Spiders devs to strike after alleging mismanagement, 'growing instability'

Update: In a statement provided to Insider Gaming, a Spiders representative called the allegations from STJV "false and even accusatory."

The statement went on to say the claims "in no way" reflect the studio's day-to-day work life, and attack Spiders' reputation. It also affirmed management's commitment to "open and constructive social dialogue."

"Spiders’ employees are the heart of the studio," the statement concludes, "and we are determined to maintain an inclusive and stimulating working environment in which every talent can flourish and of which we can all be proud."

That statement also notes that leadership is aiming to negotiate with staff over the studio's working conditions by the end of the week.

Original story (8/27/24): Workers at Greedfall and Technomancer developer Spiders are striking next week on Monday, September 2, and Tuesday, September 3.

In an open letter published by French game dev union STJV (spotted by GamesIndustry), staff alleged years of mismanagement. 44 employees, or nearly half of Spiders' 95-person team, signed a letter to "finally push management to act in the best interests of employees and the company."

The 20-page document covers several topics, chiefly "growing instability." Workers claim management refused to effectively accommodate remote working requests and continue to offer "lower on average" wages compared to the rest of France's game industry.

"How will we be able to keep on living in the Paris area while still working at Spiders?" reads the open letter. "We are [unable] to know where we'll be able to live in the future, nor how we'll face life events, even those planned in advance."

Spiders workers also claim the organization has changed "little, if at all" despite swelling to a near-100 person headcount. As a result, decisions are rarely ironclad, work can be easily "invalidated," and projects "can't seem to figure out where they're going."

"We're getting bogged down in complicated productions," the letter continues."[...] What's at stake is the smooth running of the company and the health of its employees, whose creative and technical potential is limited by unsuitable and disorganized processes."

Spiders' yearslong issues are catching up with it

Employees suggest that rampant mismanagement hampered production on Greedfall 2, leading to burnout and several departures mid or post-development.

Factors for development going "underwater" include an unplanned (and "painful") Early Access launch and pipeline problems built on that of previous projects. It's also claimed that upper management has been non-responsive or outright hostile to requests for change, often asserting that "production processes have nothing to do with working conditions."

Management has also reportedly accused elected representatives of trying to "destabilize" Greedfall 2's creative direction. Overall, it's claimed studio leadership has shown "great difficulty in reassessing itself, and denies workers' ability to make their voices heard."

After months of stalled negotiations, Spiders staff hope the strike can help them bypass a "dead end" and secure better conditions for current and future staff.

Those conditions include a minimum of three days per week of working from home, clear pay scales and job progression schemes, and wage increases.

During the two-day strike, Spiders workers will encourage other French developers, journalists, and political actors to join them. They will also be virtually striking in a Minecraft server made for the event.

You can hear more from Spiders employees by reading the open letter in full.