Baldur's Gate 3 publisher thinks developers should become pirates to clean up BioWare's act

Recent layoffs at BioWare, developer of Dragon Age: The Veilguard, have sparked widespread conversation about the current state of the gaming industry. Larian Studios' publishing director, Michael Daus, has again taken to social media to address this issue, emphasizing the importance of valuing employees and holding leadership accountable for job losses.

Daus argues that significant layoffs between or after projects are preventable. He stresses the critical role of retaining institutional knowledge within development teams for future projects. While acknowledging the financial pressures that sometimes necessitate "trimming the fat," he questions the necessity of aggressive corporate efficiency strategies, particularly when they lead to widespread job cuts. This approach, he suggests, is only viable for studios consistently releasing successful titles. Otherwise, layoffs are simply a drastic cost-cutting measure.

Daus points out that upper management's strategic decisions are ultimately responsible for these outcomes, yet lower-level employees consistently bear the brunt of the consequences. He uses the analogy of a pirate ship, where the captain would be the first to be sacrificed, suggesting that the gaming industry needs a similar approach to accountability.