Judging from the reviews, Star Wars Zero Company is a hit, and if the player stats are anything to go by, it's probably a commercial success too. However, it was reported yesterday that most of the devs are out of work right now, as they were furloughed weeks before launch.
This unpaid leave was said to be rolled out as developer Bit Reactor ran out of money. Sources say that "most" employees are furloughed, with one source saying that 80% of the team is affected. There's no word on whether these devs have gotten their old jobs back now that the game is out, as Bit Reactor is yet to publicly respond to the report.
The community has reacted in different ways. Some have said this is all the more reason to purchase Zero Company, so Bit Reactor can afford to bring everyone back. On the other hand, others don't want to support Bit Reactor's leadership after it quietly furloughed so much of the team, and are leaving negative reviews on Zero Company until the move is reversed.
"I was going to give this game a 10/10," reads one of the top reviews for Zero Company on Steam. "[The] game is the best Star Wars we've received in years after the horrible mismanagement of EA and Disney, and yet 3 weeks before the game launched, 80% of them were waylaid like this, only a barebones skeleton crew is managing the game."
Many others share this sentiment. "I still recommend the game, but the review stays negative because f**k Bit Reactor and EA for treating their devs the exact same way the f**king Empire does."
The original report notes that the decision to furlough staff was made by Bit Reactor, not EA or Disney.
"I've enjoyed the game so far, however, I'm leaving a negative review after once again learning that 80% of the dev team + staff were furloughed ahead of release," reads another review. "Giving higher-ups at Bit Reactor the opportunity to pocket more profit for themselves. Sincerely, go f**k yourselves."
It continues throughout all the more recent years: "The developers did a great job with this game, too bad the greedy management decided to furlough the majority of their staff. Great game, hopefully all the good workers find a real studio and publisher to work for."
سەرچاوەی فەرمی بە زمانی ئینگلیزی: https://www.thegamer.com/star-wars-zero-company-review-bomb-over-dev-furlough/
