Team Bondi Not a Nice Place To Work?

Team Bondi, the Australian game developer who alongside Rockstar Games worked on L.A. Noire has come under fire from some of its employees for rather unfavorable working conditions according to site Develop-Online. These employees are peeved at the fact that crunch period at this studio bordered on overkill with many of them being forced to churn out 100 hours a week during the final weeks.

Every man needs a break

These claims were obviously refuted by Brendan McNamara, head honcho of Team Bondi who had this to say to Gamergia, “We're making stuff that's never been made before. We're making a type of game that's never been made before. We're making it with new people, and new technology. People who're committed put in whatever hours they think they need to. If you wanted to do a nine-to-five job, you'd be in another business.” The IGDA (International Game Developers Association) is obviously not satisfied or convinced with McNamara’s explanation and are currently investigating the matter.     

Crunch time isn’t a new concept in the industry and in most cases employees are well compensated for over-time. However, it just so happens that the last time an issue like this cropped up, it was from Rockstar’s stables itself where wives of workers working on Red Dead Redemption complained about horrible working conditions for their spouses. Co-incidence much?