Pros

The owners are transparent about projects and accessible to everyone. Crunch is acknowledged as a sometimes necessary evil, but management genuinely tries to avoid it when possible. The owners and HR are also pretty flexible in working with employees. There's an understanding that life happens and they'll try to work with you for missed days and makeup time. There's a solid studio culture and love for RPG's. People play D&D at lunch and stay late for game tournaments. There's a beer club and cheese club and all sorts of shenanigans that are encouraged throughout the year. The core group at Obsidian has worked together for decades. There's a feeling of camaraderie and family that's distinct from other places I've been.

Cons

The flip side of people working together for so long is an entrenchment of doing things a certain way. There's resistance to updating game mechanics or even matching current industry trends. "Who else has done it this way?" is often asked by management before dismissing any "new" ideas (meaning not from CRPG's in the 90's). There's also a select group of employees who, for one reason or another, are always the ones who get extra perks, promotions, or protection from layoffs . This doesn't seem related to talent, but moreso personal relationships with the owners. Employee promotion is almost nonexistent. The leads and directors are entrenched, even with other employees who could do a better job. If it were a bigger company this wouldn't be that big of a deal. At its current size this stifles the studio's overall growth. All of this contributes to a feeling of, "don't rock the boat." When you're hired, you'll probably stay at the position for the rest of your time at Obsidian. Owners will dangle promotion promises for years until people either threaten to quit or just straight up leave. The company has lost A LOT of good employees this way. Pay is a bit below industry standard. No bonuses.