I love Terran’s work, and I wish I interacted with him more at work, but I want to use this tweet to talk briefly about identity and game dev, at least as I see it.
This is the first software job I’ve ever wanted. I mean something very particular here: I’ve wanted to be employed, and I’ve wanted to program, but working at Blizzard is the first job I’ve ever had that I really wanted above other programming gigs.
Blizzard is a great company, but I mostly wanted to work here because I wanted to be someone who worked on Blizzard Games. I wanted part of my identity to be Blizzard dev.
It’s dangerous to go down that road, though. Because that identity is full of both recognition and criticism. It’s really easy to swing back and forth between wanting to be identified with Blizzard, and wanting to stand on your own.
Sometimes I read particularly hateful comments about something Blizzard and I feel enough distance to just mine it for the feedback. Other times, I feel like the ranter must be mad at me personally.
It’s weird, because, like any big brand, Blizzard is very worried about employee opinions on social media. A tweet I wrote was quoted in an article on Kotaku, and since I’m not a specified spokesperson, that became a Big Deal.
I feel really bad for people like Terran, who do kick ass work, but get crap thrown at them by people who just don’t like the Blizzard brand. It’s a reminder that all of us who people follow on Twitter because of our employer are just people, too.
I’ve said it before: I have opinions. They get more social media air now because I’m a Blizzard employee, but that doesn’t make them Blizzard’s opinion. The price for that is we also endure the crap people throw at the brand for their own reasons.
If you’re following me because I’m a Blizzard employee and you’re a fan, well, welcome. But please know this is *my* space, not theirs. I’m not a spokesman. My opinions are my own. Don’t reflect it on them.
Likewise, if there’s something Blizzard’s done that you hate: there’s a really good chance it wasn’t me, or any other particular person you follow on Twitter. Organizational decision making is complex, and grace is a beautiful thing.
