Wardogs lead says the studio won't hire people who decry crunch on social media

Diego Argüello,Contributing Editor, News,GameDeveloper.com

September 15, 2026

schedule3 Min ReadImage via Bulkhead

Joe Brammer, CEO of Wardogs maker Bulkhead says that people who may have an issue with crunch "often don't make it in the door" at his company

In an interview with The Game Business after discussing how the game a total of 2 million copies in the five days since launching in Early Access on September 10, Brammer became forthright about the fact that developers at the studio are subject to working overtime. He says he wants the studio to be known as a place of hard work.

"A lot of people who may have an issue with crunch—rightly so, I understand that issue, we always try and avoid it, but we don’t hide that this is going to happen at some point—they often don't make it in the door," he says. "We want to be known for that: this is a place you come to work hard. If you care about the work you’re making and the result of what you make here, you'll feel really valued. If you don't, you will feel slave-driven."

Brammer says the studio checks people's social media accounts during hiring processes, and those who are vocal about not advocating for crunch are rarely the right candidate.

"We check people's socials, and if you're constantly tweeting anti-crunch messaging: 'This should never ever be a thing', we know that and go, 'Look, you're not going to be happy here, so we're not going to go with you'," he tells The Game Business.

Crunch has been a longstanding presence in the game industry. Reports and accounts of developers working long hours to get projects out of the door have plagued the likes of Callisto Protocol, Modern Warfare III, Fallout 76, Metroid Dread, and MindsEye, to name just a handful.

Last year, Balatro developer Localthunk delayed the title's 1.1 update to return to their hobbyist roots after experiencing burnout working in "crunch mode" around launch, which involved 12 hour work days. In July, multiple Rockstar developers accused the company of actively striving to facilitate crunch in the United Kingdom working on Grand Theft Auto 6.

For the people working on Wardogs, Brammer says the "upside" to its work culture is a financial reward, referring to an undisclosed number of people at the studio who owns shares and receives bonuses. The Game Business reports that not everyone within Bulkhead has access to these benefits, but those that do get a "meaningful amount."

"If we're going to be a company who says, 'we do crunch', then we have to also say, 'but you get something for it,' Brammer says. "We want people to know that those people who do work hard get that return, and it is life-changing."

Brammer expresses excitement over the prospect of juniors who have been in the studio for two or three years who are going to "get money to buy a house, or at least a down payment." At the same time, Bulkhead has made redundancies every year for the past six years, laying off about 20 percent of the company.

Following the studio's newfound success, Brammer jokes about having to coach said developers into not spending all their money on "takeaway and energy drinks."

"We have a new responsibility to our younger staff who are making good money, often money they haven’t seen before," he says.

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About the Author

Diego Argüello

Contributing Editor, News, GameDeveloper.com

Diego Nicolás Argüello is a freelance journalist and critic from Argentina. Video games helped him to learn English, so now he covers them for places like The New York Times, NPR, Rolling Stone, and more. He also runs Into the Spine, a site dedicated to fostering and supporting new writers, and co-hosted Turnabout Breakdown, a podcast about the Ace Attorney series. He’s most likely playing a rhythm game as you read this.

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