If you're looking around wondering how we got such great games like Baldurs Gate 3 and Tears of the Kingdom I want you to consider it is because of companies that retain their talent. Those teams were able to make those games because they got to stick together. - ThreadSky

hopefulbullshit.bsky.social • 400 days ago

If you're looking around wondering how we got such great games like Baldurs Gate 3 and Tears of the Kingdom I want you to consider it is because of companies that retain their talent. Those teams were able to make those games because they got to stick together.

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stevehorton.bsky.social•400 days ago

And then everyone on the D&D digital team at Hasbro got laid off!

hopefulbullshit.bsky.social•399 days ago

While I can see how you might think those two things are related, they probably aren’t. Hasbro made $3b in profit last year. They also didn’t need to perform a layoff.

ironcurtainyc.bsky.social•400 days ago

Also, Larian games had practice by making Divinity:Original Sin 1 & 2 backed by crowdfunding on kickstarter. The reputation they earned got them the official D&D license, so voilà: GOTY material.

clara-de-lemon.bsky.social•400 days ago

You can actually see the evolution in quality with the three titles, Divinity 1 has some cool ideas but its presentation is a bit meh and overall falls a bit flat, while 2 already feels much more expansive. BG3 was just that multiplied by 10

hopefulbullshit.bsky.social•399 days ago

It was a team who was actually allowed to Learn & Grow… 🤔

ironcurtainyc.bsky.social•399 days ago

Yes! And I'm making the argument that crowdfunding such as kickstarter gave them that opportunity!

johnryanwrites.bsky.social•400 days ago

Especially when the talent doesn't have the constant quarterly fear of getting laid off.

In Japan, from what I've been told, the executives take pay cuts when things dip south. Iwata did for Nintendo back in the day, and I admit it's a refreshing thing to see.

ghostgirl.net•400 days ago

That’s due to Japanese laws which make layoffs exceedingly complicated. :/

johnryanwrites.bsky.social•400 days ago

Oh wow. I didn't know that. Thanks. I'll check that out.

I wonder if it's like in Denmark, where you can't be fired without a bunch of hoops being jumped through.

hopefulbullshit.bsky.social•400 days ago

Layoffs are a short-sighted bottom-line increaser that ultimately hurts not just the people who lose their jobs, but that companies who perform the layoffs. Retain your talent, it will pay dividends.

arxareon.bsky.social•400 days ago

I'd also dd that said talent needs to be able to work on their vision as it's best for the project and it's audience. Let them do their jobs & trust they can do it!

I'd certainly trust any artist more than a suit who doesn't have a single idea nor do they care about said project.

hopefulbullshit.bsky.social•400 days ago

As a producer - I think there’s an interesting balance there. It’s certainly true we should let creatives do their best work, but even the best work needs edits. It’s important to not let creativity get in the way of shipping games.

arxareon.bsky.social•400 days ago

Oh definitely - that's done by people who know what they're doing and they have the project & getting it out the door in mind. We need both scope & direction, not everything can or needs to make it in.

I meant people who have no Scooby Doo & only speak the money talk shouldn't make those decisions.

hopefulbullshit.bsky.social•400 days ago

Yeah totally accurate. Anyone who makes decisions based solely on a balance sheet doesn’t have the best interest of developers in mind.

coelasquid.bsky.social•400 days ago

I don’t know if this is as much of an issue in games as it is in animation, but I’ve noticed issues can also come from producers making unrealistic creative demands, like, producers with creative control also need edits as much as artists do-

coelasquid.bsky.social•400 days ago

The best run productions I’ve been on are ones where directors and producers can sit together and troubleshoot the project. Artists who are willing to kill their darlings with producers willing to listen to the reality of how their notes could topple the jenga tower in open conversation

coelasquid.bsky.social•400 days ago

I think in general the best producers are the ones who want to be told when there are issues as soon as possible so they can figure out how to fix the problem early, and the worst producers never want to hear about problems so they can wait for them to fall on the most disposable team members.

thunderowl.one•400 days ago

olwolfpiper.bsky.social•399 days ago

Solid. 💯🐺

chaplainjohn.medsky.social•400 days ago

Literally. The team who did Breath of the Wild had so many ideas that they just built Tears of the Kingdom out of them.

Imagine if other teams got to work like that!

blahpers.bsky.social•400 days ago

Far as I'm concerned, they can run that engine into the ground and I'll keep buying it so long as it stays fun

koblbird.bsky.social•400 days ago

Yeah like if you look at Laryans previous work? You see the Team slowly developing their skill ultimately ending in BG3. Thats what youget when you dont hot seat your development studios to keep wages as low as possible so shareolder can get a bigger cut NOW rather then in a year.

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