Unprofessional / Toxic leadership that embodies the worst stereotypes of the gaming industry - Marketing Epic Games Employee Review

1.0
Oct 16, 2024
Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

- Talented coworkers with an incredible density of talent - Pay is excellent - Remote work is an option, which is increasingly rare in the industry - As a private company, Epic has the freedom to innovate in ways few others can

Cons

- Crunch is constant and not just a temporary phase. It’s deeply embedded in the culture. Be aware! The Marketing Director even joked about it, comparing working on Fortnite in Q1 versus Q4 with a meme of Kate Winslet young and then old in Titanic. With employees sacrificing their health and family life, this tone-deaf humor is hard to swallow. - Executives are incompetent and act as yes-men to Tim Sweeney because it’s a safe, well-paid job. When they want to try something new, they often have their team members pitch the idea, but won’t hesitate to throw them under the bus if Tim doesn’t like it. While the leadership layer beneath them changes frequently, the execs remain, taking no initiative and simply following orders. - Micromanagement is nearly comical. Executives need to approve everything in the name of 'moving fast', yet they get frustrated when employees don’t take initiative despite having created this stifling culture themselves. - They frequently belittle employees who are working extremely hard, but always soften the criticism with: 'Don’t take it personally, okay?'. In particular, the COO even seems to take pleasure in belittling others. - Backstabbing among mid-level managers is rampant. You never know if your colleagues or stakeholders really have your back. People will throw anyone under the bus to avoid blame. - It’s an old boys' club of predominantly white men centered around Tim. If you're a woman, you’ll need to act like a man. DE&I is definitely not a priority.

Explore other reviews about Epic Games

5.0
Jun 23, 2026
Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

Amazing company.Great work life balance, great people

Cons

Still acts like a start up, a lot of ambiguity

1.0
Jul 3, 2026
Recommend
CEO approval
Business Outlook

Pros

Cool products Great designers and engineers WFH flexibility They have 2 weeks off in the summer and winter (for 95% of employees)

Cons

They mostly hire people who don't play games now Those are the people who make final decisions on gameplay changes and are given more authority than actual designers They see players as something to exploit for money and seek monetization first with everything they do Executives and directors only surround themselves with yes-men these days, along with self serving AI bots Folks at the bottom can not be heard by those at the top, the structure has become very rigid and info doesnt trickle up anymore The call from the top has been to keep making more Fortnite for so long, even after layoffs they just double down on the bets that led to the layoff in the first place. They are allergic to promoting up too high and would rather bring in external folks for any senior leadership role They hire like crazy every time they get some money There is generally never consequence for failed bets, and so you see people failing again and again at the top for years and they're never held accountable In general they are allergic to setting success targets (at least that are shared to lower class). They do "if it works, great", "if it doesnt everything is on fire and we need to pivot everything." They intentionally avoid original work and exclusively copy other games and creators because its safer, even though those copy bets fail usually anyway. The top leaders, including Tim, have become unapproachable by anyone who isn't in their ear already. From the outside it looks like the king of Rohan and Wormtongue. Its a bunch of grifters guiding and lying to very powerful men.

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