Video games, LeBron James, tattoos, and copyright law, in one story? The internet is really spoiling us today. @polygon reports on a long-drawn-out case in which tattoo artist Jimmy Hayden is suing Take-Two Interactive Software, makers of the NBA 2K video games, over the use of tattoos he made for LeBron James that were reproduced in games from 2016 to 2020. Hayden's attorney argues that Take-Two "painstakingly copied" the designs. Take-Two's team says that James' tattoos are a very small part of NBA 2K, and that James has licensed his own likeness to Take-Two, so a ruling in favor of Hayden would mean James would have to ask Hayden for permission to license his own being. Here are all the details, plus background on other cases in which tattoo artists have sued video game companies. What do you think?
Possibility Space, an indie game studio that launched in 2021 with the goal of creating a AAA title, has been shut down abruptly. In an email to staff, CEO Jeff Strain blamed an employee leak about the studio's major title to a Kotaku reporter. This, Strain said, led to an unnamed publisher expressing "low confidence" about funding the studio, and the cancelation of the title by mutual agreement. Engadget attempts to make sense of the sequence of events here.
Giving this a boost over here in case any devs are not on other platforms!
Applications are open for #GameDevsOfColorExpo Any boost would be appreciated!
Original post credit: Catt Small @ GDC (at)catt.design (Bsky)
Rockstar Games has asked its staff to return to the office five days a week, starting in April. The Edinburgh-based company says this relates to completing development on GTA 6 “at the level of quality and polish we know it requires,” and to mitigate security breaches. GTA 6, which is not due to ship until 2025, experienced leaks in September 2022 and December 2023. IGN reports that Rockstar developers are accusing the company of "broken promises," and are concerned about crunch as well as overall impacts to health and wellbeing.
Electronic Arts is to cut 5% of its workforce, according to a note to staff from CEO Andrew Wilson. That translates to around 670 of the 13,400-strong workforce. @GIbiz's @BrendanSinclair has more details on the company's restructuring plan, which also includes closing offices and sunsetting certain live games. Wilson said in his note that the company is "moving away from development of future licensed IP that we do not believe will be successful in our changing industry."
If you thought last year's layoffs were bad, in the first 25 days of this year we're already up to half that amount, with multiple news of layoffs and closures per day. #GamesIndustry#layoffs#microsoft#gamedev
Another day and learning about more industry layoffs. The number of layoffs this year is alarmingly high, especially after last year when 10,000 people lost their jobs. ...Remember when Satoru Iwata cut his own pay in half so that Nintendo ground floor staff would not have to take the hit for his fuck up? I do. CEO’s should have their salaries cut and capped. #gamedev#GamesIndustry
GameDeveloper.com is reporting that #gamesindustry insiders foresee "two years of pain" with lots of #layoffs for #gamedevs and studio closures.
Please, consider to #unionize before it is too late. Unions may not be able to prevent every hardship, but they can make a difference. There is safety in numbers.
More industry layoffs happening, this time at #Bungie. Heart Machine has some job openings for anyone affected. Please consider applying!! www.heartmachine.com/careers
Bandcamp's union, @bandcampunited, is seeking recognition from its new owners, music marketing company Songtradr. Epic Games sold Bandcamp last week amid extensive layoffs. A statement from the union says staff were told by Epic Games that Songtradr would offer positions to some, but not all employees. Pitchfork has more information. The union is sharing a petition on its Mastodon account.
Epic Games has announced it will be cutting its staff by 16% — around 830 people — and divesting music site Bandcamp. “We’ve been spending way more money than we earn, investing in the next evolution of Epic and growing Fortnite as a metaverse-inspired ecosystem for creators,” CEO Tim Sweeney wrote in an email to staff. Polygon has more details.
The WGA may have reached an agreement to end its strike, but that doesn't mean the entertainment industry's union action is over. Deadline has this breakdown on what's to come on the labor front, including SAG-AFTRA's negotiations and IATSE's contract, which expires in 2024.
SAG-AFTRA's video game performers are also in the spotlight as they head back to the negotiating table tomorrow. Polygon has the details on this, including what's at stake, which game companies could be affected, and the possible outcomes.
Update: SAG-AFTRA members have voted to authorize a strike against the video game industry. This does not guarantee a work stoppage, but permits union negotiators to call for a strike if necessary. Negotiations for the new contract, which covers voice, motion capture, stunt work and other performances on video games, restart tomorrow. Signatory companies include Activision Blizzard, Electronic Arts and Epic Games.