Dragon Age creator says that if crunch is "the only way" to make massive games, "maybe the industry deserves to die"

Characters attacking a dragon in Dragon Age: Origins - Ultimate Edition.
(Image credit: Electronic Arts)

David Gaider, the creator of Dragon Age's setting, has spoken out against the current state of the games industry, and the "fear" developers have of needing to crunch to make enormous games as if it's the only way forward. He believes that "it doesn't have to be that way," but that if it did, "maybe the industry deserves to die."

This comes from a recent interview with PC Gamer, in which Gaider, who's also the co-founder of Stray Gods developer Summerfall Studios, explains that those at his current studio work four days a week with a "realistic" schedule. By working with the time they have rather than crunching to fit in more, employees "love what they do" rather than feeling like "they're just a resource to be tapped," he says.

"There's this fear that exists – if we don't have everybody working overtime and we don't make AAA games that have $200 million budgets and the focus is on photorealistic graphics and 1,000-hour playtimes, we need to pack all that in and work everyone to death making it and that's the only way to make games," Gaider explains, speaking about the industry as a whole. "If that's true then maybe the industry deserves to die. If that's true. The thing is that I just don't think it's true."

The games industry has been a very turbulent place lately, as reflected by the huge layoffs seen at studios worldwide, which have been particularly prevalent over the last year or so. Speaking last month following the news of EA's plans to cut around 670 jobs, id Software co-founder John Romero said: "I've been in the game industry since I was a kid, and I've never seen anything like we're seeing now. For many of us, being a game dev is not just a job, but an identity, community, and culture. I am so sorry to everyone who has lost their jobs."

You can find some great new games to play on our list of the best Switch indie games.

Catherine Lewis
News Writer

I'm one of GamesRadar+'s news writers, who works alongside the rest of the news team to deliver cool gaming stories that we love. After spending more hours than I can count filling The University of Sheffield's student newspaper with Pokemon and indie game content, and picking up a degree in Journalism Studies, I started my career at GAMINGbible where I worked as a journalist for over a year and a half. I then became TechRadar Gaming's news writer, where I sourced stories and wrote about all sorts of intriguing topics. In my spare time, you're sure to find me on my Nintendo Switch or PS5 playing through story-driven RPGs like Xenoblade Chronicles and Persona 5 Royal, nuzlocking old Pokemon games, or going for a Victory Royale in Fortnite.

Read more
Dragon Age: The Veilguard reveal trailer screenshot showing Lace Harding, a dwarven woman with long red hair and a freckled face
Legendary Dragon Age writer looks to Baldur's Gate 3 devs while giving EA advice after The Veilguard: "Follow Larian's lead and double down on that"
A trackers alliance agent cocks her head to the side as she tries to entice you to join the organisation
Former Starfield lead says "people are fatigued" with huge games, and "I'm sorry" because "part of what happened is the success of games like Skyrim and Fallout 4"
Dragon Age: The Veilguard
Baldur's Gate 3 dev slams EA's BioWare layoffs as "a short-term cost-saving measure" that "doesn't solve a long-term problem"
Mass Effect
"EA gives you enough rope to hang yourself": BioWare co-founder says working for a big game company just ain't it, even if "it was actually a pretty successful run" for Mass Effect
Death Stranding 2 screenshot
Hideo Kojima is hard at work on Death Stranding 2, but he doesn't know how much longer he can stand the grueling game development process: "It's incredibly tough"
Atomfall
Atomfall boss "very familiar" with Baldur's Gate 3 director's frustrations with publishers, as he recalls horror advice that games are "faster to make" if you "make fewer bugs"
Latest in RPG
Astarion from Baldur's Gate 3
Baldur's Gate 3 Astarion actor Neil Newbon says he "got rid of" agents who deliberately kept him away from video game gigs: "They just didn't want me to do it"
Mass Effect
Jennifer Hale says she didn't see a single line as Mass Effect's Commander Shepard until it was time to record: "It was all cold reading on the spot"
Baldur's Gate 3 screenshot of a boss turned to gold surrounded by blood
5,000 gold, 2,500 hours, and one priceless scroll: Baldur's Gate 3 player cooks up a "Midas run" by turning the RPG's bosses into solid gold trophies, because "why not"
Stardew Valley Baldur's Gate 3 mod Baldur's Village
Stardew Valley player bringing a bit of Baldur's Gate 3 to ConcernedApe's farming sim, now with Larian's seal of approval, says they've played over 1,500 hours and will improve the mod
Avowed screenshot showing two companions assisting in combat
Avowed director says Xbox and Microsoft are "very happy" with the reception to its new Obsidian RPG
Kingdom Come Deliverance 2 Horses
Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2 has another secret skill, and this one is an absolute game changer - looking down makes you duck under branches while riding your horse
Latest in News
Invincible season 3 ending
Invincible proves how comic accurate episode 7 is with a mind-blowing side by side comparison
Kevin Conroy
Devil May Cry TV show creator calls Kevin Conroy's posthumous role in the Netflix series an "amazingly nuanced performance" and confirms "no AI" was used
Screenshot from Spectre Divide, showing a character in a purple jumpsuit and full face mask aiming their gun.
Despite more than $60 million in investments, Shroud-backed FPS Spectre Divide and its dev are shutting down after the first season failed "to cover day-to-day costs"
best zombie games
The Last of Us "became the brand name for quality and storytelling within games" says Joel actor Troy Baker: "It became like the fridge"
Overwatch 2
My hopes for an Overwatch anime or Diablo horror movie are going strong as Blizzard president points out "we are Blizzard Entertainment, and not simply Blizzard Games"
The New Thunderbolts leaping into action
Marvel's New Thunderbolts* comic steals the MCU's asterisk, and the reason why is just as big of a mystery