WARDOGS CEO Addresses 'Mandatory Crunch' Claims
The CEO of WARDOGS developer BULKHEAD has taken to social media to provide clarification on comments regarding crunch at the studio, following quotes made in an interview.
WARDOGS launched last week into early access on PC and has achieved huge success, attracting over two million sales, but some negative feedback has been directed at it amid comments made by its CEO about development crunch.
However, he clarified the situation and provided evidence of the support the studio provides its workers, following news articles that portrayed a different story.
Mandatory Crunch ‘Made Up’
Responding to an article on the matter, Joe Brammer, BULKHEAD CEO, refused to be drawn “into a public debate” about the topic on X, or “any other of these out of context articles,” but detailed some facts about the company.
This includes a denial that crunch is mandatory, stating the article “made this up,” and revealing that over 80% of shares in the studio are owned by 50% of the staff.
Additionally, Brammer added that BULKHEAD “gave everyone the entire month of December off,” and that, for 50% of development, a four-day workweek was adopted.
Finally, he stated that, given the positive reception from players, staff “will be rewarded for it accordingly,” and urged critics to read the full interview he provided, which touched on the crunch comments, to reach their own verdict.
As for the original interview, the area that has been widely highlighted is Brammer essentially admitting that crunch is expected to occur at times, though it’s avoided when possible, and hires are screened for these potential situations.
Speaking to The Game Business Show, he said: “A lot of people who may have an issue with crunch—rightly so, I understand that issue, we always try and avoid it, but we don’t hide that this is going to happen at some point—they often don’t make it in the door.
“Because we want to be known for that: this is a place you come to work hard. If you care about the work you’re making and the result of what you make here, you’ll feel really valued. If you don’t, you will feel slave-driven.”
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