A new report on development practices at Techland contains quotes from staff claiming that mismanagement, indecision and the use of homophobic insults have violated the ongoing work on Dying Light 2. CEO Pawel Marchewka has responded extensively to the allegations – but has defending a photo of a naked woman next to a cheetah in his office.
Here is a comment from Marchewka about the photo from the post on The Gamer:
“The photo in question was by a well-known English artist and conservationist, David Yarrow, whom I appreciate for his artistry, passion and dedication to the work, and I never thought it would offend anyone,” Marchewka explains. ‘I find him one of the best if not the best wildlife photographer. So I hung it up in my office. But I want to make sure I’m the right example, so if any of our employees, anonymously, report that they feel uncomfortable with it, I’ll remove it immediately. ‘
Video games may be art, but do naked women stand next to cheetah art? I would say: yes, bad art. Here is the photo (not safe for work) to judge for yourself. I’m pretty sure this is what Dick Jones of RoboCop would hang on his wall.
The rest of the report, based on conversations with ten current and former Techland staff members who speak on condition of anonymity, paints a picture of a business in disarray. These include the use of homophobic insults when giving feedback on work, high staff turnover, decisions made and then later reversed, and a management team that allegedly refuses to listen to the staff they hire. Some sources also said that it is difficult to complain about management behavior because Aleksandra Marchewka, the head of HR, is the wife of the CEO.
Many of these allegations reflect reports from the Polish website PolskiGamedev.pl last year, in which it was said that the development was a “mess”.
Last year, Techland severed ties with writer Chris Avellone, who worked on the screenplay and the world for Dying Light 2, amid allegations of sexual assault.