L.A. Noire lead programmer Dave Heironymus has addressed the controversy surrounding his studio’s working conditions, firmly taking the side of his employers. Addressing the former staff members who have accused Team Bondi of awful working conditions, Heironymous paints the situation as an orchestrated effort to “destroy” the company.
“What is the motivation behind these attacks on Team Bondi? If the motivation were to see improvement in the working conditions at Team Bondi, then I’m all for it,” he wrote. “All of the management and staff at Team Bondi want to improve our processes so we can make even better games in a decent timeframe, without burning people out along the way.
“However, some of these comments in recent stories seem to go beyond that. Some ex-employees who left the company years ago want to see Team Bondi destroyed. They want to see 35 game developers out of a job. That seems to me to be a less laudable motivation.”
While he does not deny the incredibly long working hours, Heironymous claims that workers were generously rewarded and that management worked just as hard as anybody else. Nevetheless, he did say that “crunch” development was not a good way to work, and has promised that Bondi will “learn from its mistakes.”
Team Bondi: My Side Of The Story [Gamasutra]
