Machine Zone Reviews

Former Employee – worked at Machine Zone

Pros – Friendly atmosphere and some awesome people work there . The company is located in Palo Alto and for some people the commute is a deal breaker, but overall i'd say it is worth the trip.

Cons – Even though the company is engineer oriented they should definitely get an art director . Otherwise lack of clear artistic vision will drive them to being neglected on the market even with the best engineering tricks.

Yes, I would recommend this company to a friend

Current Employee – been working at Machine Zone full-time for more than a year

Pros – Machine Zone is by far the best place I've worked for, in my career! I have been in the gaming industry for 8 years and have seen a lot of mismanagement, poor decisions and even lies. Machine Zone has always put their best foot forward in taking care of their employees. I've seen career growth for myself and others and the work is meaningful. From what I've experienced they care about their employees as much as the games they develop. Executive Team/Management is visible, approachable and hard working. Very collaborative environment.

Cons – Smaller company, which is not for everyone.

Yes, I would recommend this company to a friend – I'm optimistic about the outlook for this company

Current Employee – been working at Machine Zone full-time for less than a year

Pros – Surrounded by talented individuals who are rock stars of their field. It really is the cream of the crop around here.

Cons – Its definitely a fast paced environment, and not for the weak willed. The only con would be if you are not a dedicated individual who like to work hard and reap the benefits of that work.

Advice to Senior Management – Keep up the amazing work.

Yes, I would recommend this company to a friend – I'm optimistic about the outlook for this company

Former Employee – worked at Machine Zone full-time for less than a year

Pros – They know how to make money, good location in Palo Alto, offices are new and they are open to suggestions in building products and doing business. Despite their faults, the people as individuals are very intelligent. Financially, Machine Zone is making attempts to do the right things to avoid going down the failed game start up path that so many fall into.

Cons – Working at Machine Zone is what I imagine a sweat shop to be like. If you have any thoughts on an outside life I would abandon it before accepting a position there. Working hours are from 11am to 10pm and some weekends. Career development is non-existent as everyone is pegged into roles for the "now" rather than the future. The CTO is very intelligent but has a hard time making decisions as he's also in the dark with company direction. He plans his organizational goals around building games that are dead in the mind of the CEO. Needless to say, conflicts between founders affects the entire organization.

Advice to Senior Management – If you want to be a great game company then create original IP. Producing re-skins of other company's games and adding chat to it doesn't make a player more immersed if the game play and graphics are horrible. CEO lacks professionalism and his predictable rants are merely an uninspiring blame game. For all the intelligence and potential with the company, it's leadership is far from being unified and causes the company to react towards problems rather than work together to understand and solve them.

No, I would not recommend this company to a friend – I'm not optimistic about the outlook for this company

Current Employee – been working at Machine Zone full-time for less than a year

Pros – The flat organization makes it very easy for employees to make an impact every day. I love coming to work at a place that is pushing the envelope on game design and WILL be the gold standard of not just mobile gaming, but the game industry in general.

Cons – Being innovative takes hard work and some sacrifice. Working here is not for the timid or those not interested in putting in the time to win.

Advice to Senior Management – Try to work on getting the hours to those of a normal company.

Yes, I would recommend this company to a friend – I'm optimistic about the outlook for this company

Current Employee – been working at Machine Zone

Pros – Innovative work environment that continually pushes the envelope to anticipate and deliver what the customer wants and needs. Its very exciting times here with executive management having a very strategic long term goal within this rapidly growing industry.

Cons – This company is not for everyone. Dedicated and passionate people who love video games and working are best suited to thrive in this environment.

Yes, I would recommend this company to a friend

Current Employee – been working at Machine Zone full-time for more than a year

Pros – Starting off first with the CEO's vision - his history in gaming from coin-op to becoming the first to build a free2play mmo on the ios - he has repeatedly been RIGHT and calling the future. The company was bootstrapped so the cofounders had to turn a profit quickly, so the monetization expertise is very important since no money, no company! The company has a great grasp of free2play but also how to make money, and it is now going to predict and build the future. If you want to work on some fluffy "high-quality" casual game with a bunch of half-motivated people just to ship a title in 3 months, there are plenty of other gamin companies big and small to join.

Second of all - this company has amazing people all around, from the technical gurus to talented artists to expert game designers and even support teams like marketing and the admin functions. Everyone cares deeply about the company, the direction we are going, and the games we are building. What I have noticed is that only the best can work here; if you are not good at your trade, don't think you can BS your way into the company because you will naturally be exposed by your brilliant colleagues. This has happened repeatedly - people who have nice looking resumes don't always end up doing well. Those with real skills, who are genuine and have integrity will succeed. This can be the rocket ship for your career if you put 100% into the job. I feel lucky to have been accepted - this is like a prestigious university where only the good ones can "pass" and be admitted. And the real test starts day one when you join, but it's fun in a challenging and adrenaline-rush way.

Last point - company culture is very unique and special: everyone is driven to make this vision a reality. Most companies just have a list of unrealistic and meaningless bullet points about company values, but here the culture seems to be focused on being the best. Everything we do here is about being THE BEST, and we do not take no for an answer. Not many people or even companies can say that they can embody that kind of attitude everyday - but we do.

Overall I really enjoy working at Machine Zone. The company is growing really fast and every week we have new colleagues to meet, but everyone is brilliant in their own way so it's been great testing my wits each and every day. This is not a place where people come to coast; this is where the smartest and brightest people from all over the world come together to work diligently on solving the most interesting technical challenges in gaming today. We have a lot of fun too - game nights, monthly parties, food and drinks, and department outings each week. This is an ambitious company that knows how to build a successful business, work hard but play harder, and can really boost your career if you can qualify to be part of the team.

Cons – It's not really the hours (the hours tend to be flexible) but it is an intensely focused and driven and real-time environment. We do need to remind ourselves to put things in perspective and not try to be so perfect, since it is easy to get lost in the weeds and become overly critical of our own progress,

Advice to Senior Management – So much happens in compressed time at Machine Zone that it feels like drinking from the fire hose all the time. Would be great to have more interaction and hear the CEO, CTO and the rest of the leaders share much more and more often. The space is so interesting and what we do is so groundbreaking that the more we understand, the better job we can do!

Yes, I would recommend this company to a friend – I'm optimistic about the outlook for this company

Current Employee – been working at Machine Zone full-time for less than a year

Pros – This is a great place to work with lots of advancement opportunities; Start-up environment where they value integrity, accountability and having lots of fun.
Awesome perks: Free snacks, drinks and monthly parties.

Cons – Not a big company, so more a fit for people who enjoy working in a start-up environment

Yes, I would recommend this company to a friend – I'm optimistic about the outlook for this company