The Sudden Demise of Telltale
A Case Study on Telltale Games
The History of Telltale Games:
Telltale originated in 2004. Back then the CEO and founder
Kevin Bruner and his team spearheaded their story rich games involving choice
based decisions and play. Telltale was doing well and over the years have
created hit games including, but not limited to: The Walking Dead, Game of
Thrones, Wolf Among Us, Tales from the Borderlands, Batman, Jurassic Park,
Minecraft, Back to the Future, Guardians of the Galaxy. The Walking Dead has
been their favorite child for some time and they have created more under this
title than any other title. Leap ahead years later and in March of 2017,
Telltale founder Kevin Bruner announces that he will be leaving the company.
The co-founder, Dan Conners, takes control of the company as
the new CEO. In September of 2017, the company hires on Pete Hawley. Pete
Hawley is a former executive from Zynga, previous production lead with Fable studio
Lionhead, and has worked with Sony and EA. On to November, Hawley cuts
approximately 90 employees to create their name as “more completive as a
developer and publisher.” In December Hawley rejects publicly that Telltale
could be in trouble. In March of 2018, a report published through The Verge shows hostile management.
On September 20th, management reports that more
funding has come in and things are “going well.” AMC and Smilegate leave behind
Telltale the same day. September 21st, all but 25 of the 275 or more
employees are fired with their only notice being the meeting that morning.
September 24th, one of the former employees, Vernie Roberts Jr.,
files against Telltale with a class-action lawsuit.
Value Proposition:
To make episodic games come to life at the hands of players.
An emotional and narrative experience unlike anything else.
Cancellations, Reactions, and Backlash:
All games in production come to a screeching halt. Well all but one allegedly. The final season of The Walking Dead is still expected to be completed with the remaining team members. Fans that have been awaiting new releases like Stranger Things and a second season of Wolf Among Us are sorely disappointed and heartbroken. Some fans are outraged that after a year of new management, a part of their gaming preferences have been yanked out from under them as the eagerly paying consumer.
More so are the employees that were terminated with the little to no notice. Under Telltale Games' Website, they state that the employees receive many benefits included, but aren't limited to: 401 (k), insurance (including pet insurance), and Vision and Dental coverage. If discharged, the employee(s) are to receive a severance package and insurance(s) up to one month after termination. All to which no employee received, leading to the one class-action lawsuit.
Had I been in Their Marketing Team:
First off, there needed to be transparency. There was no transparency with the public or even the very employees that worked at Telltale. Everything came out all at once and crushed thousands with a single Twitter Statement. Publicly, more consistent updates should have been sent out to their audience. Simply just letting the fan base know that there are issues going on, that are trying to be fixed, can gain sympathy and assistance. Another possible avenue would be to expand access with different content tiers. Allow people to purchase more, specialized access, content, and/or production. Lastly, never leave your employees in the dark and wonder why there were so many issues when you can't be bothered to get their help. You're not your company without your workforce.
What are your thoughts?
How would you have handled this?
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