Fallout: New Vegas and Pillars of Eternity director admits lack of job security despite 26 years in the games industry

Josh Sawyer, the Design Director and Game Director of Fallout: New Vegas and the Pillars of Eternity series, who has spent 26 years in the video game industry, opened up about the persistent lack of job security affecting developers during a keynote speech at the Games Connect Asia Pacific conference in Melbourne.

Sawyer began his professional career in 1999 at Black Isle Studios, working on RPGs rooted in his tabletop gaming hobby. Since then, he has spearheaded titles including the critically acclaimed Fallout: New Vegas in 2010, and the Pillars of Eternity series in 2015 and 2018.

Despite having these successful titles under his belt and his role as director at Microsoft-owned Obsidian, he confessed to the audience that his job security has eluded him throughout his career. He stated:

“In 26 years, I’ve never really felt secure in a job. Even now. Less so now, actually. That’s pretty messed up.”

Sawyer’s comments come at a time when the gaming industry grapples with unprecedented turbulence and a myriad of layoffs, with a sizeable chunk of job cuts across studios like Cloud Chamber, ZeniMax Media, alongside the cancellation of long-running projects.

Despite these challenges, Sawyer highlighted some silver linings in terms of progress, particularly in the realm of diversity, as talent pools have been broadened beyond traditional hubs through remote positions. 

He reflected that in his first five years in the industry, there were no female developers on his teams, and scant international representation. He further added:

“I didn’t work with any women developers for my first five years,” comparing it with today’s landscape, where 75% of developers report higher productivity in flexible setups that attract underrepresented voices.  

Sawyer’s keynote just goes to show how even industry legends question their footing in the video games industry. Games continue to expand, with ballooning scopes, increasing budgets, in efforts to cater to audiences boasting over millions of players worldwide. 

However, there seems to be an apparent disconnect between blockbuster revenues and developer precarity, which raises questions about sustainable practices in the industry. The video game industry has grown into a dominant force, but the industry’s business practices haven’t kept up.

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