Madword said:
Nope not at all, well not in the UK anyway. I've heard stories that it used to happen in the UK perhaps 20 years ago, but these days, what with employment laws etc. I've seen people do crazy 7 day weeks, 12 hour+ days, but not sleeping at the desk. Some people are crazy and actually enjoy doing the hours and stay way longer than everyone else, thats more of a problem with that individual than the company. |
I've never slept at my desk, but worked through the night on several occasions. I was reliant on public transport, after the last bus the only option was to keep working until the first bus to go home for a shower and breakfast and head back to work again. Then go home very tired at 6pm, straight to bed.
Sure I was never forced to do crazy hours, yet when there is a deadline to be met that can make or break a project, you don't want all your work to go to waste. So sure, blame it on the individual. Do you think developers enjoy shipping their product in a broken state. Employment laws don't work unless you enforce them. Unpaid overtime was the norm where I worked. There were other compensation bonusses as not to report the overtime.
That wasn't in the games industry btw, I imagine their the pressure is a lot worse as a simple delay leads to an immediate outcry from fans, and any shortcuts will be called out on and highlighted all over the internet. Your job very much relies on the state and speed you ship your work in, whether your boss tells you to do overtime or not.
