Remote Work

remote-work game-industry productivity management work-culture tim-cain

Abstract

Problem: Is remote work universally good or bad for game development, and what has the industry learned from the post-pandemic shift?

Approach: Tim Cain draws on decades of personal experience (including making games remotely since the early '90s) and conversations with people across many game companies to share his observations.

Findings: Remote work productivity has generally dropped to 75–80% of pre-pandemic levels at most studios. Some people and some roles thrive remotely while others don't — it depends on the individual, their home environment, and their role. Companies and managers are slowly getting better at managing remote teams, but remote work will not be universal.

Key insight: Remote work is here to stay, but it's not for everyone, every role, or every company — like choosing a data structure, the right answer depends on context.

Source: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9Pdcv7Aj8S0

Remote Work Is Not New

Tim opens by noting that remote work has existed in game development forever. His second game, Bard's Tale Construction Set, was made almost entirely from home before he was hired at Interplay — he'd drive in once a week for an hour to show progress, hand over code backups, and get feedback. Interplay and Troika also used remote contractors extensively in the '90s and early 2000s.

The Programmer's Analogy

There is no perfect sorting algorithm — it depends on what you're sorting, how many items, how often it changes. Similarly, there's no universally correct answer on remote work. Anyone telling you it's 100% good or 100% bad is probably trying to sell you something.

The Productivity Reality

Based on Tim's conversations across many companies (not a formal survey), remote work productivity is down compared to pre-pandemic office work. Supporting evidence: the number of games released in 2023–2024 dropped, major publishers saw more delays, and many people feel quality declined.

Most companies that went remote haven't returned to 100% productivity — they've leveled off at roughly 75–80% depending on the studio. Tim has yet to hear of a single company that wasn't remote before the pandemic and has fully recovered its pre-pandemic output.

Why the Drop

The shift required enormous learning on both sides:

  • Employees had to learn to work without casual access to colleagues, handle questions asynchronously, and manage their own time
  • Managers had to learn to run teams remotely — no more walking into someone's office, no spontaneous strike team meetings

Why Some People Struggle Remotely

The Home Environment Problem

Not everyone has a home setup conducive to work. Some homes are too loud, too cramped, or lack a dedicated workspace. Advocates for universal remote work sometimes overlook this — it can feel "a little entitled" to assume everyone's home life supports it.

The Third Space Problem

People typically have three spaces: work, home, and a third space (neither work nor home). When work and home merge, the third space becomes the second space. If you didn't have a third space to begin with, you're left with just one space — and many people can't function well like that.

The Productivity Illusion

Many remote workers feel productive because it feels like they're working all the time. But without other people around, many find it hard to get into a work groove. Tim compares this to studying at a university library — people studied better when surrounded by other people studying. The environment and structure matter.

Structure and Rhythm

Some people need the structure that an office provides: be given tasks, get regular feedback, make adjustments, move to the next thing. Remote work can disrupt this rhythm. Some workers with uneven output need daily or weekly check-ins to stay on track — waiting too long means they go too far in the wrong direction and work gets thrown out.

The Social Pressure Dynamic

An interesting social phenomenon emerged: some people who wanted to return to the office were pressured by remote-preferring peers not to come back — out of fear that if some returned, the company would make everyone return. Tim compares this to the old pressure of "why are you working more than 40 hours? You're making us look bad."

It Depends on the Role

Not all roles perform equally well remotely:

  • Programmers tend to do well — they benefit from quiet, isolated focus time
  • Some art and design roles do better with in-person collaboration — bouncing ideas, looking over shoulders, learning by watching others
  • But even within roles that generally suit remote work, not every individual thrives

The key point: it's not just about the person or the role — it's the combination of person, role, and home environment.

The Calling Factor

Tim references his earlier video about jobs vs. careers vs. callings. People with a calling often wanted to return to the office — though some calling-driven people also worked great from home. The motivation type alone doesn't predict remote success.

The Current State and Future

  • Remote work is here to stay — the genie is not going back in the bottle
  • Companies and managers are getting significantly better at managing remote teams over time
  • People are increasingly being evaluated on output, and those who don't perform well remotely are being asked to come back
  • Remote work will persist but not universally — not for every person, every role, or every company
  • Tim personally likes remote work and is good at self-managing his time, but acknowledges it's not for everyone

Tim's final analogy: just as some people work better on different shifts (night vs. morning) or prefer mixing roles (designer + programmer), remote vs. office is another axis of individual variation. The answer is always: it depends.

References