Image via The Game Awards
When it came to announcements at the 2021 Game Awards, there weren’t many as massive as Star Wars Eclipse. The game, created by Quantic Dream, was announced via a beautiful CGI trailer. That same trailer has been viewed over five million times on the Star Wars Youtube channel.
However, it doesn’t seem to be coming anytime soon if reports by insider Tom Henderson are to be believed. Henderson, who corroborated the first reports of this game back when it was leaked earlier this year, has said the game is 3-4 years away from coming out, “minimum.” The development struggles are partially due to trouble hiring new employees, Henderson claims in the Tweet below.
A few things on #StarWarsEclipse
– Being written by QD Paris (David Cage is very much involved)
– Eclipse is believed to be around 3-4 years away MINIMUM
– QD Paris is currently struggling with hiring staff (I wonder why)— Tom Henderson (@_Tom_Henderson_) December 10, 2021
As you can see in the Tweet, he also sarcastically adds, “I wonder why.” This quip is most likely related to the controversies Quantic Dream has been a part of in the past. In 2018, three separate French news cites: Mediapart, Le Monde, and Canard PC published reports that Quantic Dream encouraged a hostile work environment.
These reports included allegations of management using inappropriate words, a toxic corporate culture, and overwhelming workloads. Next, there were reports in 2018 by The Guardian that Photoshopped images of employees were floating around the studio. The images in question featured employees “in Nazi uniforms, swimming costumes, and sexualized nurse outfits.” The head of IT who brought these issues to light had subsequently filed a complaint against Quantic Dream for wrongful dismissal.
There were also allegations that studio heads David Cage and Guillaume de Fondaumière turned a blind eye to these issues. They were also accused of participating in inappropriate behavior themselves but have denied their involvement.
Therefore, it seems pretty apparent why developers are hesitant to work for Quantic Dream. However, that is not the only reason the game will take longer to develop. Tom Henderson has claimed in a subsequent Tweet that the game engine is also an issue, citing that it wasn’t designed for an open-world game.
The biggest on the dev side is their internal QD engine, which wasn’t built for an open-world title.
There are currently 60+ job openings for Quantic Dream Paris and 9 in Montreal. – https://t.co/B4lumbQmnN
— Tom Henderson (@_Tom_Henderson_) December 10, 2021
It would seem that if development issues continue to surface, the lack of employees could become a huge issue for Quantic Dream, and we could see Star Wars Eclipse pushed even further than 3-4 years.