Journal from American Psychological Association : How employers exploit passion

Alex_J

https://psycnet.apa.org/doiLanding?doi=10.1037/pspi0000190

You gotta pay $11 to read the full journal, but if you are on the job hunt this knowledge could save you a lot more than $11. It's scientific journal, which means it's boring. And full of big words. Don't be lazy, read that shit. It may save your life.

If you are reading any game news at all, I probably don't need to point out the relevance of this. Don't assume that nothing bad will happen to you. As soon as you do, it will. Don't wait for somebody else to take action on your behalf. Protect yourself by educating yourself.

Employers demanding passion should be a huge red flag. These are the same tactics used to lure young men into the military to fight in bogus wars. I understand many people have made a decent living working in the AAA sector, and there may be a feeling of, "I made it and I worked hard to make it, so why shouldn't anybody else be able to do the same?"

But it's every persons duty to leave things better than they found them. You're tough and adaptable, you learn to survive under an abusive drunk father, you gonna teach that to your children? Or are you gonna tell them to stay the hell away from grandpa?

Working in AAA, or anywhere, is not a privilege. Don't demean yourself. You have skill, you have talent, you trade that for mutual benefit. It's all one team and one fight. Nobody is above you. Even if you're a know-nothing student, you are worth a lot. You are an investment for the future. Maybe a senior is worth 10x more than you. Maybe the CEO is worth 30x more than you. Nobody who has ever lived is worth 100x what you are. 3000x? Get fucking real. Don't stoop to "get your foot in the door." Refuse to enter until the door is raised to your level. When you and all your friends do this, then you have the power.

Anybody making a dime off exploitative practices is complicit. Doesn't mean they are evil, but they are responsible. Don't earn your living by preying on other peoples faults. Make your living by empowering the team. No industry can survive on exploitation, its a short term tactic that fucks the future. The future is people, and if you are harming people -- not investing in people -- you are doing just as much harm as is possible.

The baby boomers really fucked up a lot of shit. Our generation has to do better. Be an individual, take care of number one, but never at somebody elses expense. Don't let stupid advertising or youtube brats get crazy ideas in your head. Nobody is so much more special than anybody else to make exploitation ethical.

The only person you ever owe your passion to is your family. Anybody else who wants that needs to pay for it big time. Don't sell yourselves short. Let somebody else be the sucker -- it ain't worth it.

sacboi

The baby boomers really fucked up a lot of shit.

...seriously!

As for the article, nothing new there, venal exploitative practices have been the established norm since Adam wore short pants...and vilifying an entire generation for the current worldwide ill's IMO an oxymoronic statement to make given the exponential pace toward oblivion facing all life inhabiting this particular planet is wholly due without exception too 'Production For Profit' ideology that Humankind collectively must take full responsibility. 

Anyway FWIW, advice from a boomer...if it sounds to good to be true then...probably is, so engage the brain alongside some 'good old fashioned' common sense. 

NikhilR

Be passionate yes, but really do know what you're worth, that I think is what is missing.

Alex_J

sacboi said:

and vilifying an entire generation

Full agreement. Just meaning to stem motivation in the younger crowd. Us versus them clicks for a lot of people. I think without someone to point the blame at, a lot of people cannot understand that there is even a problem.

Sorry, whipping boy.

also, yes it's not a revelation to anybody who has been around the block a bit, but I could preach this stuff all day and nobody gonna care. I think it's important to share the same message from a legitimate source. Also, when it comes to official action, there must be credible source like this. So anybody working in the industry who has inclination to do something serious can use this journal to make a case.

The thing about exploitation is, you don't get it until you suffered it. The kind of exploitation we are seeing in entertainment industry is no different in principle from the exploitation that killed millions of innocent people in Vietnam. Young people are highly susceptible to this shit.

Alex_J

NikhilR said:

Be passionate yes, but really do know what you're worth, that I think is what is missing.

I think the main thing is, the culture has to change. That is something every person has to play a role in. One thing I learned looking back on time in military is that every single person makes a massive impact on the workplace. One cruel jackass can make life hell, one good-natured person can hold the entire team together. Rank and status is irrelevant.

So, even if you are the new turd and you think your artwork sucks and everybody is better and smarter than you, realize that you still have a huge influence on the environment around you. Whether you want it or not, that's just the reality. Doesn't matter who you are or where you are coming from. Daddy issues, mommy issues, drug issues, body image issues -- fuck all this shit it's all in your head. You are integral part of the team, so act like it. And goddamn any person who doesn't treat you as integral part of the team.

Look at any community, like PC here or any of the big artist discords or linkedIn, and what do you see? Students apologizing for the quality of their work, students demeaning themselves, professionals perpetuating myths that it's a privilege to hold a certain job. It's neither a healthy culture nor sustainable in the long run.

If you have low self esteem, you will be preyed upon for it. Protect yourself. Fake it till you make it, do whatever you gotta do. You can present yourself however you choose, but don't let low-self esteem make your vulnerable.

A lot of seniors are helping beginners learn the trade and that's awesome, but like, if any young person ask me advice about joining the army, how to pass certain courses, the first thing I tell them is to stay the hell away from the army. Because I don't wanna see 23 year olds with all their limbs gone in service to Lockheed Martin. It's bullshit. In the same vein, how can you give anybody advice about getting their art to standard to get a job at Riot games when you know that company is abusing it's workers?

I realize a lot of people are under NDA and might feel like they have nothing to gain from speaking out about previous bad employers. Or at least not in public place. But I think there needs to be a real conversation. The advice for the beginners is always, "just grinder longer and harder because the standard is so high."

But is that really worth it? For a career with zero security, benefits and salary not up to par, no long-term survivability, and a seemingly toxic culture? Doesn't seem like a smart move to me. But that doesn't mean games or 3d is off the shelf. Just gotta avoid the AAA industry until it gets itself right. Good thing is it's easier than ever to collaborate with people, make games, self-educate. You've got all the power in the world, you just got to apply it.

sacboi

Alex Javor said:

Full agreement. Just meaning to stem motivation in the younger crowd. Us versus them clicks for a lot of people. I think without someone to point the blame at, a lot of people cannot understand that there is even a problem.

Sorry, whipping boy.

also, yes it's not a revelation to anybody who has been around the block a bit, but I could preach this stuff all day and nobody gonna care. I think it's important to share the same message from a legitimate source. Also, when it comes to official action, there must be credible source like this. So anybody working in the industry who has inclination to do something serious can use this journal to make a case.

The thing about exploitation is, you don't get it until you suffered it. The kind of exploitation we are seeing in entertainment industry is no different in principle from the exploitation that killed millions of innocent people in Vietnam. Young people are highly susceptible to this shit.

No harm - no foul, I'm only a crotchety old bugger after all, just sticking up for his fellow wrinkly ho's 'n bro's

Now if you do the math, perhaps conservatively there's maybe 5k'ish fully employed artists ranging from junior all the way up to managerial level across the industry globally however against that you've 5 times the number of fulltime students usually raking up onerous lifelong debt competing for a shot at getting in, so from my perspective as an example, exploitation begins a hellovalot earlier in the chain, practically along way prior to walking out the high school gate.

Furthermore, simply makes my blood boil when I see a post on these boards by either a grad and/or current enrolled student asking for help about something rudimentary that wasn't taught during their course of study but can in most instances be resolved either online or contribution by a PC member...wtf? makes me wonder whether kids these days are truly that naïve or the fault lies in equal measure with these fly-by-night popup so called 'colleges'...  

Alex_J

Certainly a failure of education. I didn't learn how to learn until I was like 28. Had to learn on my own. Course I went to Alabama public school.... I dunno if public education is designed this way or not, but they really teach you the opposite of how to learn. Teach you how to be a dumb robot. Deny all your good inhibitions and just quietly sit and comply with authority. Input, output. No thought required.

But yeah, it is a shame so many young people don't come out of high school or even college knowing how to research, problem solve, exercise professionalism, etc. And that's a big part of why so many will lack self-esteem. Knowledge, for the person who doesn't know how to learn, is like magic. Some "thing" that other people have and understand but you don't. So you feel like an outcast from the club with no way to get the special thing you need for membership.

But, that aside, I think the most important thing is that many young people have a fundamentally wrong view about what society is really like, because it is fundamentally different from what every good instinct our evolution suggest it should be. Like, you are supposed to be able to trust anybody who's part of your tribe. That's just intrinsic. They aren't supposed to trick you, prey on your faults, and certainly not win prestige because of that.

The real crime is that it's not just ethically wrong when somebody preys on the faults of others. It is terrible because it holds all of us back, slows society down, and instead of investing in the future we are robbing it. It is the goddamn dumbest fucking thing you can do to prey on another person. Magnificent, mind-blowing stupidity. A company like EA makes a big profit, the very first thing they should be doing is reinvesting that money in their employees. They will be making smash hit after smash hit that way because they'll have the goddamn best game making team that ever existed. How much fuck-you money does the punk executives and share-holders really need? Apparently much more, because they lay people off after big success. In all my years in the army, I don't think I ever seen or heard of something that mind-blowingly stupid. And I seen some very, very stupid shit.

The kind of passion and drive employers are demanding from juniors should equal a job for life. A legit, real-ass professional job for fucking life. Not an internship. Not a 1 year deal and then you get laid off. A job for life. You want passion? Overtime? Fucking earn it. Be a leader, not a pissy-ass little punk. I got zero patience for this shit. Preying on fucking kids you should be taking care of. Inexcusable. Unforgiveable.

Best thing that anybody can do right now is protect themselves by educating themselves. Thieves can't steal from you if you know their tricks. Sometimes you may have to take one for the team and all, maybe even change your goal post, but no way in hell I could stomach working for a company with the entirely wrong mission just to "get my foot in the door." Only time you should be taking away from others is if you are literally starving, and nobody needs a game dev job to eat.

garcellano

Without reading much into it, the perception of passion can be different for everyone. There's always the story of workers over-working themselves, doing crunch, not getting any reward or recognition, etc., for the sake of a game or project that they don't really know will come out.

I think it shines through more on indie games, or indie devs. If it's a game that a designer has in mind, they'll do what it takes to get it the way they want it. It might be the same with AAA games, it depends, with the Publisher, on what to scrap and what to keep, and having a fine line in between the developer and the publisher.

Alex_J

Yeah for sure. I'm working on an indie game and I work 10-15 hours most days. But that's cause it's my first game and I didn't plan well. Also, I'm having a ton of fun with it. Not really work at all for me. I'd never try to force hours like that on an employee though. It's unethical and I thought it was illegal to work overtime without paying overtime, but I guess not.

A lot of indie studios are working much smarter. They keep the scope of their games within reason, which in the end delivers a better product without extreme working conditions. The kind of graphics fidelity and overall design scope we see from AAA is not necessary to make money. The thing is, they want to make more money always. So it's a breakneck race... to what? Is any artist here working in AAA seeing real returns on their effort? It's really not necessary to work more than 40 hours a week to make $200k a year... especially if you are smart enough to be able to do 3d art.

If crunch seems necessary to meet deadline, that's a failure of planning. If crunch is forced on people at threat of losing their jobs, failure of leadership. Not just honest failure. It's straight insidious. Leaders job is to protect the workers, not protect their own job at expense of the workers. This is straight unforgivable behavior and everybody needs to understand that. There is zero excuse for it.

Eric Chadwick

oh u dudes love them typings

Alex_J

@Eric Chadwick

I'd spend more time listening if somebody else was talking about this. Isn't it important?

I know some people might think this isn't the place for it, but you got tons of aspiring AAA artist here. I think there is no better place to make a stink about what's going on. People should at least be skeptical.

NikhilR

Eric Chadwick said:

oh u dudes love them typings

?

Eric Chadwick

Sorry, I was exploiting your passion, and not in a very nice way. Actually, I was deep in a glass of good whiskey when I posted that. Never mind me, carry on! 

Alex_J

Lol.

I tried really hard to make sense of it.