Unionization is Possible for the Games Industry
To think otherwise is accepting the current cycle of never-ending layoffs.
Written by Zanadood (@mrzanadood)
In the face of growing workplace concerns and layoffs, game studios worldwide are inching closer to unionization. Throughout 2023, gaming studios across the industry have laid off 7,000 workers. These workers will now have to refresh their resumes again and set to work on finding another job in the industry. Many will be unsuccessful. Jobs in gaming are now incredibly scarce, and many people have been burned by the industry one too many times.
We are losing a staggering amount of industry experience and skill sets because studios value profit over their people. For people still in the industry, each crunch-filled release and round of layoffs spurs workers to be more vocal about the conditions they face, and they are opting to organize to better their workplace experience. With the unprecedented layoffs in 2023, many view this as the tipping point, with the only solution being collective bargaining.
Instability in the Games Industry
The games industry is known for its terrible work-life balance and job security. Journalists and industry experts have covered this topic extensively, and you can read more about it here. However, this year, it seems to be at a climax. Developers are pouring their hearts into games, knowing that the work will be challenging and wondering if they will still have a job by the time the game is released.
Recently, Bungie, the developer behind the popular Destiny franchise, made headlines for their layoffs. On Monday, October 30th, Bungie laid off around 100 employees (around 10% of their staff), some of whom had been with the company for decades. One of these employees was Michael Salvatori, the musical mastermind behind some of the best original soundtracks in the Halo and Destiny franchises. Bungie’s layoffs were especially surprising because, post-Sony acquisition, higher-ups reiterated that this deal would not affect employment at the company. Unsurprisingly, it seems like they lied.
This news is terrible and only the start of a continuing trend. The total number of employees laid off by game studios in 2023 is over 7,000. This latest round of layoffs has solidified many people's belief that the games industry would benefit extensively from mass unionization.
Layoffs as the New Meta
In a year of unprecedented revenue, many studios are tightening their budgets despite record profits. Executives across the industry are making decisions to let go of staff, and this failure to retain employees is laid squarely at their feet. There have been so many layoffs in 2023 that technical artist Farhan Noor has created a website that documents each instance and how many people have been affected. According to this website, maintained by Zhaoxi Guangnian, over 7,000 people in the industry were laid off in 2023. While this number is staggering, the game industry is making more money than ever, according to these statistics. So why are layoffs and poor working conditions so prevalent?
The lack of regulation and fair labor practices stems from the fact that most studios rely on contract work. Subcontracted workers receive different leave time or other benefits than full-time employees do. The industry at large is changing, and that has affected how executives deal with budgets and layoffs.
Gaming ballooned during the pandemic. It saw a massive boom in spending, and as the years went on, games became more expensive to create. Over the years, studios have scaled to meet the demands of an ever-changing industry. The current culture leads to a long-tailed game development cycle that inevitably ends with the termination of talented people.
A recent example is Singularity Six, the developers of Palia, laying off 10% of their employees after a successful early access launch (Via Polygon). As is often the case, executives could not anticipate a realistic growth metric for their studio. Sadly, the studio will first let go of the average artists and programmers to balance the budget. In an interview with Polygon, International Game Developers Association executive director Dr. Jakin Vela stated, “This has been one of the most volatile periods in the games industry in the last 15 years.” The growth wasn’t sustainable, and now studio executives struggle with smaller budgets and scale for their games.
The real question here is, why is this happening on such a massive scale, and how can it be prevented in the future? In the AAA game space, executives’ salaries have never been higher. Large corporations owning multiple studios and IPs focus on short-term profit over long-term stability. Instead of reevaluating their unfettered drive to increase revenue and executive salaries, these studios use their workforce to balance their budgets, putting profit over their own people.
Thankfully, some studios are working against this narrative. Still, as a whole, the industry is filled with job insecurity, long, arduous hours, and tight deadlines that can affect workers' health and overall well-being. Unions will not directly stave off more layoffs but will increase transparency and promote executive oversight. Although the industry may seem bleak, many studio employees are working to bargain collectively to make positive changes for the industry.
The Gamification of Fair Labor Practices
Since writing is not my full-time job, I work as a high school teacher. I have been in my teaching union for five years and have enjoyed the benefits and security. I pay a fair price to ensure that my employers treat me fairly, that I have a voice in decision-making, and that I have reasonable job security. These benefits are all but absent in the gaming industry, and it is a huge shame. Video games are the biggest form of entertainment today, grossing higher than movies and television. Yet, those longer-established forms of entertainment have unions prepared to fight for their members.
The shining light at the end of this tunnel is that parts of the industry are already working to unionize. Last year, developers at Raven Software voted to unionize and became the first US studio to do so. Since then, efforts have continued to move forward all across the industry.
Unionization at CD Projekt Red
Workers from CD Projekt Red decided to unionize after a round of mass layoffs, where the studio let go of 9% of their staff. Since they are a Polish company, their employees had few hurdles to jump regarding unionizing. Workers established a union chapter called the Polish Gamesdev Workers Union, a branch of a larger and more established workers union called ZZ Inicjatywa Pracownicza. The unionization efforts were a direct reaction to the mass layoffs and the crunch that led up to the release of Cyberpunk 2077.
The organization’s website has a Q/A section stating,
“Trade unions are especially important for gamedev, as most people come here out of passion, and passion can be easily exploited, leading to long working hours, lower pay, and eventually, burning out. A union is meant to minimize all of the above, letting your passion grow and thrive, instead of using it as fuel. Gamedev working conditions also tend to burn creatives early and make them switch industries—which systematically reduces the number of people able to make a difference.”
While this is just one select studio that has unionized, it sparks the conversation. It provides a path for other studios to follow if they so choose.
Unionization at SEGA
Another win for fair labor practices in game development happened earlier this year when workers at SEGA in Irvine, California, voted to form a union. The workers’ action stemmed from a slew of complaints, including wages below the industry average, unclear paths to promotion, and issues with “long-term” workers not getting the benefits of full-time employment status. (Via Gamespot.)
In an unprecedented move, workers at SEGA voted and passed a resolution to form a union across multiple departments and disciplines. It is worth noting that SEGA has not formally recognized this union, unlike Microsoft who voluntarily acknowledged the newly formed union comprised of Quality Assurance workers at ZeniMax Online.
Union-Busting at BioWare
BioWare faces controversy surrounding their alleged union-busting efforts after laying off QA workers who had voted to unionize (Via Inverse). There is an ongoing lawsuit of former employees against the company, and several picket lines have formed outside the studio’s office.
A Brighter Future, Together
Whether or not you believe the industry is on the verge of mass unionization, the truth is that we are getting closer to the goal. When game developers have better workplace conditions and job security, everyone wins.
Games will still be released, and they will be better when employees feel valued and appreciated by their studios. We have lost irreplaceable institutional knowledge through the massive layoffs this year, and unionization efforts are one of the only ways to stop the damaging cycles of callous profiteering running rampant in the gaming industry.
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