It’s the night of
‘Our industry has been strip-mined’: video game workers protest at The Game Awards
“I recently read that a three-minute trailer at The Game Awards costs more than $1m,” says the union’s local secretary, Kaitlin “KB” Bonfiglio. “[Despite] the pomp and circumstance of all of this, they never seem to acknowledge the historic amount of layoffs that have happened in the industry.”
For the UVW, there is a core issue here. “It’s all about greed,” Webster insists. “Anyone who works in the games industry can identify that our art form is being sold for parts to make a few people a lot of money. And they don’t care about the games. They don’t care about the art. They just want their money.”
For those working in games, the problems plaguing the industry are obvious. But how can UVW make it clear that the issues industry workers face affect players, too? “If you’re someone who loves video games, if you are frustrated by games that launch buggy and are delayed messes, if you’re frustrated by games you’re excited about getting cancelled without warning, all of that ties back to what we’re doing here,” treasurer Sherveen Uduwana says. “Giving us layoff protections, making sure bosses can’t take away our healthcare, making sure they can’t replace us with AI – that is going to lead to better games for players and more ambitious, interesting, creative projects. It’s really a win-win for players and a win-win for workers.”
There’s a clear love for the industry permeating through this group, a desire to make the medium and the work they cherish even better. The Game Awards is a major night, one that can help prop up smaller independent studios and highlight incredible voice actors. The UVW team recognises that.
“Have a good time today, and tomorrow, let’s wake up and start organising for better workers’ rights and a better games industry,” Uduwana says.
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Author: 360 Technology Group
