The corona pandemic has turned the world of work upside down. Remote work from the home office in particular was a big topic and while some studios are now bringing their employees back to the office, others are relying on digital first.
Bungie has announced that most current and future positions within the company will be eligible for full-time work from home in a growing number of states. In contrast to many studios, which are now ordering their employees back into the office.
The transition to working from home was not easy, but the results speak for themselves. Digital-first jobs are not the future, they are already here and Bungie is apparently fully behind it. In any case, Bungie seems to have managed the change quite well. While other studios keep having to postpone dates and release errors, Bungie was able to launch the new expansion Destiny 2: The Witch Queen on time and in good condition.
Currently, Bungie employees in the US states of Washington, California, Oregon, Illinois, Florida, North Carolina and Texas can work entirely from home. The conversions in other states will take time due to tax and labor law, but should be tackled quickly.
Working from the home office is now being implemented by many studios in one form or another, even after the pandemic has subsided. Ubisoft apparently uses a hybrid approach with a mix of working from home and being in the office. Insomniac allows employees in almost every state to work from home. Respawn Entertainment lets its teams decide for themselves what fits best.