably because now that MercurySteam is in the limelight due to Dread, their stories would be more willingly picked up by journalists, because they love juicy scoops. Opportunistic to be sure, but I can see the reasoning: the bigger the studio's name, the more likely people will be to pay attention.
@Arawn93 -or some of the ones interviewed were not fired, but left of their own accord, or were fired for trying to speak out against issues.
I love Dread as much as the next Nintendo fan, but you're giving companies in general too much credit.
While I don't condone employers treating employee's poorly. I don't see how not buying a game you might really like helps, yeah you're not paying for the higher ups, but you're also not giving the good honest devs appreciation for their hard work. That ever occur to any of you? Heck what's boycotting the game going to accomplish? Or when has boycotting something ever accomplished anything?
The biggest example for my point I can think of is Pokemon. When the lets go games came out back than, there were many people who refused to get the game and even go as far as to review bomb them. It didn't stop it's success and now. And we know about Sword and Shield already and Game Freak lied about the latter. And now they're making Pokemon Arceus, the game pokemon fans wished S&S were. And you think that's happening because of the boycotting. Not me.
It’s not often that a successful game gets development backlash, especially if it happens to be one from under Nintendo the last place you’d even expect this kind of thing to come from. Loving the game but kinda hoping the company acts to address these issues before more goodwill is lost.
A lot of people on here are saying "why did they only speak up now?" Well more than likely they have already spoke out but we are only hearing about it again because a major game associated with the company is out, otherwise it wouldn't make news. I do tend to think based on several past incidents that Mercury Steam is a terrible company. Very unfortunate bc they obviously have talented people.
Things aren't always black and white. Some of the complaints are valid while others aren't.
Overscope? Lead and game director contradicting each other? Are we really going to get the pitchforks out for stuff like this? It's completely unreasonable.
However, forcing employees to endanger themselves during the pandemic and questioning people's right to vote? That's super messed up if true.
Maybe we should withhold judgment and see where the story goes?
@MegaVel91 Sure, i can absolutely see that.
Like i said, i'm not questioning any of these statements whatsoever. I just find the timing of it all very coincidental.
Something I've learned the hard way over the years, through personal experience, is that there's always 2 sides to every story.
When you hear only one side- that of disgruntled former employees, and use that to form a conclusive opinion, you set yourself up for total embarrassment.
Until you've heard the viewpoint of the accused, and those currently happily employed, and tried to find the truth in the middle, you're stamping "Gullible" across your chest with a capital G.
soon i plan to buy Metroid Dread, will i feel guity if i buy the game? suport Mercury Steam bad work behavior? i want so much to play Metroid Dread(everyone is saying this game is amazing).
@BlackenedHalo Ya, stuff has to evolve. Besides, you can easily skip the cutscenes.
Good management is really the exception in both the for-profit and non-profit world. Those who would best take care of a group, oftentimes are not the individuals seeking management. It’s a tough one to solve because it relies on the very top of an organization to set an excellent, infectious example. But if they didn’t have that before taking the position, it’s hard to expect that sort of development and the bad times roll on, especially if the money is coming in.
@CharlieGirl I agree that this shouldn't be supported - if the allegations are true. But to be honest, we don't know what's the reality behind the studio's doors. It could be a few low performing employees that were cut and are just trying to sabotage the company like someone else already mentioned.
Unfortunately, people just hear one side of the story and automatically assume they are true. Would like to hear more about a representative portion of current employees and high performers.
If poor management is what made Dread what it is then keep it up game is amazing lol
@BloodNinja my point was that while EA is 100 times worse than Mercury Steam, EA doesn’t care about your personal boycott because they are going to make money. On the other hand this may hurt MS unfairly because none of these allegations have been proven. It’s a few ex employees complaining about a former boss at the time of a huge release. I don’t want to defend them if this turns out to be true but I also don’t want to rush to judgement if it isn’t.
hmm, maybe i should pirate this game
@MegaVel91 and your giving way too much benefit of the doubt to ex employees that left if you honestly think they don’t slander their former workplaces after parting in less then positive note.
Happens everyday and you can see the rants online because there is nothing to lose and they get the personal satisfaction.
I've been mulling over these news and I finally decided to cancel my order for the Limited Edition. I've already supported the genuinely passionate folk over at the company by buying the basic digital edition, so it just didn't feel right to shower the shady execs with even more money. It's not as though I'm trying to encourage others to do the same, just do what feels right to you.
@CrimsonMoonMist
So hearing a one sided account with zero evidence was enough to cancel your preorder…this is exactly what I’m talking about lol
People these days thinks every work dispute is a Blizzard situation and are very susceptible to slander rhetoric.
I guess if a former ex Nintendo employee spreads a shady rumor too with zero evidence/traction we should all just sell our Switch’s immediately then because that is the morally right decision with this logic
@Arawn93 The reason I give so much benefit of the doubt is exactly because they have nothing to lose. With no threat of termination, and retaliation being unlikely, speaking candidly comes more easily.
Plus, after hearing the stories of places like NetherRealm Studios, ActBlizz, and several others, and even more outside of the game dev space, I'm far less willing to be trusting of companies when stuff hits the fan.
Besides, it's been proven time and again when a company has a toxic corporate culture, unless said culture starts costing something on their profits and bottom line, they will do anything to protect the status quo and avoid change. So I'm so sorry I am not willing to give companies more benefit of the doubt than I could throw any of their executive staff.
There is more than one side to every story. These articles are also timed to cash in on Metroid's hype. Very clickable, but there isn't much substance to the complaints.
@Kejomo I doubt this will have any impact on future Metroid games. Mercury Steam isn’t that good to begin with.
While this could all be true...this has a veeerrrrry strong feeling of Deja Vu to it. https://youtu.be/yUjeRl4yO7w?t=860
Similar testimonies occured after Lords of Shadow 2 were released...and these supposed walkouts never had any proof to back up the claim.
Seeing how Nintendo reacted to Retro Studios during Metroid Prime 1 development, where they bought out the studio due to mismanagements from the very horrid boss, it's even harder to justify now as compared to when Konami oversaw them.
I want these employees to be vindicated if this is true...but this news seems very questionable. If it was true, I could see Nintendo dropping connections with the studio. But...we'll have to wait and see.
I find this a bit upsetting tbh. Metroid is a brilliant franchise and my favorite OF ALL video game series. Metroid prime is my number one favorite game of all time and of course the side scrolling ones rank rather high as well. These games require hard work but they know what we want by now....the pressure on these ppl is unnecessary and petty. The problems with "Metroid prime 4" dev had me really worried and it seems to go MUCH deeper. Nintendo used to be ABOVE this sort of problem but it seems they are becoming more and more like Sony and Microsoft. FIX THIS while you still have the chance. We had some disappointments with Metroid prime federation force and Metroid: otherM but they weren't THOSE types of problems. Stop the toxic pressure atmosphere and VALUE the workers...respect the IP....and maybe you can recreate what Nintendo used to be just a short time ago. Metroid Dread and Metroid Samus returns are EXCELLENT games...but you can't keep this up with stories like these marring one of Nintendos best series.
If Metroid dread wasn’t on the mouths of everyone in the industry and being so acclaimed, would I be reading this kind of “news”, it really is pointless reporting this, what should be the outcome, I boycott the game and don’t buy it? I don’t get it, like there isn’t a number of other ways and timely options to address this, let me complaint on the internet and sites will report it, for clickbait…
It's disgusting to see people defending terrible buisiness practises with "well i suffered so its normal" or "thats just how it is". Do you really think these are legitimate things to say that make sense or solve the problem? Or are you just happy to shut down criticism because you like the game. Despicable
Also not buying stuff and public pressure are excellent ways to get companies to not be *****.
And for those who say "well if that's the case then dont buy anything" a) don't you think thats a problem unto itself? And b) realistically there are plenty of companies and buisinesses who operate perfectly ethically so its not like you won't have products you can buy
https://youtu.be/gbrF4g3nWjo
A good response to the people responsible of the "accusations". The editor of Nintendo Life won't like this.
what the hell is "oh how convenient that they waited until after they released a big game to come out with these allegations" supposed to mean? if they had said it earlier then you'd say "oh they're just trying to tank the game's sales to be vindictive; why couldn't they wait until after the game comes out"
The timing of this is suspicious. So far we have heard from a bunch of ex-employees and no one else. If they have a toxic work environment then they should fix it, but I’m not going to make snap judgments based on so little real info.
@Lordplops What an absolutely idiotic comment.
Work place stress is a serious thing and people shouldn't just deal with it.
Enforcing a culture or working yourself in to the ground only benefits a corporation with profits and productivity. If you're willing to do that, more fool you, but it's a practice that needs stamping out.
@geordie reality is difficult for many, so comfort yourself in the fact that you aren't alone.
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@BloodNinja "If that's the case, we will start to see more evidence, as the story seems to be in it's infancy. If not, then we know it's more hearsay."
I'm not sure this is 100% true. The studio is based in Spain and very few reporters have the contacts or confidants for this sort of access.
It's similar to the very infrequent reports of the state of some of the support studios in Asia. We know it's happening even if there aren't a wave of news about it. On the whole Western news has a very short memory and news cycle, especially for things not on it's doorstep, and it quickly moves on to something else.
In this case it's been reported several times before that the boss does a great job of keeping people quiet through a culture of fear and making a point of ruining people's careers. Yes these were just a couple of new articles and a few anonymous posts on things like Glass Door, Neogaf, reddit etc. It COULD be just a few really disgruntled employees but then why don't we see this after the release of every game with so many other studios. Plus there were similar stories after Castlevania LoS1 & 2, this isn't a new thing.
The Glass Door rating of 2.4 is the lowest I could find for any game studio, even Konami gets a 2.5... lol
@Einherjar Actually, allegations of misconduct and problems in the past are far more extensive than they are now. There's some serious controversy that hit them after Lords of Shadow 2.
It's interesting to see Nintendo felt the need to step in and fix the supposed bottleneck. This studio has a somewhat troubled past, which is briefly mentioned here. I remember reading it years ago after Lords of Shadow 2. Maybe they'd be better off if Nintendo just purchased them and restructured the management.
While I can't say I have some insider information and it is very difficult to stand a position on a one sided story, I do fear this is a practice that will become more popular as big companies are starting to source development to studios in countries on which exchange rate represents and advantage, if anything capitalism it's the one thing to blame here (and a tight budget)
@Kalvort yeah, they were trying to make a tense atmosphere to have staffers on the right state of mind 🤭
@Zyph indeed, she once explain to me what a repro cart was, I guess gaming by "other means" help her sleep better at night
@Lyricana Oh really? I guess @MegaVel91 was right on the money then that journos just now picked it up that Dread is creating more clicks. Thanks for the headsup! I'll look into it.
And yes, if these allegation hold water, i'm with you.
It would be beneficial for them to get swallowed by Nintendo, keeping the obvious talent of the actual devs and restructuring their leadership.
@clianvXAi mate, this comment should have a ton more likes/ replies, you did make me laugh 😂
Any corporate job that has deadlines will include stress. Nothing new. Or it’s a new generation of pampered kids who finally have to do real work and complain about it.
@deucezulu22 constant gameplay interruptions are not an evolution
@Lordplops All hail the modern workplace. Definitely best to 'deal with it' rather than take a stand against unacceptable micromanagement and life-shortening stress. You'll change the world someday!
@BlackenedHalo So cutscenes are interruptions now? I've read it all at this point. Again if it bothers you so much, just skip them. While others actually enjoy it, and add layers to the story.
Is that why they chose the title "Dread"? Working at SteamMercury must be dreadful.
Work place stress is one thing - workplace Abuse is another matter. These two aren't the same side if the coin. Management without employees does nothing nor accomplish anything. Work place collaboration produces good product but mismanaged opportunities will be their downfall sooner then later.
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