Stardock is looking for developers and artists to work on our upcoming games ranging from the fantasy strategy game, an RPG, an MMORTS, and of course future versions of GalCiv.
So what do you need to do to work at Stardock?
Here is the check list:
If you think you or someone you know may fit this basic criteria, send us your resume. bwardell@stardock.com and jobs@stardock.com should do the trick.
Also, no interns, co-ops, etc. We're looking for people who are ready to get into making cool stuff right now and stay at it until the game is done.
A few other things about Stardock:
must finish high school first then traded school
Hm. Even with extra hours, 45 hours a week is a little much, isn't it? 37 - 40 hours a week is the norm, even for software developers. Of course, developing games usually is a bit more fun than other jobs.
But 45 hours per week for a salaried position is actually a rather short workweek in the US these days. Typically 50, 60 or even 70 hours is often what is "required". The thing is that it's never in writing. What is technically specified is most often a 40 hour week but the unspoken message is clear and someone that doesn't put in what those around him or her are forced to put in will find themselves out of a job very quickly, weeks not months.
A few years back I worked for a startup and to reach an intermediate deadline I worked a minimun of 12 hours a day for 7 straight weeks 84+ hour weeks (i.e. 49 days). Then 3 months later to get the final product ready to ship I did 10 straight 84+ hour weeks (70 straight days). In between these peak periods one could usually slack off to about a 60 hour week.
Anyway the result was that Sun Microsystems did eventually buy the company but for pennies on the dollar and 5 years after the fact is still shipping the board that I designed for them but prior to that happened everyone except the founders and the venture capitalists had been laid off.
But what is unique in AMerican business today is the implied promise of a certain amount of loyalty. Forty, fifty years ago that used to be the norm but today that is an extreme exception. So 45 hours a week plus some loyalty sounds like an excellent position to me. Sure beats the hell out of working in Lahore.
If I was a software engineer instead of a hardware engineer I would jump at the chance.
Hm. If someone offered me a 50-hour week, personally - I don't know anybody who'd accept, unless the salary is VERY good. Plus you typically get either paid extra hours or extra vacation days... (in addition to the 28 minimum a year). Add to that the fact that health insurance is partly paid by the employer (until you reach a high salary level)...
Yes, I think I'm quite happy to stay working in Germany at the moment.
Back on topic, though. A friend of mine is a game developer for MMORPGs. Server backend, but still, very fascinating stuff. Since Stardock develops games for fun (i.e. not as main source of company profit), I can only recommend to anybody fresh out of university to take that chance. Much better learning and working environment than the so called big names in the business, I'd wager.
My current position is much slower paced and I can usually get by with 50 hours per week although crunch time still occurs where this shoots up to unlimited. But they compenstate by sending out for pizza.
I think during crunch time or other times you should fly in a very talented Licensed Massage Therapist as a bonus for your crew.
You know where to find me.
Good to see Stardock expanding! The world needs more games from Stardock, GPG and Ironclad.
Ditto.
I also agree that 45 hours for a normal workweek is quite reasonable in the USA. Salaried people are generally expected to put in a little extra when needed and "crunch time" is pretty much a given. Many companies ask for more.
Wow. 37 hours a week? That's not even full-time in the US.
Something to be grateful for if you're on salary, but hardly reasonable, IMO. One of our biggest themes for public complaining in the US is "family values" stuff, and the single greatest burden on families is the ludicrous amount of time most parents must spend in the workplace. Our per-person productivity has risen drastically in the past few decades, but instead of seeing that lead to more leisure (family) time, it seems to have just facilitated the lack of two-way loyalty that once underpinned our salary systems. Why let the whole team have more of their own time when you could just lay a few off and whip the others harder?
That rant aside, I have to again accuse Brad of being a most un-corporate corporation owner. If I had less love for my birthplace, appropriate skills, and a tolerance for ridiculous winters, I'd be pitching hard for a gig up there.
Same here, except for the bit about winters. Better cold than hot - I can dress for cold. I might get arrested for dressing appropriately for the heat
As for the work week, mine is defined at 37.5 hours, but I'm hourly, not salary. I can technically get overtime, but the levels of approval to actually get it make it unlikely. And what the hell at the German 28 days vacation? I might make that if I'm still here in 20 years, but for the first 5 I'm getting 14 days.
A good start! I think 12 weeks would be better. More home projects finished, more kids and pets properly coddled, and way less cranky folks at work.
Anyway add going out on occasion, then a year later you find yourself with a live-in girlfriend who drops a kid on you, quits her job and becomes a wife and you suddenly go from banking a "ton" of money to being 10K deeper in debt each year.
Tell you what. Wait 5 years and tell us how well your friend is doing. Perhaps wait for him to actually pay off that $40K car and have to buy the next one. Wait for him to be laid off for 6 months or a year before he finds a comparable job and then come back and tell us how well he's doing. If after 5 years that kid has more than $25K in the bank I'd be damn surprised.
70hrs a week!!!! Holy shit! Standard week over here (aust) is 38-40 hrs. I dont know about the average wage but i do 36hrs a week and take about 42K but with free healthcare once i pay my tax it's all mine.
I could not imagine any job or pay amount that could convince me to work regularly 70hrs a week. How you have anytime for games Mumble is beyond me. Imagine your MV score if you only worked 40 hrs....lol.
I'd kill for any holidays or sick leave. I get none of that. If i want a week off i can get it but i dont get any money that week. I guess i better start planning for that 2 week trip at xmas now then huh....
Been there, done that. My current job is the first one I've ever had that had paid vacation or sick leave. It's also the first that gives me holidays off.
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