Screenplay's Jason Hill followed up the news on Tantalus hitting Develop magazine's recent Top 100 games developers list (the only Australian developer to make it on there) with an interview with Tantalus CEO, Tom Crago. Up for discussion is Tantalus's million selling Pony Friends, licenses and developing on the Wii, the investment from Netus (a fund backed by Rupert Murdoch's News Ltd), the skills shortage in Australia, the great working conditions at Tantalus (little overtime, paid maternity/paternity leave, long service leave), and much more.
(Tom) We were finding we were getting people straight out of university, and they'd work hard for us for four or five years and never really get a chance to travel or take time out. So the thinking behind this program is to recognise and reward that service...Once again it's about creating a work environment that recognises that people have lives outside of work. We want to be a company that gets that balance right.
It's an incredibly insightful interview, and if you ever wanted to know more about one of the more quiet achievers in the local industry, be sure to check the entire interview out at Screenplay!