Richard Chipchase

It has happened 😔 I'm one of the many Sumo peeps affected by layoffs. I had a fantastic time at Sumo Digital Ltd. I met incredible people that will be lifelong friends, I represented my company at many international events, and, super recently, I've been nominated for Diversity Star at the Develop:Brighton Star Awards. I also got to build teams for the really cool titles below: 🗃️ A Little to the Left 🪓 The Texas Chainsaw Massacre 🏎️ Stampede: Racing Royale 🛢️ Still Wakes The Deep But, now, it's time to say goodbye 👋🏼 So, to all the incredible people I had the honor of hiring & working with, I just want to thank you for enriching my experience 💖. I can't wait to play all the future games you'll make. --- 🚨 I am now on the lookout for a new team I can complement with my skillset! 🚨 I have 5+ years of experience recruiting for all main core development teams, as well as senior leadership and operational roles, via many different ATS & CRMs. Exclusively in the Game Development Industry. However, THAT'S NOT ALL! I also have extensive experience 𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐜𝐞𝐩𝐭𝐮𝐚𝐥𝐢𝐳𝐢𝐧𝐠, 𝐮𝐩𝐝𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠 & 𝐦𝐚𝐧𝐚𝐠𝐢𝐧𝐠: ✨DEIB programs, ✨Reports and analysis, ✨Career support initiatives, ✨Early career processes, and ✨Recruiting & hiring training materials. ➡️ So if you are looking for a recruiter, a #DEIB specialist or a generalist who can support multiple areas & teams, make sure to message! ➡️ If you aren't hiring but want to help, leave a comment below or repost to increase my reach! --- 📣 Follow #RethinkRecruitment and ring the 🔔 to stay updated! ⏩ https://entrylevel.games/ 🌟 Opinions are very much my own™️ #Layoffs #Redundancies #JobHunting #GameDev

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I understand the challenges many face when trying to break into the games industry and find the right role. Before contacting a team member or recruiter, I recommend checking the job listings on the company's careers site to identify suitable positions. This approach not only demonstrates professionalism but also expedites the process. Simply reaching out to inquire about available roles may not be the most effective initial contact, as it can lead to a less fruitful conversation. For those interested, here is a link to all the current open roles at WB Games: https://lnkd.in/enp8Q8YN #GameIndustry #CareerOpportunities #Professionalism

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The Sumo Group closures really have broken me a bit, and I need to rant about the state of things. I'm sorry if it seems I'm glossing over all the closures before this one, but so many ex-students went there, so many ex-colleagues passed through there, and so my timeline is just filled with people looking for work. We keep talking and talking about the economic factors involved, Brexit and Covid and this and that ... the thing I can't stop thinking of is that in my life I've watched the world slowly pitch into a place of despondent capitalism. Art has become more about making stars and fame than helping people escape and reflect. A drive for "truth" and objectivity has resulted, paradoxically, in people putting more stock in spreadsheets and numbers than people. I can't help but feel that if you're bleating about finance and trade deals and business decisions, you're ignoring the fact that general support for artistic and creative endeavours has declined sharply and is still declining, even in the so-called "art world". Games are ultimately always going to be the first to fall in a culture war against creativity, because games are ultimately and profoundly pointless things. That's the whole majesty of the medium: they make us feel profound feelings, they help us explore our existence by being separate from reality, but to do so they MUST bring us nothing tangible in return. The truth is that our industry will probably bounce back to some degree, but it's not any financial structures or cost systems that will save game development as a medium and an art form - it's a cultural shift to recognise the importance of expressive and explorative subjective art in the world today, and the need to support creative endeavours without the pressure of financial recompense.

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The time has come. The end of September means we are moments away from transforming into blanket burritos. Laying there on the couch with 🍵 and a book or controller🎮 But it also means at 8Bit - Games Industry Recruitment we're once again running our Gamedev salary survey Link here: https://lnkd.in/dTppmtWz Why it makes sense for you to fill it: => You'll feel good about yourself. 𝐅𝐨𝐫 𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐲 𝐟𝐢𝐥𝐥 𝐰𝐞 𝐚𝐫𝐞 𝐝𝐨𝐧𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠 $1 𝐭𝐨 𝐩𝐞𝐭 𝐫𝐞𝐬𝐜𝐮𝐞𝐬 => You are helping your future self. No more dreading the infamous "What's your salary expectations?" 𝐘𝐨𝐮'𝐥𝐥 𝐡𝐚𝐯𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐫𝐞𝐬𝐨𝐮𝐫𝐜𝐞𝐬 𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐰𝐢𝐥𝐥 𝐡𝐞𝐥𝐩 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐧𝐚𝐯𝐢𝐠𝐚𝐭𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐧𝐞𝐱𝐭 𝐜𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐚𝐛𝐨𝐮𝐭 𝐬𝐚𝐥𝐚𝐫𝐲 => It's 100% anonymous, it literally takes 5 minutes to go through and it will be available for FREE So, on your next coffee break just go for it: https://lnkd.in/dTppmtWz

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The BFI has today announced grants of £510k for innovative projects supporting UK games development - and very proud to say we're one of four recipients. Our project is to build toolkit for self-publishing games, and it starts right now - with the toolkit going live in 2025. We'll will work with industry to build this new resource, with a cohort of studios working on an upcoming release and a suite of experts helping feed in. More details here: https://lnkd.in/e8YTp-pq. If you're interested in being part of it you can apply here: https://lnkd.in/eNNBnThr Congrats to the three other creative ideas in the mix for this too – and we're grateful to the BFI for recognising what we and others plan to deliver. (You can see the full BFI announce here: https://lnkd.in/ec3uMRHJ) Changes abound across various parts of the games sector so it's great to see projects looking to keep pace with that and make a difference. These programmes can do a lot in a short space of time: I'm writing this post from one of our Game Changer sessions. That programme has run on a similar model and has already created 20+ jobs in games. While it feels like there's more challenges than ever in our world, there are great things being done to help create more opportunities for everyone.

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Friends, after a series of very important but tough posts around Project Flagpole and the statistics for how challenging it is to get into the games industry, one of our community regulars asked me to share something very uplifting for those looking for a position. Absolutely. It Only Takes One Remind yourself that it only takes one successful application. It's easy to feel discouraged by rejections, but each rejection is not a definitive statement about your value as a candidate. Job searching is not about a trending pattern; it’s more binary. You just need one person to recognize your potential. Think about my own experience: I have a lot of solid experience in BD, strategy, and operations, but in games, I only have about four or five years. I have a lot of education and various hard and soft skills, but I've definitely done more varied things rather than only having one single-minded track, which some people may like and others may not. Also, some value a lot of education and things like MBAs, and some don't. A big part of my life mission is significant multitasking with Amir Satvat's Games Community and my family responsibilities while also doing my job well, which is not only good humanity but also good moral business because we are all people first working in the games industry. Some people understand and handle that; some don’t. For me, working remote is non-negotiable. Some people understand that; some don’t. I'm very positive and upbeat, and many of you know that from our community interactions. Some people like that; some don’t. You don’t need a hundred or ten or even five employers to understand your unique profile; you just need one. Someone out there is going to covet what you offer - they just haven’t found you yet. I encourage you to see the application process as finding that one employer who recognizes your worth. Stay positive and keep searching. Today, this week, or this month might be the time you find that one employer and then it won't matter what anybody else thinks. This is, again, why I encourage people to go as wide as possible with both industries outside of games and looking at all ~3,700 companies charted by our community rather than only the 5-10 everybody applies to - you have more chances of finding that one employer. Best of luck to all of you! Amir

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Terrible news this afternoon with Lively Studio having had to do a small number of layoffs. As announced by Gamesindustry.biz (link: https://lnkd.in/eK8bD7Bn), Electric Square had to carry out a small number of layoffs to "streamline certain areas of the business" following a recent strategic review. Big or small, layoffs suck. To those impacted by this, please find a comprehensive list of resources, below: 🥇First, reach out to us at People Can Fly Studio, we have many roles open right now in Canada, the UK, Ireland and Europe, please check them out here: https://lnkd.in/eWpV5PbA 🥈Next, Discipline Games Jobs Resources: Over the past weeks I have created 9 (at time of writing) Games Jobs Resources to find jobs in a wide range of disciplines: 🎨 Art, Animation, VFX and UI This resource contains around 1,400 jobs worldwide across all links. Link: https://lnkd.in/eH-yWEms ⚙ Engineering and Programming This resource lists just over 2,300 jobs worldwide across all links. Link: https://lnkd.in/eMYuN-zV 🕹 Quality Assurance This resource lists over 400 QA jobs worldwide. Link: https://lnkd.in/ecHRqMnN 📑 Game Production This resource lists around 390 jobs worldwide. Link: https://lnkd.in/erVSuNwi 📢 Marketing & Community This resource lists around 330 jobs worldwide. Link: https://lnkd.in/eDmmXtP6 🎶 Audio and Sound Design This resource lists around 120 jobs worldwide. Link: https://lnkd.in/e9vpruEY 📠 Studio Support, HR, Recruitment and BizDev This resource lists around 340 jobs worldwide. Link: https://lnkd.in/eDeasJYj ⚙ IT This resource lists around 100 jobs worldwide. Link: https://lnkd.in/eTpRYvy2 🎮 Game Design This resource lists around 660 jobs worldwide. Link: https://lnkd.in/eXuJA9Vq 🥉 Third, the Ultimate list of Video Games Career Resources: This should be your one-stop shop for all information. My dear friend Amir Satvat maintains these documents, he is a legend for doing this - please check them out: https://amirsatvat.com/ 🎖 Finally, do not give up. Ever. No matter how dark things may look right now, I KNOW you will get through this, you have got this! 👊 Remember you are not alone. If you need help, advice, or even an ear to listen, we're here for you. Always! ➡ A request to my community, please can I ask you to repost this post to your colleagues and friends, so that we can get as many into jobs as possible! And please comment if you or your studio are currently hiring - let's help each other! Much love ❤️ #livelystudio #layoffs

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A simple observation about voice production for games: It pays to embrace sourcing diverse talent early on. You’ll be much better prepared than if you rely on the same talent pools every time. Casting characters is sourcing diverse talent. Building believable worlds is sourcing diverse talent. Creating unique game experiences is sourcing diverse talent. When you’ve worked through finding fresh, diverse voices and know that challenge well? The process of building a truly immersive world becomes a lot easier.

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If #gamesrecruitment was a MOBA/MMO 🎮 Internal teams are Tanks – big damage soaks constantly attacked on all sides. HR OPS/People are support classes – keeping everybody going. A GOOD Agency recruiter are high DPS/Rogue types – very targeted, very effective when used properly. A bad agency? See below… #Thursdaythoughts #GamesIndustry

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Check out this great review of Outcast: A New Beginning by Adam Mitchell https://lnkd.in/eZ4TEPvi

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Awful news just now with Microsoft announcing it is laying off around 650 employees in its gaming division today. The latest cuts come months after Microsoft laid off 1,900 Activision Blizzard and Xbox employees, and after the closure of several game studios, including Redfall developer Arkane Austin. Xbox chief Phil Spencer announced the layoffs to employees in an internal memo this morning. The cuts are related to the Activision Blizzard deal, and Spencer makes that clear in his email. (source: https://lnkd.in/eKW9aiaX) Those of you who are affected by this, please make use of my resources below: 🥇First, reach out to us at People Can Fly Studio, we have many roles open right now in Canada, the UK, Ireland and Europe, please check them out here: https://lnkd.in/eWpV5PbA 🥈Next, Discipline Games Jobs Resources: Over the past months I have created 9 (at time of writing) Games Jobs Resources to find jobs in a wide range of disciplines, and I would urge you to check them out, if anything just to see what would be available to you: https://lnkd.in/ePywd2kq You can find over 6,000 jobs there. 🥉 Third, the Ultimate list of Video Games Career Resources: This should be your one-stop shop for all information. My dear friend Amir Satvat maintains these documents, he is a legend for doing this - please check them out: https://amirsatvat.com/ I urge you to check out the areas in particular about CV support and mentoring, as these will help you no matter what industry you are hailing from or are looking into going next. 🎖 Finally, do not give up. Ever. No matter how dark things may look right now, I KNOW you will get through this, you have got this! 👊 Remember you are not alone. If you need help, advice, or even an ear to listen, we're here for you. Always! ➡ A request to my community, please can I ask you to repost this post to your colleagues and friends, so that we can get as many into jobs as possible! And please comment if you or your studio are currently hiring - let's help each other! Much love ❤️ #xbox #layoffs

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🚨 Can Nostalgia create a path back to games industry growth? 🚨 💡 ⤵ I went to watch Inside Out 2 with my daughter on Saturday (well worth a watch!) and one of the new emotions was Nostalgia. Whilst only playing a minor role for 13 year old Riley in the film, it is an emotion increasingly being felt by publishers and gamers. Whether it be big scale returns of old PC classics or emulator apps cropping up on mobile, it is clear that many players are looking for a Nostalgia hit! But Why? Well for me retro gaming scratches a number of intrinsic needs; 1. Familiarity - An old pair of slippers, moulded to you, is just more comfortable than a shiny pair of Air 1s. 2. Mastery - No one likes being a noob. If players can skip learning and get straight to the fun, they will. 3. Community - Who doesn't love getting the old gang back together... Reminiscing. Laughing. Smiling. From a publisher perspective it makes a lot of sense too. Large amounts of the initial development costs have been sunk already, you have a clear target audience to go after and you have the opportunity to turn back the clock and learn from last time. Nostalgia doesn't have to stunt innovation. In Old School RuneScape we have worked with our community to create entirely new quests, game modes and map expansions whilst staying true to the retro vibe players are looking for. And there are more games coming.... I saw today a 2005 server save of Habbo Hotel is being dusted off and relaunched tomorrow with a community-led voting approach.... sounds familiar 🤔 Good luck Sulake. Hope the launch goes well. So we have Old School RuneScape and now Old School Habbo... Come on Lance Priebe lets get the band back together with some Old School Club Penguin! 🐧 🐧 🐧 What other retro games do we need next? #nostalgia #gaming #mmo #gamesindustry #insight

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Awful news last week with Thunderful Group announcing a second round of layoffs (the previous one was earlier this year) as it is looking to “increase its focus on third-party publishing and reduce the production of internally developed projects”, therefore resulting in significant redundancies within the company’s own development teams, affecting Thunderful Games, Thunderful Malmö, The Station, Thunderful Skövde and JUMPSHIP. Additionally, roles within administration and management will also be affected. To those impacted please check out the following resources: 🥇First, reach out to us at People Can Fly Studio, we have many roles open right now in Canada, the UK, Ireland and Europe, please check them out here: https://lnkd.in/eWpV5PbA 🥈Next, Discipline Games Jobs Resources: Over the past months I have created 10 (at time of writing) Games Jobs Resources to find jobs in a wide range of disciplines, and I would urge you to check them out, if anything just to see what would be available to you: https://lnkd.in/eGE2vzUt You can find over 5,900 jobs there. 🥉 Third, the Ultimate list of Video Games Career Resources: This should be your one-stop shop for all information. My dear friend Amir Satvat maintains these documents, he is a legend for doing this - please check them out: https://amirsatvat.com/ I urge you to check out the areas in particular about CV support and mentoring, as these will help you no matter what industry you are hailing from or are looking into going next. 🎖 Finally, do not give up. Ever. No matter how dark things may look right now, I KNOW you will get through this, you have got this! 👊 Remember you are not alone. If you need help, advice, or even an ear to listen, we're here for you. Always! ➡ A request to my community, please can I ask you to repost this post to your colleagues and friends, so that we can get as many into jobs as possible! And please comment if you or your studio are currently hiring - let's help each other! Much love ❤️ #thunderfulgames #thestation #jumpship #layoffs

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Awful news overnight with Ancient Forge having had to lay off 24 of its 59 employees at the end of August, according to Polish outlet CD-Action. The cuts reportedly affected both new hires and experienced devs, including leads and producers. This comes amid financial struggles reported at the studio in July. (source: https://lnkd.in/eywVcGt8) Those of you who are affected by this, please make use of my resources below: 🥇First, reach out to us at People Can Fly Studio, we have many roles open right now in Canada, the UK, Ireland and Europe, please check them out here: https://lnkd.in/eWpV5PbA 🥈Next, Discipline Games Jobs Resources: Over the past months I have created 9 (at time of writing) Games Jobs Resources to find jobs in a wide range of disciplines, and I would urge you to check them out, if anything just to see what would be available to you: https://lnkd.in/ePywd2kq You can find over 6,000 jobs there. 🥉 Third, the Ultimate list of Video Games Career Resources: This should be your one-stop shop for all information. My dear friend Amir Satvat maintains these documents, he is a legend for doing this - please check them out: https://amirsatvat.com/ I urge you to check out the areas in particular about CV support and mentoring, as these will help you no matter what industry you are hailing from or are looking into going next. 🎖 Finally, do not give up. Ever. No matter how dark things may look right now, I KNOW you will get through this, you have got this! 👊 Remember you are not alone. If you need help, advice, or even an ear to listen, we're here for you. Always! ➡ A request to my community, please can I ask you to repost this post to your colleagues and friends, so that we can get as many into jobs as possible! And please comment if you or your studio are currently hiring - let's help each other! Much love ❤️ #ancientforge #layoffs

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Today's update from my ongoing process of engagement and learning about the UK video games and interactive entertainment industry is about the value of talking to people, particularly face-to-face. This might be an early candidate for the 'this is not an insight' awards, but bear with me.... So, my 'first 100 days' plan, such as it is, is essentially about building relationships, learning about the industry, engaging with members and shaping an overall picture of what the industry needs and how my organisation can help. In this process, there is nothing better than getting out and speaking to the broadest range of stakeholders to start to build up an overall picture of where the organisation needs to go. I've learnt over the years to approach these conversations with an entirely open mind and to ask questions rather than trying to advance a view. The honest truth, coming into an industry as an outsider, is that there are layers, connections, meanings and ideas which you won't begin to understand at the beginning which can have a profound impact on your overall direction and priorities. Take, for example, a concept which is becoming increasingly central in my thinking about our future strategy - that the industry sits in its own unique category at the intersection of creativity, technology and community. Each of those words, and the concept of the exciting boundary intersection between them, comes from a conversation. 'Creativity' came from speaking with a group of Trustees about the art of making video games - the sheer creative vision and energy it takes to release a game which captures the hearts and minds of players. 'Technology' came from speaking with a stakeholder in Scotland who reminded me that video games have always pushed boundaries - asking 'why not?' and testing the limits of new technologies to deliver amazing player experiences. But it was only yesterday that Luke Hebblethwaite, Head of Games at BAFTA slotted in 'community' as the missing piece - yes, games occupy an exciting space at the meeting point of code and creativity, but the magic ingredient that breathes life into them is the communities they inspire. Both in-game and in people's daily lives, games bring people together, create shared experiences and connect people in a way that crosses all boundaries. In all of these conversations, I take lots of notes. What you end up with is a bit of a 'stream of consciousness', but over a period of weeks, concepts begin to emerge, structures take shape and a sense of direction and purpose starts to come together. The point is fast approaching whereby I need to consolidate all of this into a simple, compelling strategy and action plan. But the sense of 'discovery through conversation' won't stop there - once the plan is live, I will continue to get out and meet as many people as possible both to hear their critiques and their ambitions and to build a coalition towards bringing the vision and strategy to reality.

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My Personal 3 Video Games Themes for 2024 As we approach year-end, many have asked about themes I've observed in the games industry. These reflections are purely my own and not representative of my employer's views. They also reflect what I regularly hear from those I talk to in the industry. 1. Funding Challenges Securing funding feels harder than ever for game studios. The traditional paper pitch seems nearly obsolete; many investors now demand prototypes and well-established teams before considering financial support. This heightened expectation raises the entry barrier, making it particularly tough for startups to gain traction. Despite the allure of launching independent ventures, the odds are incredibly tough in this competitive environment, even for veteran teams. For example, private games funding, disclosed games VC funding, and games VC deals decreased by 75%, 70%, and 51%, respectively, in 1H’24 vs. 1H’22 (Source: GamesBeat). 2. Discoverability Dilemmas According to SteamDB, just on that one platform, an estimated 72,500 new games will have been added from 2019-2024 - standing out has never been more challenging. Even titles with stellar reviews and talented development teams can struggle to gain visibility. Creating a quality game is not enough anymore; without a robust go-to-market strategy, attracting paying players is far from guaranteed. The financial investment required to generate wishlists and to convert interest into actual sales is substantial, and even then, retaining player engagement poses its own set of challenges. Many say that the old models of games marketing are obsolete in most situations. 3. Games Labor Market Depression The games labor market, the backbone of our community, has faced mass layoffs from 2022 to now, with 33,000 workers impacted. For the geography of greatest impact, North America, 75% of these cuts have been absorbed, leading to Great Depression-ratio cuts (15-20% - unprecedented since in the United States overall) in the core development workforce. While there's hope for the start of stabilization in the coming months, the recovery process is likely to take years, at best. Alarmingly, approximately one-third of those laid off during that period are still looking for work, with 45% of those having been seeking employment for over a year, leading to feelings of uncertainty, stagnation, and often hopelessness. This situation is compounded by the industry's frequent reluctance to address these challenges head-on or at all, preferring a narrative of moving forward without confronting heartbreaking realities faced by many games professionals. Geographic concentration (75% of jobs in 5 locations in North America; only 12% of new roles remote), age (~2% 12-month odds of finding a role in games for those under 24 without games experience, or over 50), and growing bias for past games experience (10x odds to finding a games role if you have it) have made finding games roles harder for many.

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I'm so sorry to report another games job cut, this time at Mighty Kingdom, as reported by the company itself and resulting in a "28% reduction in workforce" https://lnkd.in/eBBFa-Tj Here's where this puts us. I continue exposing these statistics regularly as a reminder of the human cost of these decisions: 100+ games layoffs in 2024 One games layoff situation on average every 1.3 days in 2024 (apologies for getting this inverted in the picture) Over 10,000 games layoffs in 2024 YTD Within ~450 cuts of hitting 2023's games layoff number...in May If you were in fact affected by these cuts, I have no words to express my feelings. However, our community has three resource "homes" built to help you: HOME 1 - 🔗 AMIRSATVAT.COM: Our hub offering 15 resources to help you find work, including a fully updated design. - 🔗 Games Org Support Posts: Find a template at AMIRSATVAT.COM (Category 4, Resource 10). If you can provide information from your team (with their consent), I’ll help edit and disseminate the final product, reaching 100,000+ people. These posts are highly effective in increasing visibility and we have done 96 of them. HOME 2 - 🔗 Please visit discord.gg/amirsatvat to join our Discord, a live extension of our community resources. With nearly 2,800 members, we are in an open-join phase. HOME 3 - 🔗 LinkedIn: Our community here includes nearly 87,000 members, with 1-3 daily posts offering support and career assistance in the games industry. To our broader community, your involvement makes a difference. Here’s how you can help: - Spread the word: Reshares and comments on this post amplify the visibility of these resources. - Offer support: Utilize the 13 ways listed on AMIRSATVAT.COM under "How You Can Help" to assist, or simply lend an ear or advice on our Discord server. - Join our movement: Volunteer with us at AMIRSATVAT.COM to support our colleagues in the games industry. Our network has facilitated over 1,800 jobs and 33,000 coaching conversations to date and has been visited by over 3,000,000 gamers lifetime. We're committed to providing daily encouragement and support during these challenging times. We will never stop fighting for you!

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A small letter to Ubisoft. Ubi has said "𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘌𝘹𝘦𝘤𝘶𝘵𝘪𝘷𝘦 𝘊𝘰𝘮𝘮𝘪𝘵𝘵𝘦𝘦, 𝘶𝘯𝘥𝘦𝘳 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘴𝘶𝘱𝘦𝘳𝘷𝘪𝘴𝘪𝘰𝘯 𝘰𝘧 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘉𝘰𝘢𝘳𝘥 𝘰𝘧 𝘋𝘪𝘳𝘦𝘤𝘵𝘰𝘳𝘴, 𝘪𝘴 𝘭𝘢𝘶𝘯𝘤𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘢 𝘳𝘦𝘷𝘪𝘦𝘸 𝘢𝘪𝘮𝘦𝘥 𝘢𝘵 𝘧𝘶𝘳𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘳 𝘪𝘮𝘱𝘳𝘰𝘷𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘦𝘹𝘦𝘤𝘶𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯, 𝘯𝘰𝘵𝘢𝘣𝘭𝘺 𝘪𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘱𝘭𝘢𝘺𝘦𝘳-𝘤𝘦𝘯𝘵𝘳𝘪𝘤 𝘢𝘱𝘱𝘳𝘰𝘢𝘤𝘩, 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘢𝘤𝘤𝘦𝘭𝘦𝘳𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘴𝘵𝘳𝘢𝘵𝘦𝘨𝘪𝘤 𝘱𝘢𝘵𝘩 𝘵𝘰𝘸𝘢𝘳𝘥𝘴 𝘢 𝘩𝘪𝘨𝘩𝘦𝘳 𝘱𝘦𝘳𝘧𝘰𝘳𝘮𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘮𝘰𝘥𝘦𝘭 𝘵𝘰 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘣𝘦𝘯𝘦𝘧𝘪𝘵 𝘰𝘧 𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘴𝘵𝘢𝘬𝘦𝘩𝘰𝘭𝘥𝘦𝘳𝘴 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘴𝘩𝘢𝘳𝘦𝘩𝘰𝘭𝘥𝘦𝘳𝘴." Come on UBI, we all want you to win, stop being such a silly goose. These two things are at odds with each other and this is why they are struggling, whilst you can marry up a "player-centric approach" whilst providing value to your shareholders, it's the fact these things even exist on an even playing field that they are struggling. Everytime, at least I can think of, that the shareholders pockets are considered as important as the game itself, the game does not do well, or at the very least it does poorly and has to be saved later by ripping all of that stuff that was put in to "make shareholders happy" out of it. Games make significantly more money when people actually want to play them, it's not complicated. So Ubi, as the creator of some of my favorite games, as the place I dreamed to work at as a kid, as a megalith of our industry, please go back to basics. go back and look at what truly made far cry 2 amazing, what made half the planet fall in love with roof jumping assassins and what ultimately led to your gargantuan success, because it's not pleasing shareholders, it's simply making games we all want to play. I know it's nowhere near this simple but for the love of god, we could all be playing the best pirate game ever made if you had focused more on the fun and less on the 1. All the best, your once biggest fan. P.S bin off live service outside of siege, you're clearly not cut out for it.

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You wanna know what really Grinds my Gears? What really pisses me off? When someone reaches out to me that I've never met or spoken to asking for help & I reply to them the best that I am humanly possibly able to, only for them to come back with 13+ messages berating me for their situation: ⚙ Holding me responsible for decisions a former employer of mine have made or how said former employer may have treated them ⚙ For a lack of open headcounts in their very specific / niche area ⚙ For them being 'black listed' from Games ⚙ For comparing Games & people such as myself to those that ran concentration camps Look, in my 40 years, I've accrued enough of a foul language repertoire that could make a Construction worker cringe, BUT THAT DOESN'T MEAN I AM GOING TO ATTACK SOMEONE & SPEW ALL OF IT AT SOMEONE FOR THE DIFFICULTY OR SHORT-COMINGS I AM FACING IN THE MARKET. I will always try my best to help, but a lot of the times, there's nothing I can do. That doesn't give you a green-light to attack me because you're struggling. If this is you, look in the darn mirror for crying out loud & own up to yourself vs. blaming me. Spew that hate message to the Recruiter that didn't reply. Reach out to those you have such a problem with & want to rant on me about where I literally have no idea what you're talking about. Seriously, you want to attack those helping you, get lost! Just get lost! Will this deter me from helping anyone that contacts me? Absolutely not, but my goodness, if someone can't help you right now / today it's not okay to attack & berate them! That's it, I'm done. TGIF / happy Friday. Be nice, don't be a jerk to those that actually care about the people in this Industry! I didn't layoff thousands of people. I am, but nay a humble Pirate Recruiter who's Gears are so Grinded by the 13+ attack messages I just received that I'm breaking my own rules of Gear Grinding messages! #TheMattBarney #BeNice #DontBeAJerkToThoseHelpingYou #BeRealistic #GearsAreGrinded

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