Everywhere there are firings and layoffs – but not at Larian. The very developer is now harshly criticizing other companies.
Looking back at the last few months, there have actually been plenty of cool game releases. It’s a pretty good time to have video games as a hobby. However, times are not so good if you are a developer at the companies producing these games. Because massive layoffs are repeatedly on the agenda.
This doesn’t have to be the case – at least one of the developers from Larian, the team behind Baldur’s Gate 3, thinks so.
What has happened in recent years? No matter which major game studio you look at right now, there are huge waves of layoffs almost everywhere. We reported several times about Activision Blizzard, but companies like Xbox or PlayStation have also laid off numerous developers. It is often implied that layoffs are somewhat obscured because developers are essentially forced to leave the company due to adjustments to rules – like home office options.
What has been said now? In an interview with Game File during the Game Developer Choice Awards, Larian’s Director of Publishing, Michael Douse, spoke about his current opinion on the industry itself. Larian is the developer of Baldur’s Gate 3 and is unique in several respects. On one hand, Larian has achieved a (then unexpected) worldwide success with Baldur’s Gate 3, on the other hand, Larian is not on the stock market – the company is entirely in the hands of Swen Vincke.
Douse commented on the current waves of layoffs:
None of these companies are in danger of going bankrupt. They are only in danger of scaring the shareholders. And that’s okay. That’s how they operate. The function of a publicly traded company is to generate growth for the investors… And not to create a good climate for the employees.
Douse also believes that companies are currently confirming each other to enforce such waves of layoffs:
This is avoidable bullshit. That’s really all it is. That’s why you are currently seeing [one wave of layoffs] after another. Because the companies say to themselves: “Good, finally. Now we can do that too. We wanted to do that for a long time. Everyone else is doing it too. So why not us?” That’s really kind of sick.
Although this is quite a sober view, it mostly corresponds to the truth. The shareholders investing in a company want share price gains – and these can indeed be achieved in the short term through layoffs.
Douse also talks about why Larian is not on the stock market:
To create the games we want to develop, we would have more money if we went public, but that would be anti-ethical to the quality part we want to maintain. It wouldn’t make our games better. It would just rush us.
In this context, Douse is also of the opinion that it is actually a pretty good time for video game developers, as he says:
We should look humbly at the current time period. It doesn’t feel like we are filled with humility as an industry.
On one hand, Larian can afford to say this because they are not publicly traded. On the other hand, that’s also the reason why they appear to be in a solid position, not needing to lay off employees just because the rest of the world is doing so.
Baldur’s Gate 3 and its developers are scoring points everywhere anyway – recently even with a library.
On one hand, Larian can afford to say this because they are not publicly traded. On the other hand, that’s also the reason why they appear to be in a solid position, not needing to lay off employees just because the rest of the world is doing so.
Baldur’s Gate 3 and its developers are scoring points everywhere anyway – recently even with a library.
