L.A. Noire studio Team Bondi will soon be at the center of its own investigation, as the International Game Developers Association has confirmed it will be looking into allegations that the studio enforced “absolutely unacceptable” working conditions upon L.A. Noire staffers in order to push the sandbox detective game out the door.
(Psst -a word of advice to Team Bondi's founder Brian McNamara: avoid looking to the left during questioning).
The investigation follows claims from Team Bondi employees that management kept developers under a persistent “crunch time”, strong-arming staff to work upwards of 110 hours per week without adequate compensation. Insider sources have also accused Team Bondi higher-ups of being unnecessarily hostile, and fostering an intimidating work environment. Although IGDA said it will not comment specifically on theallegations until it speaks to Team Bondi itself, Brian Robbins, chair of the IGDA Board of Directors,told Develop: “Certainly reports of 12-hour a day, lengthy crunch time, if true, are absolutely unacceptable and harmful to the individuals involved, the final product, and the industry as a whole ...We encourage any Team Bondi employee and/or family member to email qol@igda.org with comments about the recent past and current situation - positive or negative.”
Above: A typical Team Bondi staff meeting?
A complete run down of grievances wasposted to IGN, where McNamara oferred his perspectiveon the accusations, saying, "I'm not in any way upset or disappointed by what I've done, and what I've achieved … I'm not even remotely defensive about it. I think, if people want to do what I've done – to come here and do that – then good luck to them. If people who've left the company want to go out there and have some success, then good luck to them. If they don't want to do that with me, that's fine, too. It's like musical differences in a rock and roll band, right? People say they do want to do it; some don't."
Last week, a group ofL.A. Noire developers who left the studio before the its release charged Team Bondi with wrongly omitting their names from the game's credits. They have since launchedlanoirecredits.comto give credit where they believe credit is due.
Jun 28, 2011
L.A. Noire's uncredited developers seeking recognition
L.A. Noire Review
Why do they always run?
