ArenaNet Reviews

ArenaNet has become a toxic environment where people are worked to their breaking points and then told to keep working. The number one problem that seems to be plaguing ArenaNet is burn out and fatigue. People are often asked to work 10 to 12 hours a day and often to come in over the weekends. Another factor leading to the constant burn out and fatigue is re-scoping of the releases. Teams will work for weeks and months on content for releases only to have everything change a month before the content is launched. This requires the teams to redo a majority of the work for the release while still trying to meet the original deadline. ArenaNet has also become a political cesspool. People are being locked into positions not because of a lack of skill or talent, but because they don't suck up to the right people. I have seen employee's with glowing recommendations from their teams get passed over for employee's who can barely do their job because of who they were friends with at the company. The people who actually do the work are too valuable to let them advance, but then the incompetent people make all the business decisions. Management is often ready to scapegoat their people as well. They make all the decisions, but take none of the blame when things go wrong. I also wanted to talk about is the talent. Like I mentioned above, the talent at ArenaNet is great and there are a ton of dedicated people. The downside of all of this is: The good people are leaving the company. The politics and overworked environment have caused quite a few people to leave. Almost everyone who helped make Guild Wars and helped launch Guild Wars 2 are gone. You now have a company that trusts analytics and data over people's intuition or that listened to their community. People feel like their complaints are not being heard and many feel frustrated in their lot at the company. Also be prepared to make way less money that almost any other studio in the area. This company was competitive for the games industry about a decade ago. Unless you are an Artist or a Programmer expect to be paid about 30% less than any other studio in the area.

Pay at ANet is one of the biggest challenges. Seattle/Bellevue are quickly becoming one of the most expensive places to buy and rent. A 3 bed single-family home within the county averages $2400 month and most require 3x monthly salary for approval. Rents drop to a more reasonable $1500 to $1900 in Pierce county; but carries with it 3 hours of commuting round-trip. You should very carefully plan your budget before accepting a position with ANet as the salaries are considered low for the industry; and in my experience very low for the area. Considering the increased cost of living for the Greater Seattle area and ArenaNet paying similar salaries as those found in lesser developed regions; some have found themselves taking a financial loss when accepting a position. Applicants that are single with no pets find living arrangements much easier as room-for-rent listings are abundant in the area. These rooms range wildly from $600 to $1600 per month. Another challenge facing employees is a lack of growth potential coupled with a marked absence of performance improvement; performance reviews; and opportunity to practice higher-management skills. Entry level managers generally stay entry-level; and so goes the same for all levels. I've talked to many people after they've given notice to term employment (dozens) who have all cited pay and lack of growth potential as reasons for leaving. Many of those same people also cite poor management - both in company direction (i.e. strategy, use of funds, goals) and in team and people management.