As the video game industry struggles under the weight of globalist policies enforced by figures like Larry Fink and his ESG hedge fund collective, it produces products that fail to resonate with audiences. Consequently, many game development studios are facing closures or significant layoffs of staff to stay afloat.
Western corporations in the video game industry have been criticized not only for creating sanitized games with themes that don’t appeal to their core audience but also for prioritizing Diversity, Equity, and Inclusivity (DEI) initiatives in their hiring practices.
These initiatives focus on race and sexuality rather than credentials and experience, allowing companies to meet diversity quotas and receive tax benefits.
However, these “diversity hires” seem unable to sustain the companies, leading to financial failures. As consumers increasingly reject ESG initiatives and “woke themes” in their video games, major companies like Microsoft, Sony, Take-Two, Embracer, Electronic Arts, and Activision have been forced to reduce their workforce to mitigate financial losses, resulting in thousands of layoffs in the past year.
In response, employees affected by these layoffs are beginning to unionize to protect their jobs and working conditions.
Activision Blizzard often boasts about its commitment to inclusivity and diversity, both within its workforce and in its products. Recently, they distributed free LGBT weapon camouflages to all players in Call of Duty for PRIDE month, indoctrinating minors and censored the appearance of the “Firecracker” operator upon her return to the game after a half year absence.
The company has also assigned DEI officers to every development studio to enforce workplace diversity and acceptance. However, merely ticking diversity checkboxes does not necessarily translate into substantial profits.
And now in order to protect their jobs, the individuals responsible for the decline of the video game industry from a development standpoint are beginning to unionize. The team behind World of Warcraft at Blizzard is now unionizing. Approximately 500 workers are joining the Communication Workers of America, similar to other game industry unions.
This new union will be “wall-to-wall,” covering the entire development team rather than just one division, such as QA. It will include both the larger Irvine, California team and the smaller team in Massachusetts. The union will be called the World of Warcraft Game Makers Guild, or WoWGG.
It’s worth noting that the original creators of World of Warcraft are no longer at Blizzard. They have been replaced by individuals focused on activism and propaganda, who have made significant changes to the game.
For instance, with the Shadowlands expansion, additional Black ethnicities were introduced, and sometime later the term “Greenskin” was removed in reference to Orcs due to concerns that it was racially insensitive. These changes reflect a shift in the company’s priorities from those of its predecessors.
It’s puzzling how anti-racists can confuse a large, menacing race of green Orcs with Black people, yet this comparison was deemed racist and subsequently removed from World of Warcraft.
Nonetheless, those responsible for the game’s decline, by purging anything remotely “problematic” to promote gender equality, diversity, and inclusivity, such as banning players who misgender others via in-game text chat are now unionizing to protect themselves from Activision Blizzard, which is quite ironic.
The video game industry is struggling, with games taking significantly longer to develop compared to a decade ago, and modern titles often costing hundreds of millions of dollars. It’s no surprise that companies, including foreign ones like Capcom and Square Enix, are eager to secure easy financing by adhering to BlackRock’s ESG agendas and incorporating such policies into their video games.
ESG investments have been underperforming, and hedge funds backing these schemes are dying. As more companies self-censor and prioritize ethnic and LGBT representation to secure these investments, there’s less financial support available, leading to market failures.
In March, Activision saw the formation of a union consisting of 600 QA workers. These employees have become more difficult to fire, organizing under a “labor neutrality” agreement following Microsoft’s acquisition of Activision Blizzard. Microsoft agreed to remain neutral if workers in the U.S. and Canada sought to unionize, an unusual move in the industry meant to address merger concerns from 2022.
For those who wish to see the likes of Activision die, this is great news. While game quality has suffered due to adherence to globalist policies and representation mandates, now these overstaffed studios are facing unionization efforts.
Unions typically demand better wages, improved working conditions, benefits, and job security. This unionization means Activision Blizzard can’t easily fire these employees without probable cause, as any terminations can be challenged through arbitration, often favoring the union workers.
In addition to the primary Activision QA union, a second group of QA workers in Austin, Texas, has formed Texas Blizzard QA United, affiliated with the Communications Workers of America.
This group of around 60 developers primarily works on Diablo, Hearthstone, and other games. Both unions have been officially recognized under Microsoft’s labor neutrality agreement.
For those hoping for Activision’s downfall, this unionization might seem like a step in that direction. The trend isn’t isolated to Activision; other Western studios with activist developers are also seeing similar movements.
Bethesda Game Studios, facing the failure of Starfield, has also voted to unionize, with over 1,750 employees now under union protection through Microsoft featuring 241 developers at Bethesda and 300 QA workers at Zenimax
Bethesda’s core game development studios have joined the Communication Workers of America, including their headquarters in Rockville, Maryland, and satellite studios in Austin and Dallas. Additionally, their Montreal-based studio is seeking unionization with the CWA’s Canadian branch.
This marks a historic occasion as Bethesda was the initial group to form a solidified union under Microsoft, with the union encompassing all disciplines at the group. Combined with the recently-formed union at Blizzard, the CWA now represents over 1,750 Microsoft game workers who are deliberately responsible for the decline of the video game industry and seemingly demand more money and better hours for the privilege.
Other studios are likely to follow suit. Given Microsoft’s history of producing commercial failures, often attributed to poorly received female protagonists and subpar gameplay, unionization will likely ensure that those responsible for these developments remain employed for the foreseeable future. They will continue to reap additional benefits and rewards while potentially contributing to the company’s decline.
