Some time last month while two artists were working on the highly anticipatedThe Last of Us 2atNaughty Dog, a construction accidentresulted in a large metal beam falling right next to the desk of the artists. Thankfully, no one was hurt and the accident ended up having only minor consequences, but it did bring to light some information about working conditions for those in the gaming industry. These developers work day in and day out, putting in long hours and hard work in order to produce the high caliber games which fans have come to praise so highly, and it is possible that the gaming industry expects too much from these individuals.
For those unaware, Naughty Dog is the developer ofThe Last of Us 2, and is well known for its incredible work on both theUnchartedseries and the originalThe Last of Usfrom 2013. While the hyper-realism these games boast is truly something amazing and worth celebrating, not many have taken the time to consider at what cost that hyper-realism comes. After last month’s accident, these kind of concerns are coming to the forefront of many’s attention. Although the accident didn’t result in any injuries and was ultimately the fault of the construction team, it definitely highlights other problems as well.
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Expectations in the Gaming Industry
In any business, but particularly in the gaming industry, there are expectations from several parties. There are deadlines andsales goals set on developerson one side and mechanical expectations set by the consumers (players) of the product. While all of this has always been the case and likewise has always resulted in a somewhat stressful and work intensive environment, things seem to be getting more and more out of hand as technology, and subsequently the industry’s expectations, advances.
On the one hand, developing video games is truly a labor of love. Given how difficult it is toget into the video game industry, it is highly likely that most of the staff working on games likeThe Last of Us 2are there because of the passion they have for video games and truly enjoy what they are doing, but that does not make the grueling environment any easier to bare. On the other hand, very few other professions would expect this kind of dedication and hard work from employees
So what portion of this expectation comes from the players? Obviously, players have every right to expect a quality product for the money they pay and more than that they have a right to expect what they are promised. If Naughty Dog promises thatEllie will be the most complex character in gamingthen it is only natural that players expect that sort of thing to at least be somewhat true. Ultimately, the pressure put on developers by players is only to be expected, and if any change is to occur, it must first happen from within. Although there’s no use to pretending to understand the inner workings of a development company like Naughty Dog, it is plain to see that there must be better ways to receive the same results.
Players should not expect any immediate change, and should rest assured that thepassion that developers like Naughty Dog has for its gameswon’t be fading any time soon. Rather, an increased awareness and support for the hard work that developers do would likely go a long way to alleviating the stress that these individuals feel on a daily basis trying to meet expectations. Last month’s incident should be viewed as a learning experience, and hopefully will contextualize things for fans moving forward.
The Last of Us 2releases May 29th exclusively for PS4.
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