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The Last of Us Game Director Bruce Straley Calls for Unionization After HBO Credits Snub

Thebonehead

Banned
He's the first person credited in the game and co-creator of the series.. has been the face of the game from announcement till months after release. The one doing AMA and interviews, and collecting awards.

Trolling or?
You know I'd forgotten all of that.

Druckman has just become synonymous with the series to the exclusion of others.
 

kyliethicc

Member
I think a simple "Based on The Last of Us created by Bruce Straley and Neil Druckmann", like it always happen in every single property in history, would suffice.
It says based on the game made by Naughty Dog. The game wasn't created by 2 people.

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SLB1904

Banned
Straley was given equal billing next to Druckmann for the game. Isn't that hard to mention Straley as one of the creators of the source material. Just seems petty.

Tbsc3gu.png
He was the game director in the game. Not the creator. Why he would get credit for the creation?

If he claims to have any creative credit why he didn't claim that for the game?
 

kyliethicc

Member
He didn’t do anything for the HBO show and it’s not his IP

Lost a lot of respect for Bruce here, what a crybaby

Maybe you shouldn’t have left ND to do Jack shit for a decade
Agreed. This would be like David Jaffe saying he deserves a cut of every copy of God of War Ragnarök sold. Maybe, philosophically, but that wasn't the deal they knowingly signed up for. Might not be ideal but thats how the game industry works for everyone.

Fact is Straley quit. He could've stayed at Naughty Dog, done the work, and probably would have co-ran the show with Druckmann & Maizin. He'd be getting his money. Only reason Druckmann's getting a cent out of the HBO show is because he did the work. Helped produce, write, and direct it.

Bad look for Bruce here. Comes across as a bitter guy who just regrets leaving Naughty Dog now that the show (he didn't work on) is a hit and he realizes he's not gonna get money out of it.
 
Agreed. This would be like David Jaffe saying he deserves a cut of every copy of God of War Ragnarök sold. Maybe, philosophically, but that wasn't the deal they knowingly signed up for. Might not be ideal but thats how the game industry works for everyone.

Fact is Straley quit. He could've stayed at Naughty Dog, done the work, and probably would have co-ran the show with Druckmann & Maizin. He'd be getting his money. Only reason Druckmann's getting a cent out of the HBO show is because he did the work. Helped produce, write, and direct it.

Bad look for Bruce here. Comes across as a bitter guy who just regrets leaving Naughty Dog now that the show (he didn't work on) is a hit and he realizes he's not gonna get money out of it.

I don’t remember Amy Hennig crying about not being credited in the Uncharted movie that made $400 million
 

SLB1904

Banned
Agreed. This would be like David Jaffe saying he deserves a cut of every copy of God of War Ragnarök sold. Maybe, philosophically, but that wasn't the deal they knowingly signed up for. Might not be ideal but thats how the game industry works for everyone.

Fact is Straley quit. He could've stayed at Naughty Dog, done the work, and probably would have co-ran the show with Druckmann & Maizin. He'd be getting his money. Only reason Druckmann's getting a cent out of the HBO show is because he did the work. Helped produce, write, and direct it.

Bad look for Bruce here. Comes across as a bitter guy who just regrets leaving Naughty Dog now that the show (he didn't work on) is a hit and he realizes he's not gonna get money out of it.
Ironically enough he left because he was burn out of the work that comes with AAA production. Now he wants credit for something he didn't do.
 

tmlDan

Member
Honestly, who tf cares, Bruce is working on some indie game in his own studio - he should focus on that.

Neil took the opportunity and built his career, helped with possibly the best live action video game adaptation (according to reviews) in a time where games are more mainstream than ever. It's not his fault Bruce left and semi-retired making himself essentially irrelevant.
 

A.Romero

Member
He's the first person credited in the game and co-creator of the series.. has been the face of the game from announcement till months after release. The one doing AMA and interviews, and collecting awards.

Trolling or?

Not trolling, just ignorance I guess.

Wikipedia states the following:

Straley's role in developing The Last of Us was to handle gameplay.[24] However, in the final weeks of development, Straley undertook roles from different departments that were busy with other tasks; for example, he was seen hand-arranging the texts on the game's training screens, a task that lead artist Nate Wells found unusual. "I have never even heard of a game director doing that! That's like... an intern task," Wells said.

Couldn't find the article there are quoting though.

If he has such a strong standing why not sue? Not familiar with US law but would he need an union to sue for not crediting from his work?

Should he be credited in Part II as well because it borrows from the first?

Was he credited in the Remake?

Honestly, don't know all of this and not sure where to draw the line (if any). What do you think?
 

Nvzman

Member
I just want to know if Bruce left because of the direction Neil was taking/has took the series.
Considering the whole Amy Hennig thing and the massive departure of long-time employees after Uncharted 4, its really not that hard to see it as that. TLoU2's development was allegedly very very rough, which is why that whole plot leak happened, as it was allegedly from a disgruntled ND employee. Again, Druckmann has without a doubt changed the direction of the studio, and he does seem to be significantly more controlling of the IP and the studio as a whole than Straley or basically anyone before him within ND.

Also to the people calling Straley an attention whore over this; thats pretty laughable, he put a substantial amount of work into the original game and contributed quite a bit to the story. He is definitely worthy of some sort of credit, its basically like crediting Stan Lee but not Steve Ditko.
 

Varteras

Gold Member
I'm not going to pretend to know what exctly happened that caused Straley to leave or what exactly he did during the development of TLOU. What I do know is that he went on hiatus with the implication that he'd be back and working on a new game. His hiatus ended and he quit Naughty Dog because he no longer enjoyed AAA development, supposedly. Years later he pops up with an indie studio. He was not an owner of the franchise. He left Naughty Dog and TLOU behind. He was one person out of many who made the game. Expecting recognition for a TV show you had nothing to do with, set in a franchise you left behind, made by more people than just yourself, providing no receipts for how much of the universe you personally made, just comes across to me as sour grapes. I've heard Druckmann is a pain in the ass to work with but then I heard the same about Hennig. A situation Straley didn't seem to have much to say about when he helped take over Uncharted 4. He wasn't THE creator. He hasn't touched the series in a good while. He has nothing to do with the show being made. Now he wants a union because he wants perpetual credit billing for any franchise he ever touched? My dude, it don't work that way unless you can show this shit was YOURS. It never was.
 

Topher

Gold Member
He was the game director in the game. Not the creator. Why he would get credit for the creation?

If he claims to have any creative credit why he didn't claim that for the game?

Where is Druckmann ever credited as the "creator" of The Last of Us? He isn't in the post-game credits.
 
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solidus12

Member
Considering the whole Amy Hennig thing and the massive departure of long-time employees after Uncharted 4, its really not that hard to see it as that. TLoU2's development was allegedly very very rough, which is why that whole plot leak happened, as it was allegedly from a disgruntled ND employee. Again, Druckmann has without a doubt changed the direction of the studio, and he does seem to be significantly more controlling of the IP and the studio as a whole than Straley or basically anyone before him within ND.

Also to the people calling Straley an attention whore over this; thats pretty laughable, he put a substantial amount of work into the original game and contributed quite a bit to the story. He is definitely worthy of some sort of credit, its basically like crediting Stan Lee but not Steve Ditko.
Bruce (if I remember) prevented Neil from killing Elena in Uncharted 2.
 

TGO

Hype Train conductor. Works harder than it steams.
Just because the game came out then doesn't mean that's when it inspired him.
Mate sometimes you have a rough idea on your head and evolves throughout the years. The documentary is about the enemies not Ellie and Joel dynamic
I have no doubt that's what inspired the game, I just doubt the Idea came up before he joined Naughty Dog.
Ironically enough he left because he was burn out of the work that comes with AAA production. Now he wants credit for something he didn't do.
Just like Dan Houser, who then created a new studio.
Which is still mind boggling why a founder would leave a multibillion dollar company to start a new doing the same thing.
 

SlimySnake

Flashless at the Golden Globes
Amy and Bruce left and Druckmann rises.
Don't know why we pretend to ignore what really happened just because it's ND.
Well, Amy was pushed out by Bruce and Druckmann no matter how much they try to deny it.

Bruce left on his own accord but who knows what kind of mind games neil was playing with him lmao. Their relationship is strained according to Bruce so there was definitely bad blood between the two.

Neil's been playing 4D chess all this time. He was a lowly programmer in 2007. In 15 years he's the Co-President of Naughty Dog. Absolutely insane meteoric rise this.
 
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TGO

Hype Train conductor. Works harder than it steams.
Question to you guys.
Who is responsible for Resident Evil?
 

ChorizoPicozo

Gold Member
Well, Amy was pushed out by Bruce and Druckmann no matter how much they try to deny it.

Bruce left on his own accord but who knows what kind of mind games neil was playing with him lmao. Their relationship is strained according to Bruce so there was definitely bad blood between the two.

Neil's been playing 4D chess all this time. He was a lowly programmer in 2007. In 15 years he's the Co-President of Naughty Dog. Absolutely insane meteoric rise this.

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Don't turn your back to litltle capo Neil. he gonna end you.


Edit: Holy shit!!!. if you look at Neil's eyes, you could see that he is smiling." Now I am scared.
 
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Clear

CliffyB's Cock Holster
Its difficult to judge this without having real inside info on the specifics of what happened.

I can understand why Straley would feel slighted, but, given that he left the studio its pretty obvious why the guy who was still there got -and continues to get- all the glory from it.

Shining up Straley's contribution only benefits Straley, doing the same for Druckman and the studio and the company who owns it get to bask in reflected glory too.

Its not difficult to see how this confluence of interests plays out.
 

EruditeHobo

Member
I think a simple "Based on The Last of Us created by Bruce Straley and Neil Druckmann", like it always happen in every single property in history, would suffice.

It's much more complicated than that.

This is not a matter of "giving credit", it's a legal matter concerning rights, and that translates to who gets paid. You're saying they should go out of the way to not give credit but give up a probably significant amount of money when there's no legal reason to.. which is not how these things tend to work.

You bringing up someone like George Lucas shows that you don't really know what you're talking about -- George Lucas' work is well protected and established, legally. That includes the world he created, and whether it is adapted to multiple kinds of media or isn't. Staley's work is NOT well protected in that way. That's just the bottom line, the same protections offered to people in other industries doesn't apply to a creative person "just because".

If HBO had a legal reason to credit or pay him, they would have. But the simple fact is they don't.
 

kyliethicc

Member
Just because the game came out then doesn't mean that's when it inspired him.

I have no doubt that's what inspired the game, I just doubt the Idea came up before he joined Naughty Dog.

Just like Dan Houser, who then created a new studio.
Which is still mind boggling why a founder would leave a multibillion dollar company to start a new doing the same thing.
Just read.

THE ASSIGNMENT WAS to pitch a zombie story for a computer class at Carnegie Mellon in 2004. The project’s judge was legendary director George Romero, who made 1968’s Night of the Living Dead, a film widely credited with spawning the zombie genre. And a computer science student named Neil Druckmann thought he had a decent idea.

Taking inspiration from a two-character PlayStation 2 game called Ico and the character John Hartigan (Frank Miller’s tough protagonist from Sin City), Druckmann sketched a story of a man who lost his daughter and a girl who lost her father, who team up.

Druckmann’s professor pitched the idea to Romero. “And he didn’t like it,” recalls Druckmann, still looking amused and mildly surprised after all these years. “He picked something else.”

The idea languished; Druckmann’s career didn’t. He was hired by acclaimed gaming company Naughty Dog and worked his way up to land the plum gig of co-lead designer and co-writer on the first sequel to the Indiana Jones-like adventure game Uncharted. The result, 2009’s Uncharted 2: Among Thieves, was a massive hit, and Druckmann found himself in the enviable position of being able to pick his next project. He returned to his zombie idea, which he had fleshed out into a graphic novel.

 

SLB1904

Banned
Well, Amy was pushed out by Bruce and Druckmann no matter how much they try to deny it.

Bruce left on his own accord but who knows what kind of mind games neil was playing with him lmao. Their relationship is strained according to Bruce so there was definitely bad blood between the two.

Neil's been playing 4D chess all this time. He was a lowly programmer in 2007. In 15 years he's the Co-President of Naughty Dog. Absolutely insane meteoric rise this.
You are watching too many movies.
 
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