The nonprofit Take This has released a whitepaper that aims to explore the factors that influence the mental health of game developers and open a dialogue on mental health in the industry as a whole.
Crunch is a persistent problem in the game industry but, as the Take This whitepaper points out, not the only common factor that can be detrimental to game developers’ mental health.
The full sixty-some page whitepaper is up in its entirety on the Take This website, and offers game developers a look at data about stress, instability, and burnout as reported by peers in the industry.
"Though we have seen a lot in the news on hot topics such as development 'crunch,' online harassment, and company closures and layoffs, we still have much to learn about the unique factors and challenges that affect and impact mental health in this industry," said Take This executive director Eve Crevoshay in a press release.
Crevoshay notes that the next year will see the organization working closely with game developers to conduct original research and outline best practices for addressing those factors that have a negative influence on the mental health of game developers. As part of that initiative, Take This is working with HR leadership from Big Huge Games, Bungie, Certain Affinity, and others to address the industry-wide issues detailed in the whitepaper.