[Bloomberg] ‘Grand Theft Auto’ Maker Rockstar Games Asks Workers to Return to Office Five Days a Week

[Kokoloko]

Back to the office so they can fire your lazy, unproductive arses. GTA6 grunt work is done, only the core group of crunchers to fire out GTA online 2 shark cards are required.

Headline next week: R* lays off 10% of workforce

Hopefully they move that workforce to RDR3 and another IP.
Its not like RDR wont make profit lmao.
Just start making it now

 

[Infinity]

hopefully the game is great. A lot of key people are missing.

 

[BloodMod]

Ok, there is an escalating issue that I would like to address here.

I don't know how you identify yourselves politically or otherwise, if you consider yourselves "left", or "right" or if you think you're righteous or not. That should not matter.
This forum is about gaming, not a ground for attacking or provoking each other over petty crap like politics.

No more jokes about "woke" or whining about "snowflakes". This childish shit stops now.

 

[Gamernyc78]

Game workers forced back to office oppose “reckless decision” from Rockstar​

Game workers forced back to office oppose “reckless decision” from Rockstar

* Rockstar Games announced on 28th February 2024, that workers will have to be in the office 5 days a week from 15th April 2024 as remote working provisions are withdrawn for the majority of staff. * The news comes one year after 170 Rockstar Games workers in the UK signed a petition...

iwgb.org.uk

 

[Vertigo]

Oh no. They have to actually go in to work! Oh the horror!

/s

Good!

 

[Satoru]

Oh no. They have to actually go in to work! Oh the horror!

/s

Good!

Remote workers also go in to work, they just do it remotely.

Companies offered remote work when it suited them, and people moved away from offices. Companies agreed with this. Companies are now asking people to commute multiple hours per day (and I'm talking 4 to 6h a day for some I know) because they want them in an office to do the same exact work they would do at home.

Add to that that these same companies also have crunch periods that can get to 12h per day, it's going to be funny seeing people having 18h days and making shit pay.

But again, every single take of yours starts from the principle that all workers are evil and lazy, which just shows how some people love to fight against their own self interests because they are complete assholes or psychopaths. Do you want to go to an office and commute multiple hours? Fine. Do you want to stay home and do the exact same work? That should also be fine.

 

[Gamernyc78]

Remote workers also go in to work, they just do it remotely.

Companies offered remote work when it suited them, and people moved away from offices. Companies agreed with this. Companies are now asking people to commute multiple hours per day (and I'm talking 4 to 6h a day for some I know) because they want them in an office to do the same exact work they would do at home.

Add to that that these same companies also have crunch periods that can get to 12h per day, it's going to be funny seeing people having 18h days and making shit pay.

But again, every single take of yours starts from the principle that all workers are evil and lazy, which just shows how some people love to fight against their own self interests because they are complete assholes or psychopaths. Do you want to go to an office and commute multiple hours? Fine. Do you want to stay home and do the exact same work? That should also be fine.

This is me. My commute to work is around 2 hours as I live in Queens and work in Manhattan and the BX. Luckily up until. This month we were completely still remote but now we only have to come in 2/3 days and that will be the norm. The only reason I go in is because I physically have to go to buildings to conduct meetings otherwise the same work I do in the office I do at home because I'm on a computer all day.

 

[shrike0fth0rns]

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In an email to staff on Wednesday reviewed by Bloomberg, Rockstar Head of Publishing Jenn Kolbe said the decision was made for productivity and security reasons. The company has faced several security breaches including a massive dump of early footage from the new Grand Theft Auto and an early trailer that leaked in December.​

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Return-to-office mandates have been a hot topic across various industries since the pandemic forced myriad employees to work from home. More recently, many employers have asked staff to return to the office for two or three days a week. A study last month found that remote work did not have an impact on productivity.​

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Also...

Game workers forced back to office oppose “reckless decision” from Rockstar​

Game workers forced back to office oppose “reckless decision” from Rockstar

* Rockstar Games announced on 28th February 2024, that workers will have to be in the office 5 days a week from 15th April 2024 as remote working provisions are withdrawn for the majority of staff. * The news comes one year after 170 Rockstar Games workers in the UK signed a petition...

iwgb.org.uk

Don’t care about rockstar games but if all these publishers and studios want to save money shouldn’t they be encouraging ppl to work remotely? They would save millions on real estate cost.

 

[Box]

Don’t care about rockstar games but if all these publishers and studios want to save money shouldn’t they be encouraging ppl to work remotely? They would save millions on real estate cost.

They would also be able to fire the useless middle managers

 

[Satoru]

This is me. My commute to work is around 2 hours as I live in Queens and work in Manhattan and the BX. Luckily up until. This month we were completely still remote but now we only have to come in 2/3 days and that will be the norm. The only reason I go in is because I physically have to go to buildings to conduct meetings otherwise the same work I do in the office I do at home because I'm on a computer all day.

My commute when I have to do it is terrible. I have to get up before 6am to be in the office by 8, and that's if there's no traffic. Public transport here is so shit that if I miss the one bus every single one after that is full and won't take more passengers. And I won't talk cancellations, or course.

Then leave work at 5, pray that the bus is not cancelled (they have multiple cancellations per week) and pray that I can be home before 7.

But yeah, I can always sell my home and go to Dublin where I can pay over twice for an apartment half the size.

Apparently I'm lazy though, so there's that.

Oh, and the government just told us that the other bus that takes 3h each way is a sound alternative. Or you can drive, of course, and spend 100 quid a day in parking fees.

Edit: all of this to do the same work, with the difference that when working from home I usually start early and finish late, whereas when working in the office I arrive on time or slightly late and finish on time. And of course there's no checking the email at night, because if flexibility is gone, so is me being bothered after hours.

 

[Gamernyc78]

My commute when I have to do it is terrible. I have to get up before 6am to be in the office by 8, and that's if there's no traffic. Public transport here is so shit that if I miss the one bus every single one after that is full and won't take more passengers. And I won't talk cancellations, or course.

Then leave work at 5, pray that the bus is not cancelled (they have multiple cancellations per week) and pray that I can be home before 7.

But yeah, I can always sell my home and go to Dublin where I can pay over twice for an apartment half the size.

Apparently I'm lazy though, so there's that.

Oh, and the government just told us that the other bus that takes 3h each way is a sound alternative. Or you can drive, of course, and spend 100 quid a day in parking fees.

Edit: all of this to do the same work, with the difference that when working from home I usually start early and finish late, whereas when working in the office I arrive on time or slightly late and finish on time. And of course there's no checking the email at night, because if flexibility is gone, so is me being bothered after hours.

I feel your pain! NYC subways are jam packed generally and I hate it! But at least they are consistent.

 

[Satoru]

I feel your pain! NYC subways are jam packed generally and I hate it! But at least they are consistent.

I wish I had a train nearby, nevermind a subway. The closest train is 20 miles away and with traffic driving there would take me about 1h. So I can't even like go there and then take the train to dublin. The options are

- Very unreliable bus that can take upwards of 2h depending on traffic + may not even stop if full
- Reliable bus that can take over 3h depending on traffic
- Train that is 1h away and still takes around 40 min to get to dublin + metro journey that takes about 20 min
- Car, which is the fastest at around 1h to 1h30, but incurs in a petrol cost of around 15 quid per day + 100 quid parking

 

[Nhomnhom]

As someone who now works 100% from home, I feel for any poor soul that has to work locally.

For jobs that don't require you to be there It's just so inefficient and a waste for everybody involved.

 

[Vertigo]

I’m not implying workers are lazy at all but work from home without question emboldens those who are lazy to continue to do so. They also won’t last in any institution. No one wants dead ends.

Team environment are social places. This can be facilitated in number of ways. Management should also be on site to oversee operations at pretty much all times. I agree that many tasks can be done outside a work facility and that’s fine. But teams should be teams and in person for most jobs.

Seeing work from home end for more and more is a course correction. Those of who are recluses won’t like but if you expect me to feel bad that they have to commute to work like everyone else … not a chance. You can complain about work all you want to the unemployment line. Someone else will put the effort others won’t.

 

[anonpuffs]

Oh no. They have to actually go in to work! Oh the horror!

/s

Good!

the funny thing is that studies have shown that productivity doesnt go up when people RTO.

 

[Remember_Spinal]

This is the soft layoff period, they know certain people can’t actually go into the office for whatever reason (child care, distance, etc.) so they will just resign on their own.

Thats why we’ve been hearing so many stories about people moving across the country to work for a studio and being laid off the next week. They are just trying to weed people out so their numbers don’t look bad when they let people go officially.

GTA6 is probably 95% complete on the development side, a lot of those people are probably sitting around or waiting on the next project at this point.

 

[Satoru]

Seeing work from home end for more and more is a course correction. Those of who are recluses won’t like but if you expect me to feel bad that they have to commute to work like everyone else … not a chance. You can complain about work all you want to the unemployment line. Someone else will put the effort others won’t.

Work from home is ending because the PE firms that own huge stakes in companies are the same PE firms that own real estate funds. Also, nobody expects you to feel bad, you've proven by your comments that you're a sociopath.

 

[Vertigo]

Save your holier than tho bullshit crybaby. Salaries and wages in cities consider commute. You don’t want to commute or scared to leave home then don’t.

Edit: I’m totally not against WFH either. But depends what you signed up for too.

 

[anonpuffs]

Save your holier than tho bullshit crybaby. Salaries and wages in cities consider commute. You don’t want to commute or scared to leave home then don’t.

Edit: I’m totally not against WFH either. But depends what you signed up for too.

So you just want people to be miserable huh?

 

[Vertigo]

So you just want people to be miserable huh?

If you signed on board to a team that meets on site and work from home was a temporary gig then so be it. That’s what they’re asking of you and what you agreed to or what has been collectively bargained should consider you cost of living and commute etc. Wages and salaries lagging is not to be ignored of course but that’s sorta something else.

Positions or tasks that can be efficiently and effectively accomplished outside are more than fine. However, let’s say management wants the team in a social environment and working hand in hand on site… so be it. That’s the environment they want their team in. It’s their ship to guide and those that don’t like it don’t have to be there. There may be a better fit them somewhere else that caters to their wants/needs. Do those jobs exist? Eh… we see how that’s going…

No one is a fan of the spreadsheet layoff. And I don’t rule out any forthcoming bloodthirsty corporate bs from take two either. But I do support the idea that most staff for games in particular should be on site but that doesn’t mean I’m not also fond of what new tools like cloud tech etc has done for play testing etc and being able to take the latest builds home.