Naughty Dog Is Reportedly Crunching Again For Intergalactic

"Bloomberg reports that Naughty Dog has had developers working mandatory overtime as it races to complete a demo of the sci-fi action game for Sony to review, despite a planned release date that's still years away. The mandatory overtime reportedly began in October, with staff being asked to work a minimum of eight extra hours a week and logging them on an internal spreadsheet."

"During this period, a new mandatory return-to-office order was also pushed through, requiring everyone to be onsite at the Santa Monica studio five days a week, rather than the typical three. According to 's sources, employees had to find "alternative care arrangements" for children and pets. This follows older reports that Naughty Dog had hired a new team of producers specifically meant to help alleviate the team's crunch problems. But according to , several of them have already left the company."

"While select members of the team reportedly worked overtime to finish Intergalactic 's debut trailer back in 2024, this new overtime requirement has applied to "most" of the staff. Management reportedly told workers the company will return to its usual three-day in-office requirement in January, with a more detailed breakdown coming after the team returns from holiday break. The story signs off with an ironic anecdote, saying the team was given metal coins to commemorate the game's ongoing development,"

Naughty Dog instituted mandatory overtime beginning in October to accelerate development of Intergalactic: The Heretic Prophet and produce a demo for Sony to review. Staff were asked to work at least eight extra hours weekly and log those hours on an internal spreadsheet, with guidance not to exceed 60 hours per week. A mandatory five-day return-to-office policy required employees onsite at the Santa Monica studio rather than the typical three days, forcing some staff to arrange alternate care for children and pets. Producers hired to ease crunch issues have reportedly departed, and management plans to revert to three in-office days in January.

Read at Kotaku