Destiny developer Bungie goes fully remote in some states

Destiny 2 developer Bungie announced Tuesday that it will move toward a “digital-first” studio culture, meaning many employees won’t have to physically work at the studio’s Bellevue, Washington headquarters. In a year where some companies — like Activision Blizzard and Riot Games — are mandating a return-to-office without mask or vaccine requirements, Bungie is transitioning many positions to this “fully remote” structure in seven approved states.

Sony Interactive Entertainment purchased Bungie for $3. 6 billion in January. Sony has not said whether any other studios will operate with a similar structure. Polygon has reached out to Sony for clarification.

“Bungie is going digital-first,” Bungie tweeted Tuesday. These states will have most current and future positions that are fully eligible for remote work. More information coming soon !”

Washington, California, Oregon, Illinois, Florida, North Carolina, and Texas are the seven states currently approved for remote work with Bungie. Destiny 2 game director Joe Blackburn tweeted that the approved states are limited due to state regulations around taxes: “It takes time to setup a business this large to operate legally in so many different territories.” We’ve reached out to Bungie for more information.

Bungie has dozens of open positions listed on its careers page, many of which are approved for hybrid or remote work options in those seven states. Few positions will require that you work in Bungie’s Bellevue location.

This shift to a digital-first office culture contrasts with other gaming companies like Activision Blizzard or Riot Games which require employees to return to their physical offices. At California-based Activision Blizzard, more than 100 workers walked out of work in early April to protest the company’s dropped COVID-19 vaccine mandate and its return-to-office policy. Since then, the company’s guidelines have been adjusted to permit individual studios to take their own decision. The overall policy for the company, however, is that vaccination against the coronavirus is not required.

Riot Games, based in Los Angeles, similarly asked workers to return to its offices in April. Some employees expressed anger and confusion over the dropped mask and vaccine requirements, while others have embraced a return to the physical office. Workers can work from home on Monday and Friday, while Thursday through Saturday are mandatory. Masks are “strongly” encouraged, but optional, at Riot and the company is doing contract tracing via an app and RFID chips, employees told Polygon. An employee described the first week of work as “quietly chaos .”

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In a statement to Vice, a Riot Games spokesperson said Riot followed the lead of California’s local regulations.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, video game companies around the globe switched largely to fully remote work. While this transition led to delays in games due to studios adapting to it, workers have more freedom and better work/life balance. It keeps employees safe during ongoing pandemics, and it allows people to leave expensive gaming hubs such as San Francisco and Seattle. Working from home can make it less costly, which could lead to lower daycare costs and reduced commuting expenses.

“Parents with younger children may have to send their child to a daycare. This is costly and could increase the chance of getting infected,” an Activision Blizzard employee told Polygon. The .”

offices are miles from most affordable housing because gas prices have risen.

The industry is increasingly competitive, and studios will need to accommodate to attract diverse, top talent. Bungie intends to create a “digital-first studio culture” in seven of the approved states. Many of these same states are home to Epic Games, North Carolina, and other video games companies like Epic Games.