Intro
- Relentless Software
- Two years old
- Finalled 15 PlayStation2 SKUs on time.
- No one has ever worked a weekend.
- Rarely does anyone work after 6pm.
- Profitable and healthy.
- Here to talk about that.
Your mileage may vary.
- Worked for us. Might not work for you.
- Culture is easier to change when starting afresh.
- You might not have control of all these things.
- Our games are simple.
- Described as totalitarian.
History
- Andrew Eades & David Amor.
- Many years at publishers. Both end up at CA Brighton working on DJ for Sony.
- Slipped milestones, buggy software.
- Late nights and weekends were encouraged by the boss.
- CA hit the wall. All redundant with no salary, no redundancy.
- Pulled together a team of around 10 to form Relentless and continue the DJ project.
The Need for a Change
- Both of us had kids. Didn't want to do the long hours.
- Existing system wasn't working. 50 developers went bust that year.
Part Business, Part Youth Club
- Existing system stemmed from Silicon Valley.
- Late nights. Late mornings. Pizza. Sleeping under desk.
- Part work, part play.
- Dick around for a while. You’ll make the time up in the evening.
- EA had Nerf fights, pizza accounts, scalextrics, cats in hats, chat mailgroups.
- I was a happy part of it, but I didn’t want it any more.
The New Regime
- The pact.
- You give us: 100% work at work. Business is business.
- We give you: In at nine. Out at five. One hour lunch. Five day week.
- This is how business works in the real world.
- Split into working practice ideas. Business ideas. Production ideas.
Working Practice Ideas
- In at 9. Out at 5.
o Morning not wasted.
o Whole team present at once.
o Refreshed the next day and back with ideas.
o Balanced people make better software.
- Internet off
o Including directors.
o It’s just a distraction. Step away from the screen instead.
o Whitelist system.
o Two internet PCs away from the work area.
o Internet at home after 5pm.
- Minimal e-mail
o Low e-mail usage in general.
o I was at 5 e-mails a day.
o No personal e-mail.
o Use your gmail/hotmail account at the internet PCs.
- No games
o How much reference honestly?
o Happy to buy games for the library.
o Games at home after 5pm.
- Step away from the screen
o Ideas don’t usually happen when staring at the screen.
It’s habitual!
Production Ideas
- John Meegan
- Six week milestones
o 1 week feedback & plan. 4 weeks work. 1 week polish.
o Always delivered in person.
- Never a bug in a milestone disc.
o Publisher is happy. They will show it to others that you can’t control.
o You are happy. You are working on a clean codebase.
- Contingency on contingency (on contingency)
Business Ideas
- On Target Earnings System
o 25% of salary is retained each month.
o We’ve always paid it.
- Bonuses, but not just bonuses
o Holidays
o Freebies
o Extra curricular activities
o Partners always included
- Holidays never blocked
o They only bunch up anyway
- Salary increases are inflationary, unless warranted.
- No window seating
- Less employers vs employees
o Company divided up (unequally though!)
o Don’t take the piss.