Videogame developers among \u27extreme workers\u27: Are death marches over?

Purpose: The videogame industry is a work environment that is emblematic of O’Carroll’s (2015) encompassing model of a 24/7/365 working time model of flexibility. We use O’Carroll’s model to challenge two myths about videogame developers (VGDs): the long hours of work are in fact unpredictable hours, and flextime HR programs do not allow for real control over working hours. Design/methodology/approach: We use a mixed methods approach (international online survey and 100 Canadian interviews) to analyse the case of VGDs - a different, but similar type of worker to the IT workers analysed by O’Carroll. Findings: We can generalize O’Carroll’s model based on the IT case to the VGD case. Based on these two cases, we propose that the rise of project-based work environments is a major explanatory factor of this raising trend in the 24/7/365 model of flexibility. Research limitations/implications: More research examining project based regimes in other sectors and settings is required to generalize further. Originality/value: Though this model can appear to fit the reality of knowledge work in general, it more accurately describes project-based work in creative environments, which is nearly always knowledge work, but the reverse cannot be inferred