"I left Insomniac Games because of how they treat women" Ex-Employee speaks out

[bixente]

I listened to the Spawn Wave podcast and they covered the Activision Blizzard lawsuit pretty thoroughly. Miss Click on the panel broke down in tears at one point going on a rant. This week talking about Insomniac they're doing nothing but singing their praises. Another panel member Max aka DreamcastGuy even said how the company goes out of its way to make its employees happy hence why their games turn out well. Seemed galling to me especially with Miss Click on the panel once more.

 

[Super Mega Man]

As per Sol, the core issues are still there.


I wish things have gotten better. But going by what Sol has heard (likely from people they know who are still at Insomniac), it hasn't.

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It should be called out but to utter the word "Insomniac" under the same breath as Activision Blizzard is an exaggeration. Unless more people come out and employees start having walk outs at the company it's not even comparable. If Era mods didn't do something about Activision games' threads I don't see how expecting that for Insomniac is realistic.

 

[Neoxon]

It should be called out but to utter the word "Insomniac" under the same breath as Activision Blizzard is an exaggeration. Unless more people come out and employees start having walk outs at the company it's not even comparable. If Era mods didn't do something about Activision games' threads I don't see how expecting that for Insomniac is realistic.

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Unfortunately, the only reason we know as much as we do about the shit going on at Activision Blizzard is because of the lawsuit. Likewise, the bare minimum suggestion I made is something that's already being applied to Activision Blizzard threads, that being putting a notation of what's going on at Insomniac.

This point, I just want justice for the victims & for more people to be aware of what's going on.

 

[Deleted member 17184]

Did anyone create a moderation ticket yet? If not, I'm considering it to at least ask what they have considered doing and what are their plans regarding Insomniac.

 

[CaptainKashup]

As per Sol, the core issues are still there.


I wish things have gotten better. But going by what Sol has heard (likely from people they know who are still at Insomniac), it hasn't.

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I didn't know about this follow-up, thanks.
And also fuck. Come on Insomniac, be better than this.

 

[Deleted member 10119]

Not sure if this has ever been brought up, but seeing people type things like "boycott" and "don't buy their games" made me remember this.

Alanah Pearce made a video a while ago pertaining to the stuff happening at ActiBlizz and the conversation swirling around boycotting them in regards to supporting the devs. She makes some good points as to why it might not have the beneficial effect that people might assume it would have.

For those who don't know who Alanah is, she has worked in the games industry for like a decade and at this point is pretty much well known and well regarded all throughout the industry. She has dealt with the ugliest parts of this industry and to this day still gets death threats and threats of rape sent to her by pieces of shit who don't like her speaking up about anything. She currently works for Sony Santa Monica Studio as a writer.

If you have a few minutes I would highly suggest watching her video and hearing what she has to say on this kind of thing.

 

[Scrappy-Fan92]

The issue has been brought up before and the video from Ms. Pearce has been shared in multiple threads.

Did anyone create a moderation ticket yet? If not, I'm considering it to at least ask what they have considered doing and what are their plans regarding Insomniac.

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Not that I know of.

 

[Kyuuji]

Not sure if this has ever been brought up, but seeing people type things like "boycott" and "don't buy their games" made me remember this.

Alanah Pearce made a video a while ago pertaining to the stuff happening at ActiBlizz and the conversation swirling around boycotting them in regards to supporting the devs. She makes some good points as to why it might not have the beneficial effect that people might assume it would have.

For those who don't know who Alanah is, she has worked in the games industry for like a decade and at this point is pretty much well known and well regarded all throughout the industry. She has dealt with the ugliest parts of this industry and to this day still gets death threats and threats of rape sent to her by pieces of shit who don't like her speaking up about anything. She currently works for Sony Santa Monica Studio as a writer.

If you have a few minutes I would highly suggest watching her video and hearing what she has to say on this kind of thing.

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It's been posted a number of times, so here's an alternative take that I posted in the AB thread in response to a similar post:

On Activision Blizzard specifically; when a company has trouble respecting women as human beings I'm not going to be surprised when they also have issues treating trans & non-binary people as people. I am more than content with not buying any of their future output and it's less 'worker solidarity' – to avoid the immediate twitter quotes – and more that they have plumbed such a depth of disgust within me that I really do not want to engage with their products. I feel for the women affected and it is vile what many there have had to endure. It makes supporting Acti-Blizzard's presence unappealing even if that results in no material difference outside of my own decision.

 

[B-Dubs]

When threads like these about serious allegations against publishers and developers are constantly getting derailed by arguments over whether threads about games should be banned here or not, to the point where the topic in the OP itself is virtually ignored, then there's a problem.

People aren't discussing the case or the industry-wide issues or productive ways to make a difference. They've been taking shots at each other, shots at the staff, and competing to throw around the most inflammatory accusations they can think of.

That's going to stop. We have these threads to discuss these issues because they're important, and we allow these issues to be raised in threads related to these companies and games because that's important. Discussion about these issues are being suffocated by the constant derailments and infighting.

Derailing this thread or similarly sensitive threads with demands for blanket bans will not influence moderation policy. Please get back to discussing the allegations in the OP and cease the derails and arguments about banning games; further derails will be actioned as such.

 

[Deleted member 17184]

Not sure if this has ever been brought up, but seeing people type things like "boycott" and "don't buy their games" made me remember this.

Alanah Pearce made a video a while ago pertaining to the stuff happening at ActiBlizz and the conversation swirling around boycotting them in regards to supporting the devs. She makes some good points as to why it might not have the beneficial effect that people might assume it would have.

For those who don't know who Alanah is, she has worked in the games industry for like a decade and at this point is pretty much well known and well regarded all throughout the industry. She has dealt with the ugliest parts of this industry and to this day still gets death threats and threats of rape sent to her by pieces of shit who don't like her speaking up about anything. She currently works for Sony Santa Monica Studio as a writer.

If you have a few minutes I would highly suggest watching her video and hearing what she has to say on this kind of thing.

Click to shrink...

I've watched that video and I don't think it applies to our community here. We don't even have 60,000 members in total, and not all of them play these games or are active. Some of the games we talk about sell more than 200x the number of members we have. And yet, I've seen the same users saying, in the same discussion, that we're too small to see any boycott have any effect and that boycotts can affect devs. If we're too small to have any effect, then why worry about the effects? That's not the logic we're having.

Some of us don't feel good buying or playing these games. I tried a few years ago to play a game that I knew was rotten because someone who played a major role in it was involved in abuse, but I just couldn't. Every moment of it, I was thinking about what the person did and couldn't enjoy my time. This is why I haven't engaged in any thread about this franchise for quite a while.

So yeah, I'm willing to encourage a boycott in this community for those who feel similarly. I know it won't have a major impact but at the very least our community here will be better.

 

[RedRum]

It should be called out but to utter the word "Insomniac" under the same breath as Activision Blizzard is an exaggeration. Unless more people come out and employees start having walk outs at the company it's not even comparable. If Era mods didn't do something about Activision games' threads I don't see how expecting that for Insomniac is realistic.

Click to shrink...

Why should people quantify shitty behavior? So treatment of women in one way shouldn't be viewed as equal to another? The whole "it's not as bad as that" is a counterproductive way to combat this. Shitty behavior is shitty behavior. And to say it doesn't compare because more people haven't come forward is... just.. yuck. I guess it's so easy for victims of this behavior to come forward knowing that their world gets turned upside down by the likes of the internet or risk the only paying job you have to whistle blow. These are not easy decisions to make. Which is why a lot of people just choose to stay silent.

 

[bakedpony]

Sol mentioned the issues are still there, but I have not seen any media reporting new evidences.

Like I mentioned earlier in the thread, I will still give them the benefit of a doubt that they have taken steps as mentioned in their only statement.

If we hear of new incidents though, then that is it for me personally.

 

[wollywinka]

It's interesting that Insomniac touts its commitment to diversity. Should that be construed somehow as a rebuttal of the allegations? Does it suggest that any incident of harassment in a truly diverse workplace must be an edge case? Perhaps I'm needlessly trying to read between the lines.

 

[B-Dubs]

Let me add this: harassing or making insinuations toward female posters, who do nothing other than show excitement about games from these sorts of studios, about not caring about sexism and sexual assault is so far beyond acceptable that I cannot even begin to quantify it.

Anyone doing that is eating a ban. I don't care if you think you had good intentions, I should not need to explain how bad it is.

I had to say this when the Acti-Blizz situation was coming to light and the fact I need to say it again is disgusting. I am legitimately angry that I even needed to point it out in the first place, let alone say it a second time.

 

[Rocketjay]

Didn't EA Made a statement similar to this recently?

 

[Scrappy-Fan92]

It's interesting that Insomniac touts its commitment to diversity. Should that be construed somehow as a rebuttal of the allegations? Does it suggest that any incident of harassment in a truly diverse workplace must be an edge case? Perhaps I'm needlessly trying to read between the lines.

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Most workplaces will tout it if they've got it, so I'm not sure if it's meant to be a rebuttal or just standard company boasting. Of course, diversity alone will not prevent harassment and should never be used as a shield to handwave bad company practices, even if far too many places do just that.

 

[krazen]

Most workplaces will tout it if they've got it, so I'm not sure if it's meant to be a rebuttal or just standard company boasting. Of course, diversity alone will not prevent harassment and should never be used as a shield to handwave bad company practices, even if far too many places do just that.

Click to shrink...

I mean, to be honest its more about optics but even more so; how firms are dealing with the added pressure of not having to deal with their names in the paper. You see a wide variety of companies putting out press releases, paying for 'official audits' regarding diversity and environmental issues, etc to make them look good in press releases and annual reports.

The big issue is when a scandal happens its not out of the ordinary for connected companies to get dragged into the mud. So its like X company gets in trouble because its rampant abuse, but the article also throws in paragraph 6 that Citibank just funded a half a billion dollar deal with a pic of their CEO shaking the hands of an Exxon exec..its become a bad look. The deals happen anyway(we aint that moral) , but now Citibank will pressure for a better deal on his side costing since there is 'reputational risk'

 

[wollywinka]

Most workplaces will tout it if they've got it, so I'm not sure if it's meant to be a rebuttal or just standard company boasting. Of course, diversity alone will not prevent harassment and should never be used as a shield to handwave bad company practices, even if far too many places do just that.

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I agree, diversity and harassment are not mutually exclusive. That said, when the behaviour is endemic, as alleged, I imagine a predominantly male chain of command. I was just trying to understand the logic behind Insomniac's assertion..

 

[NediarPT88]

As per Sol, the core issues are still there.


I wish things have gotten better. But going by what Sol has heard (likely from people they know who are still at Insomniac), it hasn't.

Click to shrink...

Wish I could remember where I saw the job posting and the specifics of it, but not that long ago Sony itself iirc was hiring someone to oversee this kind of stuff at Insomniac, so there's clearly work to be done still.

 

[Scrappy-Fan92]

I agree, diversity and harassment are not mutually exclusive. That said, when the behaviour is endemic, as alleged, I imagine a predominantly male chain of command. I was just trying to understand the logic behind Insomniac's assertion..

Click to shrink...

Oh, they very likely do have a predominantly male chain of command. Maybe a decently diverse staff below the executive board thus giving them leeway to make claims about their ostensibly progressive nature on their site, but likely a majority male group making the biggest decisions.

 

[RoboPlato]

Wish I could remember where I saw the job posting and the specifics of it, but not that long ago Sony itself iirc was hiring someone to oversee this kind of stuff at Insomniac, so there's clearly work to be done still.

Click to shrink...

It was just a couple of weeks back, a couple days after Cory responded to the thread. I don't know if it has been filled yet. Hopefully it's someone who has the tools and ability to stand-up for employees in a way that HR continually fails to and can make a positive change on the culture there.

 

[Super Mega Man]

When threads like these about serious allegations against publishers and developers are constantly getting derailed by arguments over whether threads about games should be banned here or not, to the point where the topic in the OP itself is virtually ignored, then there's a problem.

People aren't discussing the case or the industry-wide issues or productive ways to make a difference. They've been taking shots at each other, shots at the staff, and competing to throw around the most inflammatory accusations they can think of.

That's going to stop. We have these threads to discuss these issues because they're important, and we allow these issues to be raised in threads related to these companies and games because that's important. Discussion about these issues are being suffocated by the constant derailments and infighting.

Derailing this thread or similarly sensitive threads with demands for blanket bans will not influence moderation policy. Please get back to discussing the allegations in the OP and cease the derails and arguments about banning games; further derails will be actioned as such.

Click to shrink...

Took me a hot minute to see this post but I just wanted to say thank you. I agree with this 1,000% and I think this is the correct position to be taken. You have my support. That is all.

 

[Deleted member 69942]

When threads like these about serious allegations against publishers and developers are constantly getting derailed by arguments over whether threads about games should be banned here or not, to the point where the topic in the OP itself is virtually ignored, then there's a problem.

People aren't discussing the case or the industry-wide issues or productive ways to make a difference. They've been taking shots at each other, shots at the staff, and competing to throw around the most inflammatory accusations they can think of.

That's going to stop. We have these threads to discuss these issues because they're important, and we allow these issues to be raised in threads related to these companies and games because that's important. Discussion about these issues are being suffocated by the constant derailments and infighting.

Derailing this thread or similarly sensitive threads with demands for blanket bans will not influence moderation policy. Please get back to discussing the allegations in the OP and cease the derails and arguments about banning games; further derails will be actioned as such.

Click to shrink...

Thanks for the update. I think the main thing I compared it with was the Cyberpunk posts where each topic related to Cyberpunk had a staff post at the bottom or at least something posted in the start of the messages about the current situation unless I misremember this?

But I agree that talking about this issue and finding solutions is much more important. But I feel that at some point these things just drown in the hype.

So I am more confused in how we can keep this up. Cause after everything is said and done. We all agree it is bad and that is pretty much the final conclusion towards the whole topic I suppose.

Anyway, thanks for the update again :).

Wish I could remember where I saw the job posting and the specifics of it, but not that long ago Sony itself iirc was hiring someone to oversee this kind of stuff at Insomniac, so there's clearly work to be done still.

Click to shrink...

Well, I guess some steps are being taken and that is a good step. Hopefully things have changed within Insomniac for the better and we see proof about this soon as well.

 

[Neoxon]

Wish I could remember where I saw the job posting and the specifics of it, but not that long ago Sony itself iirc was hiring someone to oversee this kind of stuff at Insomniac, so there's clearly work to be done still.

Click to shrink...

It was just a couple of weeks back, a couple days after Cory responded to the thread. I don't know if it has been filled yet. Hopefully it's someone who has the tools and ability to stand-up for employees in a way that HR continually fails to and can make a positive change on the culture there.

Click to shrink...

Hopefully the job actually leads to positive change at Insomniac.

 

[Vash]

It's been a while since I've heard anything about this, and sorry for dredging up this old topic, but have there been any updates on how the workplace is being handled right now? As per the posts above me, they seemed to have a position open to oversee issues of abuse of power, but has there been any follow up from media or anything to find out how things are going?

We definitely need more transparency on this from Insomniac and Sony imo.

 

[TheSpaceBetween]

Everyone praising Insomniac right now needs to remember how they have treated their women employees.

 

[Hero of Legend]

Everyone praising Insomniac right now needs to remember how they have treated their women employees.

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Yepper. Already pointed out and linked to this thread in the other thread.

 

[Bambi Is My Dad]

Everyone praising Insomniac right now needs to remember how they have treated their women employees.

Click to shrink...

I agree and Insomniac has a long way to go. I am glad that they they are in support of Roe vs Wade, but I hope this is the start of an extremely long road to redemption. This action should be commended, but not in any way should be used to make up for the shit they done to their female employees.

They have a very, very long way to go.

 

[Azerth]

Hopefully we hear about improvements but i doubt it

 

[Musubi]

Read the thread for the rest. Awful stuff and even more shocking that the behavior came from a member of the HR team. We need to do better.

Click to shrink...

Human Resources departments are there to protect the company not you.

 

[XaviConcept]

Human Resources departments are there to protect the company not you.

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That line has picked up a lot of steam these last two years and in some cases its for good reason, but thats how a shitty HR department operates. Ive had great experiences with HR when it came to extremely delicate matters both at EA previously and Scopely now, so we dont need to paint it all with the cynical brush

 

[headfallsoff]

That line has picked up a lot of steam these last two years and in some cases its for good reason, but thats how a shitty HR department operates. Ive had great experiences with HR when it came to extremely delicate matters both at EA previously and Scopely now, so we dont need to paint it all with the cynical brush

Click to shrink...

It's not a criticism of the individuals who work in Human Resources or saying that HR companies are always cruel or negligent, or that those in HR never do good work or help people, it's a plain description of the structure and purpose of a Human Resources department in a company that exists to make profit.

 

[Neoxon]

Everyone praising Insomniac right now needs to remember how they have treated their women employees.

Click to shrink...

I made that clear in my post for the other thread.

 

[TheSpaceBetween]

I made that clear in my post for the other thread.

Click to shrink...

Good. The more visibility the better.

 

[klauskpm]

I agree and Insomniac has a long way to go. I am glad that they they are in support of Roe vs Wade, but I hope this is the start of an extremely long road to redemption. This action should be commended, but not in any way should be used to make up for the shit they done to their female employees.

They have a very, very long way to go.

Click to shrink...

I couldn't have said it better.

That line has picked up a lot of steam these last two years and in some cases its for good reason, but thats how a shitty HR department operates. Ive had great experiences with HR when it came to extremely delicate matters both at EA previously and Scopely now, so we dont need to paint it all with the cynical brush

Click to shrink...

In my experience, HR follows the company's interest. If the company (people with power and/or influence) is protecting the people who are doing damage, HR will ignore it. I had great experiences with HR in the past as well, but when I had an issue regarding one C level person, an HR person asked me "Why are you in this company then?" instead of even trying to work on a solution.