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How I Saved the Gaming Industry

Posted by CmdrTaco on from the lazy-is-an-attribute dept.

Jamie found a nifty blog entry where indie game designer Jeff Vogel writes about game engine and art re-use. He is criticized for not rewriting his core engine for a decade. It's an amusing little rant with thoughts that actually might apply to anyone working in engineering.

15 of 252 comments (clear)

  1. But You Can Be Like Activision! by eldavojohn · · Score: 4, Funny

    Most people will dismiss this idea out of hand, saying that I don't know anything about the realities of the business. And they are probably right. I'm just a dumb, little nobody. But I am running a profitable game company. But Electronic Arts and Activision (the company that owns Blizzard!) are losing bazillions of dollars.

    Maybe you should pay yourself $15 million a year and then hire a bunch of middle management and pay them more than the developers that do all your actual work. Be sure to insulate yourself from any actual work. That's when you can be considered "in the know" about the gaming industry or more specifically "in the money laughing as consumers suffer through your titles." Then you too can siphon off funds while your company languishes in the red just like the big guys.

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    My work here is dung.
    1. Re:But You Can Be Like Activision! by Captain+Splendid · · Score: 3, Funny

      Dude, if you're going to get high before you post, you're supposed to be more entertaining than this.

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      Linux, you magnificent bastard, I read the fucking manual!
    2. Re:But You Can Be Like Activision! by windex82 · · Score: 3, Funny

      I either get paid more or the company pays more taxes.

      Thats cute.

    3. Re:But You Can Be Like Activision! by ColdWetDog · · Score: 3, Funny

      Everybody back off or the accountant gets it!

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      Faster! Faster! Faster would be better!
    4. Re:But You Can Be Like Activision! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1, Funny

      I was one of those hardcore developers that eventually worked their way up to middle management (by accident) at a software company ... one of those guys who scorned anyone who spent more time in outlook then an IDE. Now that I have done the actual work of a middle and senior manager I laugh at how little I really understood about what my previous bosses had done and the pressure's placed upon them. Responsibility is work even if it cannot be judged in lines of code; understanding what and every developer is doing, keeping them on track and negotiating with customers is 10x's harder then one could ever imagine and was definitely a sign of my lack of maturity at that time. I long for the lack responsibility I once had where I could scoff that no one worked as hard as I did and I could not imagine any amount of money being worth what any CEO has to deal with on a day to day basis where you are not just managing a dozen or so people but the lives of hundreds (or thousands) of employees while balancing the investments stockholders and justifying their continual investments.

  2. I should have posted sooner by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Funny

    I was going to post my blog entry on how I single-handedly saved the porn industry.

    1. Re:I should have posted sooner by roman_mir · · Score: 4, Funny

      But then you couldn't do it because your single hand became busy?

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      You can't handle the truth.
    2. Re:I should have posted sooner by nate_wilbanks · · Score: 3, Funny

      That's funny. I was going to post about how I double-handedly saved the porn industry.

    3. Re:I should have posted sooner by Thiez · · Score: 3, Funny

      4?! I thought nasal sex was limited to dolphins...

  3. It's a heavy burden, to save an entire industry by BadAnalogyGuy · · Score: 5, Funny

    I, for one, know what it's like to try to save an entire industry as well.

    Before I arrived here as BadAnalogyGuy, I saw Slashdot sinking quickly into an ugly morass of old car analogies.

    I try to bring a broader perspective to Slashdot analogy making. And I like to think that I've been successful so far.

    It's a tough job, but god knows if left to your own devices, you slashbots would simply keep talking about cars and roads.

    1. Re:It's a heavy burden, to save an entire industry by MadKeithV · · Score: 3, Funny

      I don't understand, could you rephrase it as a car analogy?

    2. Re:It's a heavy burden, to save an entire industry by BadAnalogyGuy · · Score: 3, Funny

      PAG is long dead. But by all means, tell me more about his "profits".

      Stupid Flanders.

    3. Re:It's a heavy burden, to save an entire industry by clem · · Score: 5, Funny

      Nice. It's even got that new car analogy smell.

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      Your courageous and selfless spelling corrections have made me a better person.
  4. Ding by Colin+Smith · · Score: 3, Funny

    Corporate America.

    I'm surprised the shareholders aren't out in the streets with pitchforks.
     

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    Deleted
  5. Re:If I had a billion dollars by twoallbeefpatties · · Score: 2, Funny

    You also wouldn't have to eat Kraft dinners.

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    Libertarians somehow believe that private businesses should be stronger than governments but weaker than individuals.