This Is How They Get Away With It:" Former NetherRealm Studios Contract Devs Reveal a Troubling Studio Culture

[trufenix]

Its not that 'I don't think", of course in a large amount of people there's bound to be bad apples but there's nothing wrong with calling it out when the chance arises, the internet is powerful and if atleast one person reads a post about this topic and feels validated or atleast prevent one potential asshole who reads it and think 'oh so peple react/feel this way if I do this' than I feel justified in spreading just a little awareness.

Okay, but lambasting NRS as a whole in a negative way betrays the many many many people there who aren't assholes, quite a few of them are probably quite nice. Why should the company be "called out" for what may be a very small portion of its culture?

 

[gryphin81]

This sounds horrible, I cant imagine what they're going thru.

 

[MK2D]

I understand the hours. I understand designated breaks and lunches. I understand contractors not getting a full time position. What I don't understand is the pay, or the harassment. They could at the very least pay these guys $16 per hour, if not more. And can we please just treat other human beings like you want to be treated? Not a hard concept.

Yeah, when I was at school I had a contracted job cleaning a grocery store’s floors. I started there as a cashier and the guy doing the floors thought he could use some help, or at least some days off. The money was nearly twice the min. wage I made as a cashier for less total hours and the freedom was nice for a college job. Basically just make sure the work got done before the store opened, which wasn’t difficult and the pay was the same no matter how long it took. Only bad part besides the dirty conditions (naturally) was the late hours were kinda rough with morning classes.

Whether it’s that or game development, there really shouldn’t be a difference in how people are treated or compensated for their efforts.

 

[Marlow]

I think part of the problem with trying to describe this as a 50/50 issue in saying that employees should just turn down the offer is that it ignores how little negotiating power individual employees have in this type of situation. The employer knows how much they pay, they know how much their competitors pay, and they know that if the prospective employee walks away they can likely find someone else desperate enough to take the job. The individual employee can basically just suck it up and hope that someday their situation improves, or try interviewing somewhere else, most likely a similar situation.

 

[Kratilim]

So... I talked to a colleague of mine who has worked at a studio doing third party work for NRS. NRS basically outsourced some work to them. He didn't work for NRS directly, but he spoke to quite a few ppl who did. Not just the higher ups either. He told me that they do tend to crunch a fair bit, but it didn't seem more than other companies. He also told me that a lot of the ppl who work there were very happy working there, but he understood that it might not be everybody's "cup of tea". One thing he did say, was that they tend to change their minds after approving things but not always move the deadlines to compensate. This might sound bad, and it kind of is tbh, but its also not that uncommon in the games industry or any creative process. Its far from ideal. All in all he thought that NRS wasn't as bad as some of the ppl in the stories are making it out to be and that it isn't worse than any other AAA company.

I'm not saying that these business practices are fine and dandy. Because they're not. But what I'm getting at is that this isn't a problem that only applies to NRS, and that you're mainly hearing stories from ppl who got the short end of the stick. Plus, its a problem that reaches far into the whole games industry. I'm still working in the industry myself, but where I work, we don't really do overtime due to the nature of the game we're making. But I've worked in studios that do crunch, and more often than not... It all comes down to bad planning and last minute decisions.

 

[Sugarwatermixlegit]

This is disgusting. I've heard about this happening with other companies but I always thought NRS, the developer I'm so dedicated to and always thought was chill and positive, was safe. This hurts because Mortal Kombat has always been such a huge part of my life, and to know this is what goes on behind the scenes, almost makes me feel guilty.

 

[ZeroSymbolic]

I just want to add that the American farmer has been busting ass doing long hours of back busting labor for pennies and no appreciation for years and he doesn’t work in an air conditioned office either, but nobody knows or cares about this because the American farmer doesn’t take to Twitter and make special groups. He has some pride, hard work is who he is and what he does, and I’m proud to be the son of an American farmer.

 

[Xelz]

So... I talked to a colleague of mine who has worked at a studio doing third party work for NRS. NRS basically outsourced some work to them. He didn't work for NRS directly, but he spoke to quite a few ppl who did. Not just the higher ups either. He told me that they do tend to crunch a fair bit, but it didn't seem more than other companies. He also told me that a lot of the ppl who work there were very happy working there, but he understood that it might not be everybody's "cup of tea". One thing he did say, was that they tend to change their minds after approving things but not always move the deadlines to compensate. This might sound bad, and it kind of is tbh, but its also not that uncommon in the games industry or any creative process. Its far from ideal. All in all he thought that NRS wasn't as bad as some of the ppl in the stories are making it out to be and that it isn't worse than any other AAA company.

I'm not saying that these business practices are fine and dandy. Because they're not. But what I'm getting at is that this isn't a problem that only applies to NRS, and that you're mainly hearing stories from ppl who got the short end of the stick. Plus, its a problem that reaches far into the whole games industry. I'm still working in the industry myself, but where I work, we don't really do overtime due to the nature of the game we're making. But I've worked in studios that do crunch, and more often than not... It all comes down to bad planning and last minute decisions.

Yeah, this practice is faaaaar more common than people realize. You could dig into pretty much any major developer and find similar stories. If people are serious about boycotting developers who do this, then they basically need to stop buying triple A titles and stick to indie games. But I don’t see that happening in large enough numbers to make a difference.

This is awkward to say, but just because NRS did what’s been reported doesn’t mean they’re among the worst of triple A studios. They might even be far above average. It’s good to draw attention to this practice in general, but turning NRS into a poster boy for such problems just because they happened to recently release a successful game is a tad vile. Most disappointing are the journalists who are fueling a pile-on mentality for certain studios while turning a blind eye to others.

 

[Kratilim]

Most disappointing are the journalists who are fueling a pile-on mentality for certain studios while turning a blind eye to others.

Jim Sterling comes to mind.

 

[Scyther]

I just want to add that the American farmer has been busting ass doing long hours of back busting labor for pennies and no appreciation for years and he doesn’t work in an air conditioned office either, but nobody knows or cares about this because the American farmer doesn’t take to Twitter and make special groups. He has some pride, hard work is who he is and what he does, and I’m proud to be the son of an American farmer.

Welp, you heard 'em, folks. Grab your boot strings and pull yourself up. If you don't have boot strings, MAKE THEM by tearing out useful strands of hair and tie them together. No excuses. Once you're up, no complaining whatsoever. Be happy you get to work for pennies, under grueling hours, and without any form of environmental regulations against heat and cold. And if your boss decides to come down on you and all the other ranch hands because he, the boss, didn't do a great job securing the barn doors and all the cows got leaked, well damn it, you deserve it because it was actually probably one of you low-lifes. Prepare for a multi-hour tongue lashing in a cramped room somewhere.

If the American Farmer is dumb enough to suffer, then dab nabbit so should you! -.-

 

[Ck AeroVoid]

Welp, you heard 'em, folks. Grab your boot strings and pull yourself up. If you don't have boot strings, MAKE THEM by tearing out useful strands of hair and tie them together. No excuses. Once you're up, no complaining whatsoever. Be happy you get to work for pennies, under grueling hours, and without any form of environmental regulations against heat and cold. And if your boss decides to come down on you and all the other ranch hands because he, the boss, didn't do a great job securing the barn doors and all the cows got leaked, well damn it, you deserve it because it was actually probably one of you low-lifes. Prepare for a multi-hour tongue lashing in a cramped room somewhere.

If the American Farmer is dumb enough to suffer, then dab nabbit so should you! -.-

nose hair is strong AF so I reccomend using that LmAo-

 

[ZeroSymbolic]

Welp, you heard 'em, folks. Grab your boot strings and pull yourself up. If you don't have boot strings, MAKE THEM by tearing out useful strands of hair and tie them together. No excuses. Once you're up, no complaining whatsoever. Be happy you get to work for pennies, under grueling hours, and without any form of environmental regulations against heat and cold. And if your boss decides to come down on you and all the other ranch hands because he, the boss, didn't do a great job securing the barn doors and all the cows got leaked, well damn it, you deserve it because it was actually probably one of you low-lifes. Prepare for a multi-hour tongue lashing in a cramped room somewhere.

If the American Farmer is dumb enough to suffer, then dab nabbit so should you! -.-

Completely not the point at all. The point is there are people who work a damn sight harder, for a lot less, and bitch a lot less. Working overtime isn’t the end of the world.

 

[JINNOCIDE]

I don't know where y'all live but I think most of you are forgetting that in most countries there's no "oh this job sucks, I'll wait for a better opportunity". People are hungry for jobs and most of them are not getting employed.

 

[Scyther]

Completely not the point at all. The point is there are people who work a damn sight harder, for a lot less, and bitch a lot less. Working overtime isn’t the end of the world.

So, just because another group of people work harder, for less, and keep it their grief to themselves...then all other groups that are experiencing extreme work hours, low pay, and workplace harassment should just stfu and not complain, then? Is that what you're saying?

 

[xXRagingFlameXx]

I just want to add that the American farmer has been busting ass doing long hours of back busting labor for pennies and no appreciation for years and he doesn’t work in an air conditioned office either, but nobody knows or cares about this because the American farmer doesn’t take to Twitter and make special groups. He has some pride, hard work is who he is and what he does, and I’m proud to be the son of an American farmer.

yeehaw

 

[JINNOCIDE]

aaaaaaand the good old "in my day we worked 25h a day and you don't hear me complaining!"

I don't know what these people have in mind to think work under bad conditions equals to be "tough, hard worker".

What's good in a employee who's exhausted from hours long of work? Do you really think he'll keep "producing" the same as when he started? lmao

 

[F6TUS6AT6R]

Half of this seems like typical business and the other half seems like typical things you deal with in a high level creative enviroment...nothing that hasnt been practiced before. Slipknot were getting ashtrays thrown at their head while recording their self titled album...its not uncommon practice to exhaust musicians almost to the point of delirium while recording records...same concept.

 

[ZeroSymbolic]

So, just because another group of people work harder, for less, and keep it their grief to themselves...then all other groups that are experiencing extreme work hours, low pay, and workplace harassment should just stfu and not complain, then? Is that what you're saying?

No the point is that agricultural families live a life about 10X harder than any job, and the service they provide is food, a basic need. Yet most people are content to remain ignorant to their plight, but “oh lord somebody messed with mug vidja games” and we got to have a twitter rally.

 

[kevkopdx]

Half of this seems like typical business and the other half seems like typical things you deal with in a high level creative enviroment...nothing that hasnt been practiced before. Slipknot were getting ashtrays thrown at their head while recording their self titled album...its not uncommon practice to exhaust musicians almost to the point of delirium while recording records...same concept.

Yeah that’s a really great point, like if you don’t want to risk your health, integrity, or moral compass, you know where the door is! lol

 

[Scyther]

No the point is that agricultural families live a life about 10X harder than any job, and the service they provide is food, a basic need. Yet most people are content to remain ignorant to their plight, but “oh lord somebody messed with mug vidja games” and we got to have a twitter rally.

Sorry, I guess I'm just not seeing how what you just said is any different than:

"These guys work harder (10x) than you and don't make a stink about it (no twitter rally), so you shouldn't either (so stfu)."

 

[Marlow]

aaaaaaand the good old "in my day we worked 25h a day and you don't hear me complaining!"

I don't know what these people have in mind to think work under bad conditions equals to be "tough, hard worker".

What's good in a employee who's exhausted from hours long of work? Do you really think he'll keep "producing" the same as when he started? lmao

It's also a little strange to say "Hey, it worked out well for me/this one guy, therefore the system works fine, no need to change it". Like sure, it works out well for the person who gets to the top of the pyramid, but the fact that it crushed a bunch of other people isn't exactly an ideal outcome.

 

[F6TUS6AT6R]

So, just because another group of people work harder, for less, and keep it their grief to themselves...then all other groups that are experiencing extreme work hours, low pay, and workplace harassment should just stfu and not complain, then? Is that what you're saying?

Or they could piss off elsewhere and look for that golden opportunity that pays millions of dollars and has catered lunches with naptime afterwards.

 

[portent]

I think many of you are missing the point of what @ZeroSymbolic is saying.

Never once did he say that the work isn't hard or the hours aren't long, or that the treatment is poor.

What he said is that there are people that CHOOSE to work longer hours for LESS money and CHOOSE not to complain.


If the stories about the treatment at NRS are true, then nobody should be treated that way at work, regardless if they chose the work or not.

HOWEVER, there is accountability on the people who made a choice to work at a dev studio. There have been decades worth of stories about crunch, about the hours and the sleepless nights. Do not let the people who are complaining go completely without accountability here. If the work was too much, if the crunch was too much, if the hours were too much, nevermind the treatment as that is an entirely different story, then these employees had the CHOICE to quit.

Treatment is an entirely different animal. If some of the threats are true, it would be a HR and potential legal nightmare for the studio. The best possible scenario for this is, if the stories are true, then NRS needs to get out in front of it, own up to it, properly compensate those who are deserving, and blaze the trail of changing the crunch culture.

 

[ZeroSymbolic]

Sorry, I guess I'm just not seeing how what you just said is any different than:

"These guys work harder (10x) than you and don't make a stink about it (no twitter rally), so you shouldn't either (so stfu)."

No you are still not getting it. The point I am making is that one guy is feeding the population but nobody cares about his situation, whereas people go apeshit if somebody in entertainment has to work overtime.

 

[ZeroSymbolic]

I think many of you are missing the point of what @ZeroSymbolic is saying.

Never once did he say that the work isn't hard or the hours aren't long, or that the treatment is poor.

What he said is that there are people that CHOOSE to work longer hours for LESS money and CHOOSE not to complain.


If the stories about the treatment at NRS are true, then nobody should be treated that way at work, regardless if they chose the work or not.

HOWEVER, there is accountability on the people who made a choice to work at a dev studio. There have been decades worth of stories about crunch, about the hours and the sleepless nights. Do not let the people who are complaining go completely without accountability here. If the work was too much, if the crunch was too much, if the hours were too much, nevermind the treatment as that is an entirely different story, then these employees had the CHOICE to quit.

Treatment is an entirely different animal. If some of the threats are true, it would be a HR and potential legal nightmare for the studio. The best possible scenario for this is, if the stories are true, then NRS needs to get out in front of it, own up to it, properly compensate those who are deserving, and blaze the trail of changing the crunch culture.

Thank you, you get it.