Despite resistance, crunch continues to define the videogame industry

LOS ANGELES: Today, in the videogames industry, the concept of excessive “crunch” – mandatory overtime, usually couched as part of a final push to finish a game – is decried in almost all corners, from industry whitepapers to convention panels. 

Yet, as article after article rolls off the presses exposing the draconian conditions that massive games are produced under, it’s clear that the practice continues to persist all across the globe. In recent weeks, several high-profile news stories have revealed a stark divide in the culture of game-making, with anti-crunch activists on one side and several luminaries of the industry on the other, however unwittingly.