Naughty Dog is notoriously known as a studio where employees periodically have to work excessive overtime. According to sources cited by Bloomberg journalist Jason Schreier, the team recently faced another round of crunches—this time related to the game Intergalactic: The Heretic Prophet.
According to Schreier, in late October, Naughty Dog management required employees to work at least eight extra hours per week. However, they also advised against dedicating all their free time to work. Ideally, the total worked hours per week should not exceed 60.
Simultaneously, Schreier writes, Naughty Dog effectively canceled partial remote work. While developers were normally expected to be in the office three days a week, during crunch periods, they had to be present five days a week.
It is reported that these measures were introduced to ensure Naughty Dog completed an internal demo of Intergalactic: The Heretic Prophet by Sony’s deadline. Ultimately, the plan worked, and the demo was completed recently.
Now, Naughty Dog employees are gradually returning to their standard schedules. Schreier notes that most will stop crunching next week, and the remaining employees by the end of January at the latest.
As a reminder, Intergalactic: The Heretic Prophet was announced in December 2024. The official release date has not been disclosed yet, but according to Schreier, the game is expected to be released in 2027.
Representatives from Sony and Naughty Dog declined to comment on Schreier’s report.