So this is an interesting read, but it is a bit deceptive imo.
Firstly they talk about how it hurts developers, which I don't think is true. It hurts marketing, it might hurt the perception of the game's final release, but it doesn't hurt the developers because they have nothing to do with any of that. They are simply creating what their told by the directors and team leaders, and they are paid for that. Whatever happens in the final product doesn't really hurt them, because it is rare to see individual animators, artists, programmers, even acknowledged being related to a game in the public eye. That's a spot reserved for the directors, leads, and publishers.
We know Kojima, but do we know who the lead programmer in Death's Stranding was (without looking it up), no. The same can be said about The Last of Us 2, nobody knows who any of those people are, and wont remember their names when they appear in whatever the next game they make is. All the problems will fall onto Neil Drunkman and Naughty Dog as a general entity, not the individual developer as implied here.
Secondly they talk about leaks being a part of the industry, and that's just kind of true. Fans of anything are rabid for any information they can find about their interests. This happens in the movie industry and comic book industry just as much (see the rumored for a long time and now finally confirmed Synder cut of Justice League). It's a part of what nerds do.
I don't think there has ever been a Blizzcon in which they've announced a game we didn't already know about. The difference is.....knowing about something and seeing it in action are two completely different things. You knew Blizzard was announcing Overwatch the year they did. But nobody knew what it was going to be in reality, and once they showed it off, people went crazy!
If anything Leaks help the game's industry because they keep the fan's appetite wet for whatever game is coming. It's very very very rare that something comes out from a leak and raises a shitload of red flags for people. The Last of Us 2 is the only leak I can remotely even remember that actively turned people off. 99% of the time a leak builds further hype for a game, and the official announcement gets even further fanfare because of it.
I think if the industry really had a problem with leaks then this last quote would be great advice, "Schreier argues that if video game publishers let developers be a little more transparent in their work, it might temper some of the more obsessive tendencies in the community." But really, they wont because what I've said above is correct, companies benefit far more than they are hurt from leaks most of the time. The hype an unofficial "secret" about a game generates, the better the buzz for the game becomes in the long run.
Also just as a side note. I don't believe Sony and Naughty Dog's bullshit about TLOU2 leaks coming from a hacker. I believe the initial report of a disgruntled employee because the footage and story details are just too much from a random hack. Besides if a hacker got a hold of that much of the game, why would they stop at pieces and not just rip the whole game and release that shit early on the internet? Slap in on Pirate'sRUs or something and whatever. Naw it was an employee and Sony is trying to cover it up just like they tried to silence all the videos about the leaks in the first place.
