You need to read about Obsidian's leadership standing up for their team after those Xbox layoffs because it is genuinely one of the most refreshing things I have seen come out of game dev news this year. When Microsoft announced 180 cuts at Xbox with only a handful of new hires, rumors flew that every studio under the parent company would lose its identity and go corporate — and people took those theories straight to Twitter without asking anyone involved. Jordan Smith, Obsidian's director, responded by calling out exactly what he wanted to call out: "people running their mouths about how we have changed after these layoffs." He pointed out that while consolidation is happening at the top level, it does not mean every team loses its culture — his answer was a resounding no and a demand for respect from people who aren't in the room.
The most interesting part of this is Smith's specific critique of Twitter as an echo chamber where speculation gets treated as fact without any input from those actually doing the work. He said, "Twitter can be a great place but it is also a good place to learn how not to communicate," and then laid out what he wants people to know instead: Obsidian has open channels — Discord, his Twitter account at @JSmithOb, and regular dev diaries — so if you want accurate information about Avowed or anything else, ask the source. He ended with "you can keep talking online but don't pretend it matters here," which is probably the most honest statement a game director has made in public this year. That kind of transparency from leadership is exactly what I love to see because instead of a corporate PR response he gave an actual defense of his team and their future projects.
Source: https://www.ign.com/articles/obsidian-director-blasts-people-running-their-mouths-about-how-the-studio-has-changed-following-xbox-layoffs
The most interesting part of this is Smith's specific critique of Twitter as an echo chamber where speculation gets treated as fact without any input from those actually doing the work. He said, "Twitter can be a great place but it is also a good place to learn how not to communicate," and then laid out what he wants people to know instead: Obsidian has open channels — Discord, his Twitter account at @JSmithOb, and regular dev diaries — so if you want accurate information about Avowed or anything else, ask the source. He ended with "you can keep talking online but don't pretend it matters here," which is probably the most honest statement a game director has made in public this year. That kind of transparency from leadership is exactly what I love to see because instead of a corporate PR response he gave an actual defense of his team and their future projects.
Source: https://www.ign.com/articles/obsidian-director-blasts-people-running-their-mouths-about-how-the-studio-has-changed-following-xbox-layoffs