Amy Hennig, ex-Naughty Dog employee and now working on an original Star Wars game, spoke out against the stress and long hours associated with AAA development.
She specifically criticized the frequent periods of “chunk” that happen when working on big gaming projects. “Chunk” is when a team is working long, uninterrupted hours. While at Naughty Dog, Hennig’s most important role was directing Uncharted 3: Drake’s Deception. She recalls how stressful it was to get that game to gold.
“The whole time I was at Naughty Dog, I don’t know if I ever worked less than 80 hours a week,” said Hennig as reported by GI.biz. She isn’t criticizing Naughty Dog specifically but rather explaining the nature of AAA development. She claims some people in the triple-A industry “never go home and see their families.”
Certainly, something to think about as games keep getting more expensive and rushed to tighter deadlines.
