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What Take-Two’s CEO Thinks About Unions
Just before the release of Rockstar’s open-world action game Red Dead Redemption 2, reports emerged about the working conditions at the studios that developed the game. This naturally led to a discussion about unions, which are largely non-existent in the video game world. Strauss Zelnick, the CEO of Rockstar’s parent company Take-Two, has now weighed in on the subject of unions. He told GI.biz that it’s “hard to imagine” why his developers would want to unionize, but if they do, management would work on a collective bargaining agreement with them.
Before making his point about unions in the games industry specifically, Zelnick offered a higher-level view of why he believes unions exist in the first place.
“Unions tend to develop when labor relations are not typically non-existent,” Zelnick said. “And typically unions have been most beneficial when there were more workers than there were jobs. And where the jobs were low-paying jobs. We have fewer workers than we have jobs, and they’re high-paying jobs.”
“Right now, Take-Two has 500 open positions. There are 220,000 or so people employed in the US video game business. They make about $100,000 on average, maybe more. It’s hard to imagine what would motivate that crew to unionize,” Zelnick added. “But we’re a compliant company and will serve the law. If our colleagues want to engage in collective bargaining, then we will.”
Unions are common in other popular media industries such as TV and film, but the video game business is largely unionized. Unionization efforts in the video game industry appear to be ramping up of late, with groups like Game Workers Unite appearing at recent industry events like E3 and the Game Developers Conference to spread the message.
The practice of “crunch,” or working overly long hours to finish a development milestone in gaming, is often connected to unionization efforts and measures to improve the work-life balance of developers. Recently, GameSpot spoke with the developers of Ubisoft’s The Division 2, and they told us what is being done to minimize crunch and promote a healthy work-life balance.
from GameSpot – Game News https://www.gamespot.com/articles/what-take-twos-ceo-thinks-about-unions/1100-6467851/
New Nintendo Switch Patch Out Now, Doesn’t Do Much
The latest Nintendo Switch firmware update has arrived, but don’t get too excited. Version 8.1.0 is out now, and it doesn’t do much. The official patch notes are one line long.
“General system stability improvements to enhance the user’s experience,” it states.
Your Switch will most likely download the update automatically if you have it connected to the internet. To verify you have the latest version installed, head to the System Settings menu and look for Version 8.1.0. You can also manually trigger the update on the System Settings menu.
In other Switch news, it was recently reported that production on the rumored new Switch models has begun, and that Nintendo moved production out of China due to the threat of Trump’s tariffs. One of the consoles reportedly has beefier specs, while the other is reportedly a lower-cost alternative that may feature a different form factor.
Nintendo made no hardware announcements at E3, but the company still had a lot to share. Perhaps Nintendo’s biggest news from Nintendo at E3 was the announcement of a sequel to The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild. Additionally, Banjo is coming to Super Smash Bros. Ultimate.
from GameSpot – Game News https://www.gamespot.com/articles/new-nintendo-switch-patch-out-now-doesnt-do-much/1100-6467850/
The Truly Heartwarming Tale Of How Microsoft Bought Double Fine
With Microsoft’s acquisition of quirky indie studio Double Fine Productions, announced during the company’s E3 2019 presentation, Microsoft now has 15 studios under its Xbox Game Studios umbrella. While president Tim Schafer has confirmed the purchase will have no effect on how the California-based studio conducts its business, the company did take to Twitter to satirize the news.
Schafer, in a 30-second video posted to the official Double Fine Twitter account, basically said Microsoft rolled up with “a bunch of money” and made the team an offer they couldn’t refuse. The video features all the slow-mo head movement and melodrama that would make any soap opera jealous.
As you may have heard from the @Xbox E3 briefing moments ago, Double Fine is joining Xbox Game Studios! How did this come about? let’s ask @timoflegend … pic.twitter.com/n6EACVo7OZ
— Double Fine (@DoubleFine) June 9, 2019
The studio’s next game, Rad, a post-apocalyptic action game published by Bandai Namco, is set to release on August 20 for Nintendo Switch, PC, PlayStation 4, and Xbox One. Psychonauts 2–set to arrive sometime in 2020 for PC, PlayStation 4, and Xbox One–will mark the studio’s first game published under the Xbox Game Studios moniker.
More E3 News:
- Zelda: Breath of the Wild 2 teased
- New Xbox console, Scarlett, revealed
- Xbox Scarlett details: 8K, 120 FPS, SSD
- Elden Ring is From Software and George RR Martin’s new game
- Cyberpunk 2077 release date announced
- Final Fantasy VII Remake release date announced
- Marvel’s Avengers revealed
from GameSpot – Game News https://www.gamespot.com/articles/the-truly-heartwarming-tale-of-how-microsoft-bough/1100-6467847/
