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Despite Huge Sales, Borderlands 3 Developers Are Getting Stiffed On Bonuses (Kotaku/Jason Schreier)


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Randy Pitchford might have done something underhanded?!?  Quelle surprise!

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The video game Borderlands 3 was a big sales success when it launched last fall, according to its publisher, 2K, which described it as “a billion-dollar global brand.” That’s why it was shocking to employees at Gearbox, the developer of the game, when the studio’s CEO, Randy Pitchford, told them yesterday that they would not receive the significant royalty bonuses they expected.

 

Employees at the studio will get small bonus checks, but nothing close to the tens of thousands or even hundreds of thousands that many had expected. This account is based on conversations with six people close to Gearbox, all speaking anonymously because they were not authorized to talk about what happened. Some said it was crushing news that has upended their financial plans for the future.

 

Pitchford also told Gearbox developers that if they weren’t happy with the royalty system, they were welcome to quit, according to those who were in the meeting

 

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Serious scum bag shit. His "magic" trick of portraying himself as a fun loving, every man has well worn off and he should be removed from his position. Furthermore, I hope that there is legal action that can be taken so those who had had hopes of monetary gain from sales can be compensated.

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Without specifics hard to even judge this.  

 

They pay below market?  By how much?  What was the projected bonus?  Were these employees setting up unrealistic expectations.  Expecting hundreds of thousands in bonuses? Speaking to 6 people with a potential axe to grind doesn't tell me a whole lot 

 

It sounds like those that were around during Borderlands 2 made quite a lot more than other developers in the field due to this program.  

 

I'd have to guess due to it being contractually promised that the employees should be able to see the financials associated with all this to see their potential share of the profits.  I'd assume litigation if Gearbox is actually scamming them.

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The game had sold very well—“We expect lifetime unit sales to be a record for the series,” said Strauss Zelnick, CEO of 2K parent company Take-Two, on an earnings call in February—but it cost way too much to make. One large factor was a technology swap midway through development, from the Unreal Engine 3 to Unreal Engine 4, which added a great deal of time to the project. In addition, before Gearbox could receive any royalties from publisher 2K, Borderlands 3 would have to recoup not just the game’s entire budget (around $95 million) but also the budget for all of the downloadable content (for a sum closer to $140 million), thanks to a contract that the two companies had signed.

Maybe they will get bigger bonuses later?

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45 minutes ago, ManUtdRedDevils said:

The “if you don’t like it, you are welcome to quit” is the new standard tool used by management to boost morale. 

 

It kinda reminds me of a co-worker right before the shit hit the fan.

They cut people's hours where I work and one guy works overnights and one of the other employees suggested maybe she get some of his shifts. And he was like "hell no, I'll find a job someplace else if that happens" and I told him places probably aren't really hiring right now, and he assured me that oh there are places that will take a guy.

Then the hotel closed the Friday of the same week.

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46 minutes ago, Keyser_Soze said:

 

It kinda reminds me of a co-worker right before the shit hit the fan.

They cut people's hours where I work and one guy works overnights and one of the other employees suggested maybe she get some of his shifts. And he was like "hell no, I'll find a job someplace else if that happens" and I told him places probably aren't really hiring right now, and he assured me that oh there are places that will take a guy.

Then the hotel closed the Friday of the same week.

Did the guy ever find work or is he living in a dumpster now? I can't stand the suspense!

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37 minutes ago, Remarkableriots said:

Did the guy ever find work or is he living in a dumpster now? I can't stand the suspense!

 

I'm assuming he's sitting at home like the rest of us.

I mean he had two jobs but he didn't know if the other hotel was going to close as of two weeks ago.

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