Blizzard Entertainment Reviews

Pros

Incredible legacy of delivering epic entertainment Can feel like an extended family

Cons

As with all companies, growth has been challenging to manage.

Pros

Really passionate staff, who are all friendly and easy to talk with. Some of the products are the best in the business and they care about the fans.

Cons

Seems like a small company pretending to be big (even though they are big). Really poor HR policies (were there any?). Quite shambolic when it came to managing international operations, seems to be every territory for itself which leads to some unhealthy fiefdoms. Depends on the management for your territory and can I only say I had the worst boss in my entire career there and didn't appear to be any recourse for his actions.

Pros

Stable company with great games

Cons

Salaries are too low! A lot of politics!!!

Pros

- Great benefits. - Lots of culture. - Leadership actually knows what they're doing. - Profit share bonus. (Not a guarantee, but they try and give it to us every year) - Free gifts. (For Christmas and random free stuff every now and then)

Cons

- Many employees complain about low pay. Although the company has recently started taking big steps to address this. - Promotions are not given out when the employee is ready. Instead they're given out twice a year and only to a handful of employees on each team. This results in some people having to wait years for their promotion despite having been ready for it. - Based in Irvine, which is a very expensive city to live in.

Pros

You never get bored and work with interesting people

Cons

Considering the amount of work and the wide range of different csm request you have to answer the salary could improve.

Pros

Culture is great and inclusive. Creative people abound. Pets!

Cons

It's not a secret: Blizzard pays very poorly, even for the game industry. This has been a fight for the better part of a decade, and it's a problem the company refuses to acknowledge. Promotions are just not a thing, depending on your team. Some teams see pretty consistent promotions, but several will wait 3 - 5 years before seeing a title change. The promotion system is awful. Perhaps more importantly, the very fabric of what made Blizzard special is at severe risk. The mantra of the Blizzard of old was to make awesome games, and the business will take care of itself. The mantra of modern Blizzard is to outsource games to China because it's cheap. Making the game awesome is only a priority if it can be made cheaply. Finally, retention is a disaster. Whole teams turn over in under 2 years with startling frequency. Riot is basically poaching whomever they want by offering anywhere from 50% more, to double what current employees are getting paid. Blizzard used to be a destination employer for many, but the brand is being squandered badly and it hurts to see. JAB has done little to fix this and while I think he's the best choice as a replacement for Mike, it's clear he is uninterested in rebuilding the environment that attracted me here in the first place.

Pros

- Inclusive, welcoming work culture - Free health insurance if you're willing to have an extremely high deductible - Free games

Cons

- Your passion for the company is exploited for low pay - The company will preach over and over that studies were completed to provide fair compensation, yet compensation is lopsided and unfair across the department which I am included (CS)