The highlighted part made me laugh. What if he typed that up while he was laying in bed getting ready to sleep?
Hell, most places only accept applications and resumes online anymore anyways. Not much to it long as your resume is up to date.
1. For god's sake mmo gamers, enough with the analogies. They're unnecessary and your comparisons are terrible, dissimilar, and illogical.
2. To posters feeling the need to state how f2p really isn't f2p: Players understand the concept. You aren't privy to some secret the rest are missing. You're embarrassing yourself.
3. Yes, Cpt. Obvious, we're not industry experts. Now run along and let the big people use the forums for their purpose.
Ive personally went through this crap twice in my life , working for companies with management that is clueless on how to manage money and deadlines. In the end though its not them that suffer, its the regular employee that gets screwed and they continue to live their lavish lifestyle. You can go back to mythic IE now bioware and see this even today. Look at all the guys and girls that lost their lives because of poor management and out of touch Ceo's. How can anyone say that guy isnt putting in apps and a resume while he was writing that? Further for the ones talking smack about get a new job and stop whining . Come live in a right to work state and see if your opinion is the same once it happens to you and they can take everything from you. Heck in my state ive watched friends get another job three to four months later before they got their first unemployment check after being laid off. But let me guess some here think unemployment is entitlement to right?
Ive personally went through this crap twice in my life , working for companies with management that is clueless on how to manage money and deadlines. In the end though its not them that suffer, its the regular employee that gets screwed and they continue to live their lavish lifestyle. You can go back to mythic IE now bioware and see this even today. Look at all the guys and girls that lost their lives because of poor management and out of touch Ceo's. How can anyone say that guy isnt putting in apps and a resume while he was writing that? Further for the ones talking smack about get a new job and stop whining . Come live in a right to work state and see if your opinion is the same once it happens to you and they can take everything from you. Heck in my state ive watched friends get another job three to four months later before they got their first unemployment check after being laid off. But let me guess some here think unemployment is entitlement to right?
technically unemployment is insurance (in California) that has been paid into. All the fed extensions are politics.
Kyleran: "Now there's the real trick, learning to accept and enjoy a game for what
it offers rather than pass on what might be a great playing experience
because it lacks a few features you prefer."
John Henry Newman: "A man would do nothing if he waited until he could do it so well that no one could find fault."
FreddyNoNose: "A good game needs no defense; a bad game has no defense." "Easily digested content is just as easily forgotten."
LacedOpium: "So the question that begs to be asked is, if you are not interested in
the game mechanics that define the MMORPG genre, then why are you
playing an MMORPG?"
I was once laid off from a company I worked at for 5 years. At the time I'm sure I went through my own form of grieving.
I played alot of Diablo2 on hardcore mode to keep myself distracted, and barely looked for another job.
After that, and especially looking back at this time, it ended up being one of the most transformative periods in my life.
1. I learned loyalty to an organization was foolish and narrow sighted.
2. Its unrealistic to be selfless working for any orgaziation. Their goals do not match mine. Be a little selfish!
3. Some managers suck but some are truly amazing. You should 'never' work for the sucking ones if you can possibly help it.
4. I am the writer of my own life's story. I best get writing.
blah..blah.. Im boring even myself.
Anyhow, the next 5 years after that, I quadrupled my salary, grew confidence I didnt have much of before, and made my first graphical mmorpg game from scratch (mostly crappy but I finished it without pissing off a state legislature).
I look back at that lay off as one of the 'Best' things that happened to me.
I hope anyone who loses their job looks back at it as a blessing as I do now.
I read somewhere that they almost did receive a bailout. Guess not and the harshness of capitalism is selectively back at work.
I think I'll save my compasion for the farmers getting screwed by monsanto but it would be awesome if we lived in a world where everyone could pursue their dreams free of the looming threat of financial ruin.
Ya. It's sad for a rank and file guy to lose his job... and to have it happen in such a mismanaged manner (usually people are laid off in an orderly fashion and nothing like this debacle)... but c'mon.
38 Studios was a disaster... they ended with over $150 million in debts... and $22 million in assets.
Boo hoo for your loss of camraderie and the loving arms of Curt Schilling. Grow a pair.
I understand how the guy feels, I was on a creative, innovative team, we built a superior product, but behind the scenes politics and finanical mismangement ruined the company and left most of us without a job.
Yeah, sure, I had to suck it up and go get a new gig, but still I can relate to the feelings he's going through.
If he's honest in looking back he'll realize the warning signs were there, but he didn't want to believe that the dream could all go away so quickly.
What else can you say, mistakes were made, all the cards fell down, you move forward, really all anyone can do.
Hopefully he'll find another great job and go on to build meaningful sortware.
(but on a snarky note, his MMO didn't sound very creative to me, so perhaps he could broaden his horizons some in his next role)
Just trying to live long enough to play a new, released MMORPG, playing New Worlds atm
Fools find no pleasure in understanding but delight in airing their own opinions. Pvbs 18:2, NIV
Don't just play games, inhabit virtual worlds™
"This is the most intelligent, well qualified and articulate response to a post I have ever seen on these forums. It's a shame most people here won't have the attention span to read past the second line." - Anon
Looks like they were spending a rather massive amount of money on the Copernicus game unless I am misinterpreting it. I'm curious what the money was going into. Voice acting like SWTOR? The 38 studios wiki states that the Rhode Island Director of Economic Development or something like that resigned around the same time and that their may be a correllation. They had some A+ talent with RA Salvatore and Todd McFarlane, but my guess it was probably just some lame themepark anyway...
Well you know it was a themepark. There isnt an investor with an ounce of saniity left that will throw away money for those shitty FFA PVP sandboxes, and the world is thankful for it. It is bad enough we have to listen to these carebears carry on cause no one wants to make them an " I win" game. Worse would be if we had to listen to how 1337 they are cause they pimp slapped a couple of nOObs.
If they had any balls, they would be in a game where every one has an equal chance to win.
Feel bad for those losing their jobs. It isnt a good time to be searching for a job.
Asking Devs to make AAA sandbox titles is like trying to get fine dining on a McDonalds dollar menu budget.
A "titanic" event. It hurts to watch it sink, but it's even worse to be on it when it happens.
Ken Fisher - Semi retired old fart Network Administrator, now working in Network Security. I don't Forum PVP. If you feel I've attacked you, it was probably by accident. When I don't understand, I ask. Such is not intended as criticism.
What sucks is the fact that, from all the interviews I've seen, it seems like everyone at that company enjoyed what they were doing and had a good enviroment, so it must be even more painful to lose a job at that studio.
I agree,it would hurt a lot more when you are enjoying yourself and it is all ripped away from you.I really blame the people for not having the common sense or vision to realize how volatile this market is.
People in all apsects of life take a following be it to Rush/Metallica/Blizzard/Bioware/Ford/Dodge and no matter what they tend to stick to those fanbase.So for a new kid on block it will be extremely tough to pry those fanbois away from their following,it is like telling a heavy metal fan to start liking rap music.not going to happen.
I said from day 1 that i did not feel good abotu this game making it,not hat i didn't beleive in the peopel working on it,just the marketing and economics did not favor them.
I have said it a few times before,if Blizzard had of released and made the exact same game,it would make millions,that is all there is to it,marketing and a fanbase,it is not about quality.
it is a VERY tough market to get into and the ones that are surviving are the big boys with lots of money to lose.
SOE did NOT want to make EQ,it was a HUGE risk,HOWEVER no competition.
Square was near bankrupt,saved by the merger with Enix and SOE and FFVII for the PS.
Vivendi tried to sell it's gaming division way back, FAR under market value,nobody wanted it.
CCP "EVE" most know how this developer was near bankrupt as well,development was stopped and imo was the reason it was released missing so many MMo components.
Now EVERY genre has been done and there is lots of competition other than Sci-Fi is pretty much Eve now and nothing else.So if any NEW dev wants to try their luck,i would say try the SCI-FI genre but who knows,maybe that si what Blizzard's new game is going for ...hmmm.
Funcom was probably the first mainstream SCi-Fi type MMO,so they didn't compete with EQ and a couple others like UO.
Never forget 3 mile Island and never trust a government official or company spokesman.
For the people that don't understand why they had so many employees... Part of the loan agreement that RI gave them was that they would create 'X' amount of jobs in a certain time period. I think that is why they had way more people than they should have. The biggest mistake made by Schilling was signing that loan agreement in the first place as I strongly believe that niether him nor RI knew that agreement would bring about the end of the company in the long run. There was no way they could meet the terms of that loan and still have a viable company in the end even if KOA sold 5 million boxes.
I would have prefered a tell all, that was really boring.
Yeah...
I hate to sound unsympathetic, but it's a job. Maybe I'm just getting really cynical, I dunno. Much worse things can happen to you. I find myself having a hard time finding any empathy when I read stuff like that. I'd very much like to trade lives with him.
OP could have done a TL;DR: My feelings are hurt because I lost my job, but I'm not telling you what happened. Instead of the, you have to read this.
I was expecting information, and got a sob story instead.
For the people that don't understand why they had so many employees... Part of the loan agreement that RI gave them was that they would create 'X' amount of jobs in a certain time period. I think that is why they had way more people than they should have. The biggest mistake made by Schilling was signing that loan agreement in the first place as I strongly believe that niether him nor RI knew that agreement would bring about the end of the company in the long run. There was no way they could meet the terms of that loan and still have a viable company in the end even if KOA sold 5 million boxes.
Bren
From what I read Shilling was really good in convincing people to give him money but to do so, he made promises that he could not keep. Apparently the company had almost missed payroll two previous times but Shilling got a new source of funding to forestall this. Yet they were still hiring people even knowing that they were running out of cash. The publishing deal they had with EA gave them a lot of money upfront but guaranteed that they would not be getting more money from royalties.
Frankly, I would not be suprised if some of the deals they were making to get extra funding near the end, turn out to be fraudulent. There seem to be some really weird financial gymnastics involved and the RI DA office is investigating.
Like he said " People lose their jobs all the time." Boo Hoo. I lost my job , benefits , 401k faced bankruptcy and foreclosure. Did I write a blog and cry upon my keyboard? No. I filed for unemployment , and went looking for a job. Found another and SAVED MY OWN A$$! The time he spent writing and editing his article, he could have spent looking for a job.
He can look for a job and write a blog post about being screwed over by work. Its really not that hard.
Comments
Hell, most places only accept applications and resumes online anymore anyways. Not much to it long as your resume is up to date.
1. For god's sake mmo gamers, enough with the analogies. They're unnecessary and your comparisons are terrible, dissimilar, and illogical.
2. To posters feeling the need to state how f2p really isn't f2p: Players understand the concept. You aren't privy to some secret the rest are missing. You're embarrassing yourself.
3. Yes, Cpt. Obvious, we're not industry experts. Now run along and let the big people use the forums for their purpose.
Ive personally went through this crap twice in my life , working for companies with management that is clueless on how to manage money and deadlines. In the end though its not them that suffer, its the regular employee that gets screwed and they continue to live their lavish lifestyle. You can go back to mythic IE now bioware and see this even today. Look at all the guys and girls that lost their lives because of poor management and out of touch Ceo's. How can anyone say that guy isnt putting in apps and a resume while he was writing that? Further for the ones talking smack about get a new job and stop whining . Come live in a right to work state and see if your opinion is the same once it happens to you and they can take everything from you. Heck in my state ive watched friends get another job three to four months later before they got their first unemployment check after being laid off. But let me guess some here think unemployment is entitlement to right?
technically unemployment is insurance (in California) that has been paid into. All the fed extensions are politics.
Epic Music: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vAigCvelkhQ&list=PLo9FRw1AkDuQLEz7Gvvaz3ideB2NpFtT1
https://archive.org/details/softwarelibrary_msdos?&sort=-downloads&page=1
Kyleran: "Now there's the real trick, learning to accept and enjoy a game for what it offers rather than pass on what might be a great playing experience because it lacks a few features you prefer."
John Henry Newman: "A man would do nothing if he waited until he could do it so well that no one could find fault."
FreddyNoNose: "A good game needs no defense; a bad game has no defense." "Easily digested content is just as easily forgotten."
LacedOpium: "So the question that begs to be asked is, if you are not interested in the game mechanics that define the MMORPG genre, then why are you playing an MMORPG?"
I feel that article.
I was once laid off from a company I worked at for 5 years. At the time I'm sure I went through my own form of grieving.
I played alot of Diablo2 on hardcore mode to keep myself distracted, and barely looked for another job.
After that, and especially looking back at this time, it ended up being one of the most transformative periods in my life.
1. I learned loyalty to an organization was foolish and narrow sighted.
2. Its unrealistic to be selfless working for any orgaziation. Their goals do not match mine. Be a little selfish!
3. Some managers suck but some are truly amazing. You should 'never' work for the sucking ones if you can possibly help it.
4. I am the writer of my own life's story. I best get writing.
blah..blah.. Im boring even myself.
Anyhow, the next 5 years after that, I quadrupled my salary, grew confidence I didnt have much of before, and made my first graphical mmorpg game from scratch (mostly crappy but I finished it without pissing off a state legislature).
I look back at that lay off as one of the 'Best' things that happened to me.
I hope anyone who loses their job looks back at it as a blessing as I do now.
-blitz
Werewolf Online(R) - Lead Developer
I read somewhere that they almost did receive a bailout. Guess not and the harshness of capitalism is selectively back at work.
I think I'll save my compasion for the farmers getting screwed by monsanto but it would be awesome if we lived in a world where everyone could pursue their dreams free of the looming threat of financial ruin.
Ya. It's sad for a rank and file guy to lose his job... and to have it happen in such a mismanaged manner (usually people are laid off in an orderly fashion and nothing like this debacle)... but c'mon.
38 Studios was a disaster... they ended with over $150 million in debts... and $22 million in assets.
Boo hoo for your loss of camraderie and the loving arms of Curt Schilling. Grow a pair.
I understand how the guy feels, I was on a creative, innovative team, we built a superior product, but behind the scenes politics and finanical mismangement ruined the company and left most of us without a job.
Yeah, sure, I had to suck it up and go get a new gig, but still I can relate to the feelings he's going through.
If he's honest in looking back he'll realize the warning signs were there, but he didn't want to believe that the dream could all go away so quickly.
What else can you say, mistakes were made, all the cards fell down, you move forward, really all anyone can do.
Hopefully he'll find another great job and go on to build meaningful sortware.
(but on a snarky note, his MMO didn't sound very creative to me, so perhaps he could broaden his horizons some in his next role)
"True friends stab you in the front." | Oscar Wilde
"I need to finish" - Christian Wolff: The Accountant
Just trying to live long enough to play a new, released MMORPG, playing New Worlds atm
Fools find no pleasure in understanding but delight in airing their own opinions. Pvbs 18:2, NIV
Don't just play games, inhabit virtual worlds™
"This is the most intelligent, well qualified and articulate response to a post I have ever seen on these forums. It's a shame most people here won't have the attention span to read past the second line." - Anon
Well you know it was a themepark. There isnt an investor with an ounce of saniity left that will throw away money for those shitty FFA PVP sandboxes, and the world is thankful for it. It is bad enough we have to listen to these carebears carry on cause no one wants to make them an " I win" game. Worse would be if we had to listen to how 1337 they are cause they pimp slapped a couple of nOObs.
If they had any balls, they would be in a game where every one has an equal chance to win.
Feel bad for those losing their jobs. It isnt a good time to be searching for a job.
Asking Devs to make AAA sandbox titles is like trying to get fine dining on a McDonalds dollar menu budget.
A "titanic" event. It hurts to watch it sink, but it's even worse to be on it when it happens.
I agree,it would hurt a lot more when you are enjoying yourself and it is all ripped away from you.I really blame the people for not having the common sense or vision to realize how volatile this market is.
People in all apsects of life take a following be it to Rush/Metallica/Blizzard/Bioware/Ford/Dodge and no matter what they tend to stick to those fanbase.So for a new kid on block it will be extremely tough to pry those fanbois away from their following,it is like telling a heavy metal fan to start liking rap music.not going to happen.
I said from day 1 that i did not feel good abotu this game making it,not hat i didn't beleive in the peopel working on it,just the marketing and economics did not favor them.
I have said it a few times before,if Blizzard had of released and made the exact same game,it would make millions,that is all there is to it,marketing and a fanbase,it is not about quality.
it is a VERY tough market to get into and the ones that are surviving are the big boys with lots of money to lose.
SOE did NOT want to make EQ,it was a HUGE risk,HOWEVER no competition.
Square was near bankrupt,saved by the merger with Enix and SOE and FFVII for the PS.
Vivendi tried to sell it's gaming division way back, FAR under market value,nobody wanted it.
CCP "EVE" most know how this developer was near bankrupt as well,development was stopped and imo was the reason it was released missing so many MMo components.
Now EVERY genre has been done and there is lots of competition other than Sci-Fi is pretty much Eve now and nothing else.So if any NEW dev wants to try their luck,i would say try the SCI-FI genre but who knows,maybe that si what Blizzard's new game is going for ...hmmm.
Funcom was probably the first mainstream SCi-Fi type MMO,so they didn't compete with EQ and a couple others like UO.
Never forget 3 mile Island and never trust a government official or company spokesman.
For the people that don't understand why they had so many employees... Part of the loan agreement that RI gave them was that they would create 'X' amount of jobs in a certain time period. I think that is why they had way more people than they should have. The biggest mistake made by Schilling was signing that loan agreement in the first place as I strongly believe that niether him nor RI knew that agreement would bring about the end of the company in the long run. There was no way they could meet the terms of that loan and still have a viable company in the end even if KOA sold 5 million boxes.
Bren
while(horse==dead)
{
beat();
}
I would have prefered a tell all, that was really boring.
Yeah...
I hate to sound unsympathetic, but it's a job. Maybe I'm just getting really cynical, I dunno. Much worse things can happen to you. I find myself having a hard time finding any empathy when I read stuff like that. I'd very much like to trade lives with him.
OP could have done a TL;DR: My feelings are hurt because I lost my job, but I'm not telling you what happened. Instead of the, you have to read this.
I was expecting information, and got a sob story instead.
Sorry if that sunds heartless and uncaring.
From what I read Shilling was really good in convincing people to give him money but to do so, he made promises that he could not keep. Apparently the company had almost missed payroll two previous times but Shilling got a new source of funding to forestall this. Yet they were still hiring people even knowing that they were running out of cash. The publishing deal they had with EA gave them a lot of money upfront but guaranteed that they would not be getting more money from royalties.
Frankly, I would not be suprised if some of the deals they were making to get extra funding near the end, turn out to be fraudulent. There seem to be some really weird financial gymnastics involved and the RI DA office is investigating.
He can look for a job and write a blog post about being screwed over by work. Its really not that hard.