Hoy, Bungie anunció que estaba despidiendo a 220 empleados, o aproximadamente el 17 por ciento de su fuerza laboral. La noticia, que llega inmediatamente después de un exitoso lanzamiento de expansión con Destiny 2: La forma final en junio y otro ronda de despidos a finales del año pasadoEsto ha provocado que tanto antiguos empleados como jugadores critiquen el liderazgo de Bungie. Para colmo de males, el director ejecutivo de la empresa bloqueó su cuenta justo cuando se conoció la noticia, protegiéndose de las críticas en línea.
Cuando las noticias de la última ronda de despidos de Bungie comenzaron a circular esta mañana, los fanáticos de la empresa y colegas de la industria de los juegos buscaron la cuenta de Twitter de Pete Parsons, el CEO de Bungie desde 2016. Solo que, una vez que lo encontraron, se dieron cuenta de que había configurado su cuenta como privada, lo que significa que solo los seguidores preexistentes de Parsons podían ver sus publicaciones y responderle. Muchos comenzaron a burlarse de su biografía, que incluye un llamado a “ser valiente”, y afirmaron que Parsons no estaba a la altura de sus propios valores.
Dropping the news that you’ve laid off 220 people in a second round of layoffs after launching your most successful DLC to date and then going private immediately is cowardice on an embarrassing level. pic.twitter.com/56z1JdAGOX
— mads ☀️🍉 (@smadseli) July 31, 2024
https://twitter.com/embed/status/1818678522397049082
Final Shape’s staggering success really does the work in proving that it’s always been exceedingly awful management to blame, through and through. https://t.co/Z5cz4RlCKx
— brendan! (year of the gamer) (@personalhimbo) July 31, 2024
i just want to know what they did. Cause iirc pete didnt take a salary cut or anything at least last time. At this point i dont want to hear this kind of surface level things anymore. What DID leadership do exactly? pic.twitter.com/9cm4Jr7neQ
— D2 Postin' ⬛️⬜️🟪 (@destiny_thememe) July 31, 2024
Desde entonces, Parsons, probablemente reaccionando a las críticas que ya estaba recibiendo, desbloqueó su cuenta. A pesar del gesto, Parsons no ha dicho nada sobre los despidos de esta mañana y solo ha compartido la publicación del blog a través de la cuenta oficial de Twitter de Bungie.
Tras la noticia, antiguos empleados descontentos, fans de Bungie y voces de toda la industria de los videojuegos piden ahora que Parsons asuma una mayor responsabilidad y renuncie. Griffin Bennett, un desarrollador que había estado en Bungie desde 2018 hasta los despidos de 2023, respondió al anuncio del despido llamando a Parsons por su nombre y exigiendo que renunciara, llamándolo un “chiste”.
Pete is a joke. https://t.co/TtFtEzS0gF
— Griffin Bennett (@GriffinWB) July 31, 2024
C-Suite taking accountability for any of this or still just "withholding bonuses" and it'll be "settled in-house"?
Poor leadership has crushed one of the greatest developers of all time.
Retire, Pete.
— Griffin Bennett (@GriffinWB) July 31, 2024
https://twitter.com/embed/status/1818673183756874159
I didn’t even tweet that I got promoted last month, but now I get to tweet that I got laid off, so there’s that. gonna miss my team. https://t.co/4OE6R3dclt
— beau (she/her) (@BeauOckers) July 31, 2024
https://twitter.com/embed/status/1818669347185082660
I'm one of the affected. Still processing at the moment…I'm supposed to be on PTO today so I found out from twitter and friends messaging….thoughts later. https://t.co/1R2zVN6dHg
— Capitalist Ennui (ADKari) (@zillyhooligans) July 31, 2024
I was affected by layoffs today. I cannot explain how soulcrushing it is to have poured my life and soul into a game that has kept me on this planet in the first place, but Bungie had other plans for me. I’m looking for opportunities in the QA space with years of experience.
— Lucky🍀 luckygunn.bsky.social (@_LuckyGunn_) July 31, 2024
https://twitter.com/embed/status/1818683194860093658
I've been impacted by the layoffs announced this morning. It's been a privilege working with everyone at Bungie for the past (almost) 5 years.
But it's just really bad timing b/c my maternity leave was supposed to start next Monday and I got laid off today. https://t.co/vhDiXiZJVh
— kellybean (@TheRealLexuzi) July 31, 2024
https://twitter.com/embed/status/1818671550163263679
After nearly five years, delivering seasonal story from Hunt all the way to Deep and sending home the most well-received expansion in our history in Final Shape, I have been laid off and today is my last day at Bungie.
What a long, strange trip it's been.
— Robert Brookes 🩷💜💙 (@Sphynxian) July 31, 2024
https://twitter.com/embed/status/1818685329051926747
looks like i got hit. i work A LOT and im obsessed with work, everyone knows this. there's nothing i could've done to not be laid off. in fact i was literally working so much that so many people told me "you'll be ok, we need you to train/manage the outsourcers" https://t.co/lLZ4piq9bB
— ナディア nadia (@nadiaudio) July 31, 2024
Inexcusable. Industry leading talent being lost, yet again. Accountability falling upon the workers who have pushed the needle to deliver for our community time and time again.
Please maintain focus on those who’ve lost their position & income. Offer help where you can. https://t.co/SSDveUd5uW
— dmg 04 (@A_dmg04) July 31, 2024
Ben Platnick, un ex artista de efectos visuales de Bungie, fue un paso más allá, dicho“Pete tiene que irse, joder. Esto es mala gestión al más alto nivel”. Continúa afirmando que el “gasto de Parsons en I+D mientras… Destino “No hacer lo mejor resultaría ser un pozo de dinero sin retorno. Y mis amigos sufren por eso”.
Entre los equipos afectados por los despidos de hoy, el equipo de Soporte al Jugador parece haber sido particularmente afectado. Algunos miembros han comenzado a compartir sus propias historias de los últimos meses en Bungie trabajando en La forma final y su creciente desconfianza en los líderes del estudio, incluido Parsons.
https://twitter.com/embed/status/1818685353462841504
The player support team was also gutted, as well as some of the folks behind the most beloved narrative moments and sounds. The player support team worked harder than anyone else, through weekends – holidays – and the pay was atrocious… only to the tossed out so LY could get… https://t.co/z2XveKAjay
— Liana Ruppert (@DirtyEffinHippy) July 31, 2024
I wrote this a few months ago assuming I’d be laid off eventually. I was not, but I’m posting it anyways:
I’m writing this a few days after the metacritic and other scores for The Final Shape was released. I know what is coming, so I want to be clear in my mind as I write this. https://t.co/Je0fGQMpVL
— Duardo (@Duard0) July 31, 2024
Otros en la industria de los videojuegos han comenzado a sumarse y expresar su descontento con el liderazgo de Parsons y se han sumado a los pedidos de que renuncie. Entre las voces se encuentra Paul Tassi, quien cubre Destino para Forbes y el Destino-creador de contenido centrado en MyNameIsByf.
"no way to prevent this" says only industry where this regularly happens
— Aaron Linde (@aaronlinde) July 31, 2024
Bungie laying off 220 people and the CEO immediately going private on Twitter, all while having “be brave” in his bio is really fucking rich.
You know who has to be brave now? Those 220 people and their families.
— Alex Ackerman🌙 (@alex_frostwolf) July 31, 2024
https://twitter.com/embed/status/1818680699425034431
If an executive team has had to lay off ~350 people in a year perhaps you, not them, are the problem
— Paul Tassi (@PaulTassi) July 31, 2024
https://twitter.com/embed/status/1818674789667447182
Yearly fiasco at this point. All their devs were making the ✨BUNGIE✨ tweets again proud of their efforts rightfully so and Pete Parsons welcomed their efforts with a bath of boiling water. Real life Mr. Krabs https://t.co/bHrexIxUud
— Calico (@2Calico) July 31, 2024
Leadership needs to be changed.
Their decisions have consistently led to disaster for everyone who has actually been making the games we play.
They’ve been reckless with the studio, its employees, and its franchises.
The problem is clear. Bad leadership. It needs to change. https://t.co/ga01igprSl pic.twitter.com/lQhmkUIzgw
— My name is Byf (Lore Daddy) (@MyNameIsByf) July 31, 2024
