Toxic management - Anonymous employee Marmalade Game Studio Employee Review

It has some good perks like remote work and health insurance.

While the company may offer some appealing benefits, my overall experience was negatively impacted by poor management practices and an unhealthy team culture. Leadership relied heavily on micromanagement, which affected both productivity and morale. Work was frequently criticised without clear reasoning, and tasks were often revised in ways that didn’t add meaningful value, creating the sense that appearing busy was prioritised over actual outcomes. There was also a strong reliance on rigid templates for nearly every task. While structure can be useful, this approach limited creativity and professional judgment. Even when guidelines were followed exactly, feedback remained vague or inconsistent, making expectations unclear. Open communication was not encouraged. Suggestions or alternative ideas were typically dismissed, and it became evident that independent thinking was not valued. Efforts to gather feedback often felt superficial, as honest input—especially when related to management—was not well received. It’s also worth noting that there appears to be internal pressure for managers to leave overly positive (5-star) reviews to influence the company’s overall rating, which raises concerns about the authenticity of reviews. Overall, I would not recommend this company to professionals who value autonomy, collaboration, and the opportunity to contribute strategically.

One could argue that they have good benefits in terms of remote work policy and health insure but that's about it. Good overall professionals and social environment. 80% of the people that work there are actually nice and caring. Some of the best professionals I had the pleasure to work with.

This company suffers from extreme micro managing that is reflected across the board. There is little to no effort in making sure that there is a clean and healthy environment in the developing process. Deadlines are enforced with an iron hand which then reflects in the inability to listen or care about other people's opinions. In the past the company had the modus operandi of trying to figure out a problem and trying to solve it together. But nowadays it seems that the standard is to just point fingers and make sure to find anyone to blame for a bad layed out scope. You could say that there's a possibility to climb the ladder at Marmalade but there is no ladder in the first place. People have been hired and moved internally on pure vibes with no actual procedures. Most of those ended up in unemployment or reverting back to their previous positions. This is not a creative first company. Prepare to have more responsabilities than the ones you signed up for - because if you don't do them then you're not a team player. It's a very CEO centered company with random demands that may show up at the very end of a certain scope that was up until that point going to deliver. Then when you don't deliver it's on you. "How could you have not forseen this situation? Disapointement".