Clearly the right decision!
Now 16590 more to go...

AusWolfThe problem is that employers started cultivating the "if you don't like it, go do something else" attitude which works on people who like their job, especially if they spent a lot of time and effort learning it. You're right that we should stand up for our rights, but that doesn't work in an environment where there's 10 people to take your place any time.

As for Ubisoft, I don't know their internal workings, but judging by their games, you're probably right. Although, company direction has to change, too, to fix those problems, and that probably won't.


The fun part is that I do have higher education, but it's not useful or sought after (languages), so I don't have much of a choice. Sure, there's lots of other people earning a lot more money with a lot less work, but they got there somehow. Even if I took on a course to learn a profession (which I can't, working full time and all), I would start on minimum wage, and I don't have the capacity to allow that, even temporarily. Now at least I'm getting a fairly decent night rate, which also locks me into my current field.

All in all, if you're in a minimum wage field of work, you're locked in because to get out, you have to fork out a buttload of cash to learn a profession which also earns you minimum wage for a start. There is no way to afford that. So yeah, social mobility exists, and the path is laid out in front of everyone, but chances are, you'll never be able to afford the change.

Depending on where you live and the kind of company you work for, it's possible to make a career change and have your employer help you with it. My sister worked as a ground handling agent for years at the national railroad company of France. She completed a bachelor's degree to become a nurse while being employed by them. She was paid less, but her employer handled a big chunk of the cost of her bachelor's degree because she could still work as a nurse for them. I've seen that happen multiple times.

And again, you need to check how hard a country makes it to give a raise. France, for example, is pretty bad on that aspect; a 100€ raise costs 442€ for the company. And by a 100€ raise, I mean actually ending up with an additional 100€ as usable income, because working for minimum wage comes with a few benefits that you will lose, negating that raise if it's too small. So the employer needs to be really comfortable with their operating income.

There are tons of stuff at play besides bad will from the employer. But in the Ubisoft case, the layoff happened because the company was on an over-hiring spree, and at some point, you end up with a team that's harder to manage but doesn't benefit from its size.
And one last thing, video games are very talent-focused. It's an industry that is very competitive by its nature. While things like crunches are a reality, talent turnover is also pretty bad, especially for a company that uses custom tools. I can assure you that people who makes a difference won't be kicked unless there's drama behind the scenes

This is fantastic news. Now, all those devs can go work for a not-shit company and maybe make something people actually want.

The sad thing is they are probably going to save money, and not really cut the people that "poison" the company with their terrible work on games.
They should fire all the leadership instead.

cinemawareincoming Thief remake.

WHAT

With that said, that is maybe the only game which I felt was made obsolete by the sequel.

Let3rYet another reason to hate Ubisoft

They not even waiting for the release of the Black Flag remake...
I'm leaning toward skipping this game after this behavior.
I’ll wait to see what independent critics say about AC Black Flag, rather than relying on access journalism sources.

JustBenchingIt's not sad, good devs will find their way, open their own company etc. What's bad is that ubisoft has poor judgement. They shut down the studio that made Lost Crown, one of the best games Ubisoft has ever released the last like decade. It only sold 3m copies so it failed the target.

EG1. For context, it had sold more copies than the original Hollow knight in the same amount of time while being twice as expensive. Was considered a commercial failure...

you are assuming a lot of things here, yes, that studio got shut down, but we don't know the reasons for it, heck, they might have all moved to other studios, or the cost for that studio just didn't make financial sense, or...or...or...

It's pretty obvious that Ubisoft expanded way too much, too fast, and they have had lots of failures so they are now being forced to downsize

what's crazy is that tencent gave Ubi $1.25 Billion and Ubi is STILL bleeding red, Yves Guillemot has made way too many bad calls, and he should be fired as CEO for the good of the company, but that will never happen

Hopefully some of this talent forms some more indie studios. I find a lot of indie games as good or better than these A to AAA games in enjoyment.

Should be cutting executive headcount and compensation. After all they are the ones that got the company into this mess.

I know I know- a fairy tale.

Let3rYet another reason to hate Ubisoft

Maybe it's just people encouraging these bad games they been releasing ?, one can hope right ( HAHA ).

Kohl BaasThis! 100 times... You can not lean a bloated company without layoffs.



A person who makes a livint of appropriating others' worldly posessions.

Yeah I know I mean the video game that @cinemaware mentioned.

I should feel sorry, but honestly, I don't. Ubisoft hasn't turned out games worth playing in awhile, and their remakes are just worse than the originals, due to censoring or alteration of gameplay, and they are admittedly a bloated mess.

If a few ex-Ubi devs were able to form a team and make a banger like Expedition 33, Ubisoft should have have been able to make multiple games of similar polish; even if not all of them would be guaranteed bangers. But the issue is that they got lazy and started focusing more on rehashes that are worse than the original games, as well as dumping all their investment into making one game that they need to have sell well to make a profit, instead of covering the range from big games to smaller, but fun "bite-sized" games that they could sell for less.

Their new course and partial ownership under Tencent is supposed to bring a return to some of their former agility and authenticity, with different studios and teams set to focus on reviving more IP and making games for their various series. It remains to be seen if said teams or studios will be agile enough to make good quality games ranging from fun single-players worth 20 USD alongside making a few big budget games actually worth 60 USD. Going by the rate of things, Ubisoft will probably continue to shed staff and studios for a couple more years, as they don't have anything worthwhile in development (having just cancelled several other in-development works).

So we got the first and last AAAA game from Ubisoft? Good news.

dyonoctisDepending on where you live and the kind of company you work for, it's possible to make a career change and have your employer help you with it. My sister worked as a ground handling agent for years at the national railroad company of France. She completed a bachelor's degree to become a nurse while being employed by them. She was paid less, but her employer handled a big chunk of the cost of her bachelor's degree because she could still work as a nurse for them. I've seen that happen multiple times.

There are only two problems with that:
1. A company will only sponsor your education if it benefits them.
2. Most professions, like nurses, are also on minimum wage, at least here. This is the core of my problem: there's no point in spending time and money learning anything if it doesn't get you anywhere outside of your working life. Some say you shouldn't work for extra money, but to fulfill your passion, but I honestly think that's bullshit. Talent, hard work and dedication should be valued and respected, not used and abused.

Believe me, it's not that I'm lacking interest in anything, far from it! There's many things I love doing outside of work, things that could earn me a living in any parallel universe, but not this one. It's about the fact that a change of career would cost me time and money that I don't have, while not giving me anything in return.

Anyway, rant over, back to Ubisoft. I hope these changes will benefit the company, but I doubt it. The fish usually smells from its head. As long as Ubisoft doesn't give up making slop, no layoff will make them profitable.

AusWolfThere are only two problems with that:
1. A company will only sponsor your education if it benefits them.
2. Most professions, like nurses, are also on minimum wage, at least here. This is the core of my problem: there's no point in spending time and money learning anything if it doesn't get you anywhere outside of your working life. Some say you shouldn't work for extra money, but to fulfill your passion, but I honestly think that's bullshit. Talent, hard work and dedication should be valued and respected, not used and abused.

Believe me, it's not that I'm lacking interest in anything, far from it! There's many things I love doing outside of work, things that could earn me a living in any parallel universe, but not this one. It's about the fact that a change of career would cost me time and money that I don't have, while not giving me anything in return.

Anyway, rant over, back to Ubisoft. I hope these changes will benefit the company, but I doubt it. The fish usually smells from its head. As long as Ubisoft doesn't give up making slop, no layoff will make them profitable.

1. maybe. for example, if you need certification and classes that come with it, then yes, the company will pay for it, as it is beneficial to them and their clients. for college courses, they can reimburse your tuition up to $5250 per year per IRS code section 127. it's a tax deduction for them. some companies can be difficult and will only reimburse a specific percentage depending on the grades you've earned. that should be enough for city or state colleges.
2. who would want to be a nurse then? in NYC, their salaries start at $100k and go to a quarter million. i guess you could consider that minimum wage in NYC, lol.

Let3rYet another reason to hate Ubisoft

Well then I've got some (not so) great news for you, lots of employees on the chopping block in the upcoming weeks, months, years! And you know what it isn't just do to AI, ultimately it's the single biggest motivation $$$ as those spending massive amounts on R&D try to recoup their costs quickly. The markets can only absorb so much (AI) BS at once!

bobbyrooney1. maybe. for example, if you need certification and classes that come with it, then yes, the company will pay for it, as it is beneficial to them and their clients. for college courses, they can reimburse your tuition up to $5250 per year per IRS code section 127. it's a tax deduction for them. some companies can be difficult and will only reimburse a specific percentage depending on the grades you've earned. that should be enough for city or state colleges.

If you need certification for your current job, then sure. If you want a degree to leave your job, then well, good luck.

bobbyrooney2. who would want to be a nurse then?

Exactly my point. I've had several ideas in the last year or so regarding what I'd rather do, but all of them pay minimum wage after one has forked out some ridiculous cash to study full time next to one's full time job, which is both financially and logistically impossible. Some of those ideas would even require me to move. So what's the point?

Social mobility is a lie.

xorbe

This is epic

AusWolfThere are only two problems with that:
1. A company will only sponsor your education if it benefits them.
2. Most professions, like nurses, are also on minimum wage, at least here. This is the core of my problem: there's no point in spending time and money learning anything if it doesn't get you anywhere outside of your working life. Some say you shouldn't work for extra money, but to fulfill your passion, but I honestly think that's bullshit. Talent, hard work and dedication should be valued and respected, not used and abused.

Believe me, it's not that I'm lacking interest in anything, far from it! There's many things I love doing outside of work, things that could earn me a living in any parallel universe, but not this one. It's about the fact that a change of career would cost me time and money that I don't have, while not giving me anything in return.

Anyway, rant over, back to Ubisoft. I hope these changes will benefit the company, but I doubt it. The fish usually smells from its head. As long as Ubisoft doesn't give up making slop, no layoff will make them profitable.

In the Netherlands a large part of companies that employ temporary or flexible workforce are forced to pay like 1500 eur to invest in your reschooling if they do not get a fixed contract after a certain period of time. And even beyond that... there are lots of employers that do actively help with studies and whatnot. If you need a certification, they'll pay the training, etc. All you're investing is time.

I still think you're being far too pessimistic about opportunity and have simply made a personal decision to stay where you are because 'this is fine'. You justify that by saying there is no social ladder but honestly, there's a whole society of people proving you wrong. Choices made in the past do matter though, and yes, time is a factor too. Wait long enough and all opportunity has passed you by...

And sure, ascension might mean you won't have more than that minimum wage in the first years after your education or training or whatever. But you will have a skillset that is valued higher, and this can lead to seniority in said skillset, which in turn leads to better positions, leading roles, and better pay, plus, very important: more options to be the boss of your own work and time. That's value... like huge value too.

There's a point where you can justify laying down in the garden because you're really actually just thinking about solutions to the problems on your plate. Money is just money... time though, time is worth so much more. If you can escape the factory line, do it. Even if you make the same money, life's so much better.

Out of the big studios, I put ubisoft behind square enix in terms of their game mix, I think they ok as a publisher. Are they actually in trouble, or is it the case some shareholders not happy with profits not meeting some target.

Vayra86In the Netherlands a large part of companies that employ temporary or flexible workforce are forced to pay like 1500 eur to invest in your reschooling if they do not get a fixed contract after a certain period of time. And even beyond that... there are lots of employers that do actively help with studies and whatnot. If you need a certification, they'll pay the training, etc. All you're investing is time

That's great, but unheard of in UK perspective, especially in my industry. Employers have no reason to spend a penny on your development when you're just a number, easily replaceable at any moment.

Vayra86I still think you're being far too pessimistic about opportunity and have simply made a personal decision to stay where you are because 'this is fine'. You justify that by saying there is no social ladder but honestly, there's a whole society of people proving you wrong. Choices made in the past do matter though, and yes, time is a factor too. Wait long enough and all opportunity has passed you by...

OK, let me give you an example...
I love cooking. I actively looked at what I'd have to do to become a chef. There are 3 levels of training, level 1 being a skilled potato peeler, and level 3 being what I'd classify as a true chef. Level 1 and 2 training costs £3k each, then level 3 costs £5.5k plus exams and uniform. That's £12k minimum. Time-wise, they're a year of full time study each, that's 3 years when I can't work because I can't see myself doing classes and assignments after an 8-hour shift. I'm just a regular human being with finite time and energy after all. So I'd have to save £12k plus 3 years worth of of rent, food and fuel. How? And even then, level 1 and 2 chefs start on minimum wage, level 3 is a bit higher, but still lower than what I'm currently on. Not to mention chefs tend to work a lot more and a lot harder than I do, especially in their early years. So what's the point?

You're telling me to be positive because the treasure is just across the river. I'm telling you to be realistic because the river is made of sulphuric acid and I don't have protective gear. And I'm far from being alone in this situation. Someone being happy with both their job and workplace is a rare treasure, not the norm.

Vayra86And sure, ascension might mean you won't have more than that minimum wage in the first years after your education or training or whatever.

I can't afford that, so there's no point talking about skillsets and a possible far future.

Vayra86There's a point where you can justify laying down in the garden because you're really actually just thinking about solutions to the problems on your plate. Money is just money... time though, time is worth so much more. If you can escape the factory line, do it. Even if you make the same money, life's so much better.

Normally I'd agree, but not at such a massive cost that I described above.

Vayra86Huh? It has absolutely nothing to do with that. If you provide value, you don't get laid off if you demand fulfilment of whatever is in your contract. I don't see the relation at all, nor do I see that practice around me. I'll stick to myself... I provide value to the people I work with around me, and anything I ask, I can usually talk about in a very normal way. There is mutual respect, and there are promotions, pay raises, etc.

I've got little sympathy for those whose vision of work is taking smoke every fifteen minutes, arriving late/drunk to work/barely doing the minimums etc.
And no doubt Ubisoft acquired significant amount of excess with all the endless growth fantasies...

But you want to talk about mutual respect?
That ship took direct SUBROC hit blowing up to sky and turning mostly to radioactive fallout when all the executives and manager started jacking up their salaries, bonuses etc and of course about never having to cut those/pay back when their endless growth hallucinations didn't realize.
And where does this demand for more and more profits to stock markets and those not doing any of that work fit into "work harder as employee and you get more of the cake" ad line?

EsaTI've got little sympathy for those whose vision of work is taking smoke every fifteen minutes, arriving late/drunk to work/barely doing the minimums etc.
And no doubt Ubisoft acquired significant amount of excess with all the endless growth fantasies...

Normally I'd agree, but what if you have 100 employees, all of which do their job to a satisfactory level, and you have to lay off 50? Who are you gonna keep? Those who keep their mouths shut and work overtime whenever you want them to, or those who demand a fair wage increase when company profits allow, and never do overtime, advocating for a healthy work-life balance? Do you see where I'm going to?

I'm not saying that my example is representative of Ubisoft, but the train of thought that starts with "layoffs = getting rid of lazy employees" is quite dangerous and untrue in many cases.

Why is it always the employee's fault when a company goes down anyway? What about the executives who made all the bad decisions that got the company into the pickle to begin with?

EsaTAnd where does this demand for more and more profits to stock markets and those not doing any of that work fit into "work harder as employee and you get more of the cake" ad line?

Salaried employees don't get more of the cake as the cake gets bigger. They only get laid off when the cake gets smaller.

AusWolfIf you need certification for your current job, then sure. If you want a degree to leave your job, then well, good luck.


Exactly my point. I've had several ideas in the last year or so regarding what I'd rather do, but all of them pay minimum wage after one has forked out some ridiculous cash to study full time next to one's full time job, which is both financially and logistically impossible. Some of those ideas would even require me to move. So what's the point?

Social mobility is a lie.

We have government funded retraining programs in the US. A decent pipe welder can make up to $100 USD an hour here in Alaska.

Sucks for the people working there but has to be done, Ubisoft is bleeding money and there is no more magic money tree to fund them more.

I just hope they can turn the ship around and make actually great games instead of a load if mid ones.