Community and diversity overshadowed by micromanagement and toxicity - Anonymous employee ArenaNet Employee Review

Let me be the first to write a review since there hasn't been any recently. I've been with the studio for a few years and have worked at many others in the video game industry. High-level, this studio is the one to work for. They have a great team, the leadership is great, and the studio is pretty secure from existing products that are still doing well. * Great work-life balance * Zero crunch mentality * Encourage mental health days * Management is very transparent * Management is open to feedback * Bonuses are actually a thing here * Raises are also a thing here * Very SOP driven to support you * Constant reviews of policies to ensure success

It's hard to find a con here. I would say the only thing is a little too much freedom for team members. They give you a few inches, some people may take a mile. But, that's on you to manage and ensure you are successful. As with most studios, it may often be hard to advance in certain teams, but on the other hand, they do pay well, do raises, bonuses, and ensure you are happy too. Other than that, been in the industry for 10+ years, have seen some really poorly managed studios and been through over 15 layoffs. This is not that studio. Layoffs have happened here, but they make sense, and management is dead set on reducing loss.

Awesome culture. Everyone is free to be the most genuine version of themselves. Recurring events and game nights. Free lunch every day and great snacks and beverages in office. PTO, holidays, 401k, wellness reimbursements, and parental leave are all hard to beat too.

My only problem is that they're not set up for remote work in the state I moved to.