Layoff: The Game

Ah, gotta love the news media. They can take a story about a video game and twist it however they want. Take this story about a new game called Layoff, for example. It’s a bejeweled clone which lets the player lay off workers, and instead of a high score, your points come across as the amount of money you’ve saved the company.

Clearly, this game is made to demonstrate a greater point through satire. But even still, the news show can miss that point, go on the streets, get soundbites from uninformed interviewees and then claim that the game has upset quite a few people. This is why I don’t watch the news anymore.

What do you guys think? Is the game too far?

By the way, if you want to play the game yourself, check it out here.

Written by

I write about samurai girls and space marines. Writer for Smooth Few Films. Rooster Teeth Freelancer. Author of Red vs. Blue, The Ultimate Fan Guide, out NOW!

9 thoughts on “Layoff: The Game”

  1. Seems to be an interesting and satirical game…

    But you guys seriously need to lay off Fox News. Sure, they were uninformed on Mass Effect. But its prejudiced to say they are like that for everything. So they said some negative stuff about a game you like – they’re not gamers. They’re reporters. It’s not the end of the world and they’re not the spawn of Satan.

  2. Hahahaha how horrid!

    I think its one of those things….The concept is one that makes you laugh but I will agree to some degree this is going to make people mad. I dont think there is some subliminal message that will tell bosses to lay off more people, I just think they took whats going on and made it kinda clever.

    The economy sucks, game or not. It will make some mad, but kudos for a silly game idea.

  3. [quote comment=”5380″]
    But you guys seriously need to lay off Fox News. [/quote]

    You might want to re-read the post again. Nobody mentions Fox News. Not sure where you got that idea. Anywho, I was talking about the news media in general. It’s almost entirely sensationalist, from ESPN on.

  4. [quote comment=”5380″]Seems to be an interesting and satirical game…

    But you guys seriously need to lay off Fox News. Sure, they were uninformed on Mass Effect. But its prejudiced to say they are like that for everything. So they said some negative stuff about a game you like – they’re not gamers. They’re reporters. It’s not the end of the world and they’re not the spawn of Satan.[/quote]

    Ok, so many things wrong with this comment:

    First, as Eddy said, Fox News was not mentioned. I don’t think we have ever attacked them really.

    You said its prejudiced to think they are always uniformed. “Prejudiced” comes from the word, “Prejudge”, which means to judge without knowing what you are juding.

    I don’t prejudge. I judge, based on what I have seen many times from them. Fox News was not only wrong, but negligient on their Mass Effect report. As they are on so many things since they have announced at least 3 times that we have founds WMDs in Iraq.

    Next, you said they are reporters, not gamers…as a reporter, it is not only your job, but DUTY to ensure you are reporting accurate facts, not spin, hyperbole and mass hysteria in order to drum up outrage and ratings.

    As for this game, I think its kinda clever, but also in poor taste. People are in a lot of trouble and I think the person who made this game doesn’t get that.

    But it looks fun.

  5. [quote comment=”5387″]

    You might want to re-read the post again. Nobody mentions Fox News. Not sure where you got that idea. [/quote]

    Haha he got it because everyone knows Fox News is super conservative. I think he just jumped the gun and took it as Fox News bashing

  6. It just brings a visual representation on the seriousness of the issue. Because there are people out there who are actually making these decisions, and all these people really do have backstories. They aren’t really making fun here, as there’s nothing all that funny in the game or in the situation.

    Also, kudos on the “soundbite” comment, Eddy. That is the thing about the news that bugs me more than anything else.

  7. I think that:

    1. Certain people have missed the point that the world runs on money, that news programs run off money, that they are paid money to run specific spins of stories, and that stories will almost never be accurate in today’s money run world and will always twist to the highest bidder, and therefore, and news company that isn’t reporting the facts usually gets what it deserves. (They run off of a formula that says hype+hysteria+more people watching because of hype and hysteria = revenue you know.)

    and 2. Let the developers do what they want. Obviously they had a point to the game. If people are just too unaware to realize that there’s a point, too bad. I had to learn this in life teaching my immature guy friends that getting laid with anyone you want isn’t that hard nor is it a big deal. And then, funny thing, they used my advice and got what they wanted and hated on me for being a know-it-all. Thats just how things work. I bet you a few from now those same news companies will be saying how this & this really hits home on the lay off situation and puts it in companies faces, but they won’t be saying it about the games since they’re, well, games.

Comments are closed.