Paradox Interactiveis a large video game publisher based in Sweden, originally starting out as a videogame division of Target Games. However, it took on the name Paradox Entertainment as Target Games went bankrupt in 1999 and soon became an independent company in 2004. The publisher is behind some of themost popular strategy franchises includingCrusader Kings, Hearts of IronandEuropa Universalis. While the company has enjoyed success thanks to these popular titles, a staff survey last year indicated that things weren’t perfect at Paradox.
In the gaming sphere, 2021 proved to be a year of controversy for many publishers and developers as large portions of staff came out against the companies that had allegedly encouraged and enabled a workplace environment of harassment. While stories differ from company to company, the most well-known of these is the ongoing lawsuit againstCall of DutyandWorld of Warcraftpublisher Activision Blizzard, which hasseen calls for the CEO Bobby Kotick to resign, and many employees leave the company themselves.
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A staff survey published by Swedish newspaper Svenska Dagbladet suggested thatParadox Interactive’s employees felt that harassment was present in the workplace. In the survey, a so-called “culture of silence” allowed an employee with a reputation to hold a significant senior position for years, along with allegations of a “toxic” studio where women were treated as “token” hires. Now, the company looks to investigate the sources of its “toxic” workplace culture using an external report.
The report was created by Swedish firm Gender Balance, which specializes in discrimination and harassment issues. Speaking on the report, Paradox chief of staff Mattias Lilja said, “We are now getting to the bottom of this, and we are getting a concrete picture of the problem. The report is a first step for us to really address these issues and bridge the trust gap that exists.” This trust gap has been referenced before by developers who also had scathing reports published in 2021.Head of Blizzard Entertainment Mike Ybarrahas spoken about how the company seeks to rebuild its trust with fans and employees going forward.
The report by Gender Balance covers many negative behaviors which have allegedly taken place at Paradox Interactive, with some of them including “using harsh and demeaning language, ridicule, recurring mean-spirited criticism, unfairly questioning competence, interrupting or speaking over someone in meetings, and blaming and shaming.” A number of women also reported unsolicited comments on their appearance, and seeing gendered stereotypes throughout their working experience. Following from this report,Paradox Interactive’s next stepis to create an action plan to solicit further change, and will look to improve matters before the next survey this fall.
