Have you seen what is happening outside the bubble lately, not only to workforces across the US in all sectors, but also the complete deterioration of products and services with a substantial price increase to boot? Just where do you exactly think this is coming from? I can think of 6 of them off the top of my head and you are right, it just isn't DEI. But that alone sprouts into the other pieces of the snowball that was generated here.
1) Hiring of workforce personnel not skilled for the job but to meet a DEI metric.
2) Unionization when leveraged to protect them.
3) As a result of 1 and 2, these same people thinking having a job is an entitlement. No one is entitled to a job. You earn it. And to keep it, you perform. Cut and dry.
4) As a result of 1, 2 and 3 - the skilled workers take on more of the responsibility, workload, and hours which are not compensated in the form of more manpower.
5) Labor and Cost over-runs and budget blow outs, missing milestones, countless meetings not on development - but on messaging of what the final product's "message" is rather than is it fun to play. (To the point where the messaging has now taken over the development).
End result:
1a) Customers pay the price increase to match profit margins from all the above 1-5.
2a) Customers get to see the end result of 1-5, and that end result has been exponentially getting worse with games being developed in the US.
Ironic that we aren't seeing the same pattern from our Japanese friends isn't it? Latest being Final Fantasy Rebirth.
So, let me put this in perspective with real world commercials - and we all know what happened in these sequels - whether from messaging or limited talent pool - so let's not be obtuse.
The last of us: 37 Million copies sold. The last of us 2: 10 million - 72% decrease
Horizon Zero Dawn: 25 million copies sold. Horizon Zero Dawn 2 (Forbidden West): 10 Million - 60% decrease
Diablo 3: 30 Million as of 2015 (Most likely a lot more) - Diablo 4: Est. 9.5 Million: 68% decrease
I could write 20 more on the top of my head.
Inherently, the risk associated is held to an original IP. Never before have we seen such detrimental commercial failures from sequels of incredibly successful original IP's in the history of gaming. All at the EXACT same time within the time spawn of DEI being implemented everywhere and all this bullshit started.
Let's move to budgets:
The last of us: $54 Million. The last of us 2: $220 Million.
Horizon Zero Dawn: $47 Million. Horizon Forbidden West: $220 Million.
Diablo - Unknown.
Now let's look at how it is being corrected:
Over 18,000 layoffs happened in the last 14 months in this industry alone.
Capitalism doesn't give two shits what you are. It cares whether you can design a product/service/project within budget, meet timelines, and be commercially successful.
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The ride for these fucks is over.