VR publisher nDreams is permanently increasing wages to deal with cost of living crisis

VR publisher nDreams is permanently increasing the salary of all full-time employees by £1,000 ($1,075) to directly address the cost of living crisis facing the UK.

Based in Hampshire, nDreams has worked on numerous VR titles including Little Cities, Ghostbusters VR, Fracked, and Far Cry VR: Dive into Insanity.

The company said the move will help 180 employees deal with the winter fuel crisis, which will see energy bills soar in the country. Part-time staff, meanwhile, will be offered financial support in the form of a pro-rata pay increase.

"The £1,000 salary increase was arrived at through a careful assessment that takes into account the UK government’s announcement of a £400 discount on household energy bills, to be paid over six months from October," reads a press release.

"[We] calculate that, factoring in latest price cap increases, each household still faces an average shortfall of £530 – even with the government support. With tax and national insurance factored in, this requires households to earn an additional £795 to cover the increases. As such, a £1,000 salary increase was determined to be the fairest solution."

There are currently three development studios operating under the nDreams banner, and the company intends to continue expanding moving forward.

Earlier this year, nDreams received $35 million to grow its internal studios and create "more ambitions" games, with company CEO Patrick O’Luanaigh describing the investment round as a "pivotal moment."

This isn't the first time a studio in the UK has taken action to help staff cope with the cost of living crisis, with Starbound developer Chucklefish also recently offering workers a £4,000 wage bump to in a bid to see them through the economic mire.