Gaming Companies Confuse Coders for Campers⛺
Photo by Felix M. Dorn on Unsplash
I’ve been knocking around for a few years in the software engineering game. I’ve seen a few things. Many things have changed, but unfortunately, some toxic things have stayed the same.
This is a story about my abortive foray into the gaming industry, and what we can learn about the industry from this.
A(nother) failed interview
I’ve spoken about my interview failures in the past. My attempt to join the games industry is similar in some respects as this interview pointed out a potential issue in the job.
During the interview, I was asked, “How do you feel about bringing a sleeping bag to work during crunch time?”. This isn't the type of question a student can laugh at during the interview so I tried to hedge by saying that I would need to check my transport options.
So, all those years ago the infamous crunch culture was alive and well. In the games, industry developers were (and are) expected to bunk down next to their desks. This was still true for this particular role — a testing role testing a racing game (that I actually loved).
Crunch Culture
Let’s get one thing straight: the idea of crunch — those intense periods where developers work night and day to meet looming deadlines — isn’t new or restricted to game developers.
It has become normalized, morphing from a technique to get the team out of a dire emergency gear into a standard operating procedure. It seems we’ve reached a point where companies are not just expecting but planning for employees to live at work, swapping out home comforts for the cold glow of a monitor.
The Secret Developer’s Opinion
The interview question about the sleeping bag wasn’t just off-putting; it was a red flag the size of which I have never seen. Studying meant I was already navigating the tightrope of work-life balance and did not want to give up my youth to a project that frankly I didn’t have an investment in.
I felt that an interview that tried to sell a job with “you’ll need to work unpaid” wasn’t the company for me. If I remember correctly, they didn’t sell the company at all apart from “gamez”.
This isn’t unique to the games industry — those working in tech are often expected to sacrifice simply for the idea of working.
Across the Industry
This expectation of self-sacrifice for the job is not only unsustainable but fundamentally unhealthy. It perpetuates a cycle where burnout is inevitable, creativity is stifled, and innovation takes a backseat to sheer endurance.
I remember completing a take-home task for a job interview. I took a number of hours and honestly, the job was poorly paid. It didn’t matter as the job was for an ethical firm making software for charities and the like. They liked the project, but could I just do it using another technology that would suit them? How about no? I didn’t do the second project and right now I have to say I regret doing the initial project.
That’s just one recent example. It’s time for the tech industry to grow up. We should be treated as skilled professionals not campers prepared to bed down in the office wilderness for the promise of a job.
How?
If only we could bind together as developers and get working conditions increased for everybody (not just a few at big-name companies), we might get somewhere.
If we insisted on professional standards of development rather than relying on AI or the web? What could happen?
If we had respect for ourselves and our abilities we would be able to say no to opportunities that do not respect us or our need to be (well) human. How might that look from the recruitment side?
Conclusion
To those navigating their path in tech, let my story be both a caution and a call to action. It’s time to demand better, not just for us but for the generations of developers to come. Let’s not confuse dedication with self-destruction. After all, the best games, like the best careers, are those where everyone gets to enjoy the journey, not just survive it.