looks like they splurged beyond their means to get their hands on Bioware and now the people down the chain get screwed because of it. Nicely played EA...yet again.
Ugh, that's really gotta be frightening to be working there and wondering if you'll be one of the unlucky people. For sure PM me as well, Sandblast games has some openings.
PS: This story is following way too closely behind them buying Bioware and Pandemic for so many millions, anyone know if/how much the two things are related?
[/ QUOTE ]
QFT. I hope the PC guys at EA Mythic don't get cut. But its cool seeing the above posts with dudes stepping up to sort them out with similar positions. Mad props to you guys!
Good luck is all I can truly say.
dang, sorry to hear it guys. I'll keep an eye on this too. I might have some contracts available to keep you guys in the black while you're looking for new jobs. mostly I hope you fella's are able to stay and do well.
I have two friends that work at EA and one of them knows as I do that EA is always doing layoffs. One friend even told me that once you get hired at EA you better start applying somewhere else.
Wow, sorry to hear that guys. It must feel pretty empty around the offices there with those six people gone. Try and keep your chins up in the this time of heavy transition for your company.
I have a friend who was hired at EA, and his team was almost immediately shut down once he got there. Thing was - that they didn't bother to tell him. So while he was still working there after learning that he was soon to be out of a job, he went in for his annual review. HR person asked how he would like to see his future growth potential at EA and he answered "well since you fired me a few weeks ago, I think that would be a bit of a hindrance."
WOW! It's awesome to see you guys come forth in support and offering to pick us up if we fall. Things are good though. It is appreciated by us all I'm sure.
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WOW! It's awesome to see you guys come forth in support and offering to pick us up if we fall. Things are good though. It is appreciated by us all I'm sure.
[/ QUOTE ]
Agreed. Very cool to see the community looking out for each other like this.
I'm going to have to echo Rhino in saying that it is being WAY overblown. All of us PC Mythic folk are fine. It was a very small number of people and actually a common practice in our industry (sadly).
Well, the hiring standards at EARS are absolutely appalling, 'cos it's mostly the folks that don't know anything about this stuff that are doing the actual hiring. Any monkey can get a job there. But there's no hiding forever. Eventually the wheat usually gets sorted from the chaff. But yeah, there is a hell of a lot of chaff.
I am not saying that my friend is great, he may be or may not. It doesn't matter. My point was that EA, from "what I have heard" is a company who might tend to make more layoffs when needed more often, so it doesn't surprise me by the news thats all.
It doesn't matter? No, it *does* matter. Because its your friends personal experience that he feels insecure in his job at EA, not the experience of every EA employee. I was there for 8 years without ever feeling insecure about my job. The fact that I had a steady job was about the only good reason to be there. Being good at what you do *does* matter If you want to avoid the cull, sorry. Work hard at being as good as you possibly can at what you do, and you've almost certainly got less chance of being laid off. It's not rocket science. It's not coincidence that the vast majority of the resumes flying out of Perpetual entertainment right now are the shitty ones.
This does suck, and yes the better ones remain and the weaker ones are the first ones to go. So I am sure that no polycounters will be affected:) Even so, I have my fingers crossed for you all.
spark, as mentioned in the thread this was way over blown it was a shockingly small number of people, and zero artists,
personaly think layofs are not always a bad thing, sometimes people are hired that are not right for the job, and even after potential years of moving them around trying to find a place for them. eventualy you just have to let them go. If they are worth their salt they will find another job.
I've been here since ea has bought the company, and i havent feared a layoff at all.
i think since i have been at ea mythic / mythic entertainment that besides this only ... 1 or 2 people have ever been let go. thats nearly 5 years. and less than 10 peopel fired.. in a company of over 200. i really dont see where thats a crazy thing.
Ah, but they DID layoff a Polycounter. Our very own ChainsawXIV, who has been at Mythic longer than I have was one of the people let go. I guess they felt it easier to let go of designers than artist types. :S
Good to hear Rhinokey, got lazy and didn't read all the comments in the thread as I was just waking up:) But sorry to hear about ChainsawX1V, as hearing about anyone being let go isn't a good thing..so good luck.
Pretty sad. Especially since Christmas is right around the corner. Sin is the only p-counter I know of working there, yeah. You can come back to us, Will, we miss you!
Today we are announcing the closure of our studio in Chicago. This is a difficult decision but we are convinced it's the right thing to do for the future of the Games Label and EA.
Within the EA Games Label, we are committed to running each franchise and facility as a city/state, teams with unique creative identities as well as responsibility for product quality, ship dates and profitability. We recognize that games require large investments and extended development cycles. We're willing to take risks, make long-term investments, and to support teams and individuals between launches. But each team is responsible for staying on a reasonable path to profitability. Sticking to that strategy is what gives us the financial resources and flexibility to take risks on new projects.
Unfortunately, EA Chicago hasn't been able to meet that standard. The location has grown dramatically in the past three years while revenue from the games developed there has not. The number of employees has grown from 49 in 2004 to 146 people currently in the new facility in downtown Chicago. As it stands, EA Chicago has no expectation of hitting our profitability targets until FY2011 or later.
Closing EA Chicago is the toughest decision I've made in my career - one that in no way reflects on the talent and dedication of the people who work there. I've enjoyed their games and consider GM Kudo Tsunoda to be one of the best creative minds in our industry. The people impacted by this decision will be treated fairly - we're offering relocation opportunities to many and there will be outplacement assistance and severance for all eligible employees.
I know this decision will be unsettling to many beyond those who work in Chicago. It's important that you understand that we are willing to take creative risks and make long-term investments in people and projects. But the city/state philosophy demands that every project be committed to delivering a reasonable expectation of profitability. It's a performance commitment that binds us together and ensures we have the resources we need to invest back into our people and creative output.
Finally, when EA announced our quarterly earnings last week, John and Warren referenced facility closures. We had planned to include Chicago in that communication but a personal tragedy in the studio - the death of a colleague - resulted in our delaying the announcement out of respect for his family and friends. I apologize for any confusion or concern that caused.
I think you'll find that in addition to tackling some serious challenges, we are making great progress on our business. Consumers have responded well to our new IP and quality scores are tracking up. We are proud of our recent hits, such as Skate and the success we have made in making a solid game with The Simpsons. And we're looking forward to breakout hits like Need For Speed Pro Street, Rockband, Burnout Paradise, Battlefield Bad Company, Army of Two, Crysis, and more in the future with Mass Effect and Mercenaries 2 World in Flames.
i do not have a link handy but the news from friday was that EA chertsey in the UK is closing down, too.that seems to be EA UK's main office (burnout series, black - i believe). not sure how many are affected but it must be another three digits.
this studio: http://www.eaukstudio.com/ea.asp
i like that line from the page (quote taken out of context!): "Electronic Arts has been firing on all cylinders, setting a global standard"
[ QUOTE ]
i like that line from the page (quote taken out of context!): "Electronic Arts has been firing on all cylinders, setting a global standard"
[/ QUOTE ]
heh, ouch.
unlucky people who are in those studios, hopefully they'll either get moved around within the company to a more stable location, or get work elsewhere.
for any of those reading who might work there, Splash Damage are still hiring artists in the UK, get your applications in!
Got to walk around the EA chicago office about a year ago for their grand opening. Very beautiful place in the middle of downtown. It's a shame to see it close down only a year later.
There was a move some time ago to move development out of Chertsey back to Guildford. Im pretty sure that EA Chertsey is staying put, just mainly publishing, ops etc now.
Any of you EA artists that are looking for work in the Dallas area, you should send some resumes and ports our way, we got lots of polycounters working in the Dallas area community.
Replies
If anyone gets affected on these boards please send over a PM and I can see if you could fit a role here at Blizzard.
Sorry guys.
we're always looking for artists at NCsoft Austin. feel free to send me a PM with a link to your portfolio.
Raven's looking for a few good men/women. Hit me up.
I hope you're not getting cut, Chris.
PS: This story is following way too closely behind them buying Bioware and Pandemic for so many millions, anyone know if/how much the two things are related?
cholden works at EA Mythic..
I hope you're not getting cut, Chris.
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Cholden, and like 9000 other Polycounters.
Hold on tight fellas!
[ QUOTE ]
cholden works at EA Mythic..
I hope you're not getting cut, Chris.
[/ QUOTE ]
Cholden, and like 9000 other Polycounters.
Hold on tight fellas!
[/ QUOTE ]
QFT. I hope the PC guys at EA Mythic don't get cut. But its cool seeing the above posts with dudes stepping up to sort them out with similar positions. Mad props to you guys!
Good luck is all I can truly say.
-caseyjones
Truth? No idea.
I wish you guys the best of luck, and sure as hell hope you all make it.
Marcus
Artist - Kaos Studios
and of course, PM me if you're looking for work.
EA has such a nice tint to its name these days.
This is why I don't document my tools and code. (kidding but wouldn't be if I worked at an EA studio...)
John
completely overblown, like.. WAY overblown.
Looks like I'm joining into a great company!
One friend even told me that once you get hired at EA you better start applying somewhere else.
[/ QUOTE ]
He's probably not very good then. They usually let the crappy people go.
Glad to hear that things were all blown out of proportion and you guys are all gainfully employed.
adambrome
completely overblown, like.. WAY overblown.
[/ QUOTE ]
Good to hear it. Keep the sock rocking goin'.
WOW! It's awesome to see you guys come forth in support and offering to pick us up if we fall.
[/ QUOTE ]
Agreed. Very cool to see the community looking out for each other like this.
I'm going to have to echo Rhino in saying that it is being WAY overblown. All of us PC Mythic folk are fine. It was a very small number of people and actually a common practice in our industry (sadly).
[ QUOTE ]
One friend even told me that once you get hired at EA you better start applying somewhere else.
[/ QUOTE ]
He's probably not very good then. They usually let the crappy people go.
[/ QUOTE ]
Yea, cuz we all know: EA stands for quality
Spark
P.S: PM me with those good portfolios if needed
personaly think layofs are not always a bad thing, sometimes people are hired that are not right for the job, and even after potential years of moving them around trying to find a place for them. eventualy you just have to let them go. If they are worth their salt they will find another job.
I've been here since ea has bought the company, and i havent feared a layoff at all.
i think since i have been at ea mythic / mythic entertainment that besides this only ... 1 or 2 people have ever been let go. thats nearly 5 years. and less than 10 peopel fired.. in a company of over 200. i really dont see where thats a crazy thing.
Spark
Anyone from here work there?
here's the memo:
[ QUOTE ]
FROM FRANK GIBEAU
Today we are announcing the closure of our studio in Chicago. This is a difficult decision but we are convinced it's the right thing to do for the future of the Games Label and EA.
Within the EA Games Label, we are committed to running each franchise and facility as a city/state, teams with unique creative identities as well as responsibility for product quality, ship dates and profitability. We recognize that games require large investments and extended development cycles. We're willing to take risks, make long-term investments, and to support teams and individuals between launches. But each team is responsible for staying on a reasonable path to profitability. Sticking to that strategy is what gives us the financial resources and flexibility to take risks on new projects.
Unfortunately, EA Chicago hasn't been able to meet that standard. The location has grown dramatically in the past three years while revenue from the games developed there has not. The number of employees has grown from 49 in 2004 to 146 people currently in the new facility in downtown Chicago. As it stands, EA Chicago has no expectation of hitting our profitability targets until FY2011 or later.
Closing EA Chicago is the toughest decision I've made in my career - one that in no way reflects on the talent and dedication of the people who work there. I've enjoyed their games and consider GM Kudo Tsunoda to be one of the best creative minds in our industry. The people impacted by this decision will be treated fairly - we're offering relocation opportunities to many and there will be outplacement assistance and severance for all eligible employees.
I know this decision will be unsettling to many beyond those who work in Chicago. It's important that you understand that we are willing to take creative risks and make long-term investments in people and projects. But the city/state philosophy demands that every project be committed to delivering a reasonable expectation of profitability. It's a performance commitment that binds us together and ensures we have the resources we need to invest back into our people and creative output.
Finally, when EA announced our quarterly earnings last week, John and Warren referenced facility closures. We had planned to include Chicago in that communication but a personal tragedy in the studio - the death of a colleague - resulted in our delaying the announcement out of respect for his family and friends. I apologize for any confusion or concern that caused.
I think you'll find that in addition to tackling some serious challenges, we are making great progress on our business. Consumers have responded well to our new IP and quality scores are tracking up. We are proud of our recent hits, such as Skate and the success we have made in making a solid game with The Simpsons. And we're looking forward to breakout hits like Need For Speed Pro Street, Rockband, Burnout Paradise, Battlefield Bad Company, Army of Two, Crysis, and more in the future with Mass Effect and Mercenaries 2 World in Flames.
We're definitely headed in the right direction.
Frank
[/ QUOTE ]
this studio: http://www.eaukstudio.com/ea.asp
i like that line from the page (quote taken out of context!): "Electronic Arts has been firing on all cylinders, setting a global standard"
i like that line from the page (quote taken out of context!): "Electronic Arts has been firing on all cylinders, setting a global standard"
[/ QUOTE ]
heh, ouch.
unlucky people who are in those studios, hopefully they'll either get moved around within the company to a more stable location, or get work elsewhere.
for any of those reading who might work there, Splash Damage are still hiring artists in the UK, get your applications in!
There was a move some time ago to move development out of Chertsey back to Guildford. Im pretty sure that EA Chertsey is staying put, just mainly publishing, ops etc now.
[ QUOTE ]
EA Chicago has no expectation of hitting our profitability targets until FY2011 or later.
It's important that you understand that we are willing to take creative risks and make long-term investments in people and projects.
[/ QUOTE ]