PlatinumGames

WORK ENVIRONMENT

PlatinumGames is devoted to maintaining a positive work-life balance for all of our employees. We bring out the full potential of our staff and let them concentrate on creating great games by building an environment where they can comfortably work.

Office Resources

  • Company Library
    Employees have access to our library of over 2000 books and 1000 games, DVDs and CDs, as well as a collection of mannequins and weapon models. Nearly 100% of employee purchase requests are fulfilled!
  • Free Drinks
    Employees can use the company water server and vending machines for free.

Career Support

  • Build skills with Platinum Academy
    We encourage our employees to attend seminars, both within Japan and abroad, to boost their technical skills. We provide full or partial payment for seminar attendance fees and traveling expenses.
    We also frequently invite top creators from outside the company in to give special closed-doors seminars to our staff! Past speakers include Hollywood sculptor Hiroshi Katagiri, game director YOKO TARO and illustrator Yusuke Kozaki.
  • A global work environment
    We’ve been based in Osaka since day one, but over 20% of our staff (as of June 2024) come from outside Japan. Every year we strive to become more and more of a truly global company. Though we strongly recommend that our international staff endeavor to communicate in Japanese, we do provide e-mail translation and an English-language staff support site to make sure all of our skilled employees from overseas can live up to their potential.
  • Independent study
    We allow any interested employees to use our space and resources for independent research on Saturdays and holidays. We encourage our staff to work together to explore things that interest them.
  • Skill building
    We offer a wide variety of staff enrichment opportunities – from helping our fresh graduates get acclimated to the workforce, to building employee skills through specialized research, to developing our team leads’ management abilities.
  • Mentorships
    Fresh graduates can be assigned an experienced, trained mentor other than their immediate boss, who will provide support as they develop their career at PlatinumGames. Mentors give valuable guidance to their mentees for anything from private concerns to issues at work.
  • Share knowledge with the Platinum Archives
    We maintain large archives of useful information and know-how gained from our past titles and employees’ independent research. Our staff also uses an in-house chat tool to share information and opinions, questions and concerns all across the company. There are plenty of opportunities to learn, from coworkers and past projects alike.

Recreation

  • Company gatherings
    To promote communication between employees, we host several companywide events throughout the year. These events, which include the new recruit welcome party, a year-end party and an annual picnic under the cherry blossoms, are a great chance to relax and get to know your coworkers.
  • Club activities
    We encourage our employees to share their passions with each other by forming and joining clubs. We have clubs for such diverse interests as running, cinema appreciation and fighting games! PlatinumGames provides partial payment for employee club activities.

Health

  • Masseuse
    We bring in a massage therapist to provide rejuvenating massages, free of charge, to interested employees. (Since time is limited, slots are occasionally granted by lottery.)
  • Health examination
    Once per year, we cover costs for a health examination for all of our employees. This includes gynecological examinations for female employees and a comprehensive physical for employees over 45.
  • Health counseling
    To support our employees’ health, regular opportunities to meet with an occupational physician are available. Employees may consult with an occupational physician once a month by appointment.
  • Influenza vaccine
    We provide an influenza vaccine once per year.
  • Mental Health Care
    PlatinumGames has contracted a company that specializes in mental health care to perform stress checks twice per year. Also offered are phone counseling with a medical facility (free 24 hours per day, 365 days per year) as well as in-person counseling (free for 5 visits per year).

Working Style

  • Hours
    To help our employees achieve a satisfying work-life balance, we follow a discretionary working hours system. Though the typical workday at PlatinumGames lasts from 9:30 AM to 6:00 PM, employees are accountable for their own working hours. We expect employees to take a break of at least an hour during their workday.
    As a general rule, employees may not work on Saturday, Sunday, national holidays or on weekdays after 10 PM. In fact, it is not possible for employees to enter our office space on Sundays. (Saturday work is possible on an as-needed basis and only with permission.)
    Recent graduates in their first year of employment at PlatinumGames work on a fixed schedule from 9:30 AM to 6:00 PM, seven and a half working hours total per day.
  • Paid holidays
    Employees have leave on Saturdays, Sundays, and national holidays, as well as seven days for the New Year holiday (generally 12/29-1/4), and five days of summer vacation. October 1st, the anniversary of our founding, is a company holiday.
    Employees receive ten to twenty days of paid leave per year, depending on how long they’ve been at the company, that they can use at their discretion. Up to forty of these days can be carried over into the next fiscal year. Special leave is also offered for situations such as bereavement, childbirth, etc.

 

Awards

  • Acknowledgement of service
    Long-time employees receive awards commemorating their time at the company during milestone years.

Support Policies

  • Lunch delivery
    A partner service delivers nutritious, balanced bento (Japanese-style boxed lunches) every day. The price of these lunches is partially subsidized by the company, and interested employees can order them at a price of 230 yen per meal (or 180 yen without rice).
  • Moving Stipend
    For mid-career hires whose previous employer was located more than 150 km away from our office, a fixed stipend of 300,000 yen will be paid as a moving stipend. Employees relocating from overseas are eligible for a moving stiped of 500,000 yen. (This stipend is for mid-career hires only.)
  • Congratulatory payments
    In addition to special leave for events such as weddings and births, employees receive congratulatory payments from the company.
  • Child stipend
    A stipend of 5,000 yen per child per month is paid to employees with children under 18 years old.
  • Foreign travel stipend
    The first time an employee travels overseas for a business trip, they will receive a stipend of 16,000 yen to help with travel preparations. Employees may use this as they wish, for example, for obtaining a passport or purchasing a suitcase.
  • Property accumulation savings policy
    Users of this policy receive an interest subsidy of 1% per year from the company.
  • Employee shareholder association
    Participants in our employee shareholder association will receive a monthly participation incentive (ten percent of the amount of stock purchased) and may receive annual dividends when the company is profitable.
    Eligibility for participation: Membership in the employee shareholder association is voluntary and available to full-time employees who have worked for the company for over one year.

Parental Leave Policy

  • Childbirth leave
    Employees giving birth to children are eligible for six weeks of leave before birth (fourteen weeks in the event of multiple birth) and eight weeks after. Employees are eligible for two days of special leave when their spouses give birth.
  • Parental leave
    Parents may take an extended absence from work to care for children until they reach one year of age. In special circumstances, such as when daycare is unavailable, it may be possible to extend this absence for up to three years.
  • Shortened hours for parents
    After the birth of a child, parents may work for shortened hours until that child reaches three years of age.

Osaka office and surroundings

  • Umeda Sky Building – Club Baccano
    Employees have free access to Club Baccano, a fitness facility exclusively for employees of Sky Building tenant companies. It includes a fitness gym, golf room, relaxation room, jacuzzi spa and sauna, napping room, and more. Employees can also receive massages and osteopathic treatments at the attached osteopathic facility for a fee.
  • Umeda Sky Building – Floating Garden Observatory
    Employees can enter the Floating Garden Observatory at a reduced price. (There are also free entry days.)
  • A natural environment in the city
    Shin-Umeda City, the area of Osaka around Umeda Sky Building and the neighboring Westin hotel, offers a lush, green atmosphere in the heart of Osaka city. Over 2,000 trees grow in nearby parks, offering a relaxing environment where workers can enjoy the four seasons.

Insurance

  • Full insurance
    We provide a full range of insurance services, including health insurance, pension insurance, employment insurance and worker’s compensation insurance.
    PlatinumGames is a member of the Kanto IT Software Health Insurance Association (ITS). This allows us to offer lower premiums than other providers. We also make rebate payments to support employees and their dependents if their medical burdens exceed 20,000 yen per month, and rebates of 90,000 yen to employees and dependents to help with childbirth costs.
  • Group Long Term Disability insurance (GLTD insurance)
    We provide income-supplementing insurance for employees, should illness or injury render them unable to work for long periods of time.
  • Other insurance
    We offer various insurance payments for employees who are hospitalized and/or in need of surgery.

 

Sports and leisure facilities

  • ITS facilities
    As members of the Kanto IT Software Health Insurance Association (ITS), PlatinumGames employees can use the Association’s contracted leisure facilities nationwide (hotels, sports clubs, golf courses, restaurants, etc) at a discounted rate.
  • Theme park discounts
    ITS holds health-focused events at Tokyo Disneyland and Disney Sea resorts (20 days each year) and at Universal Studios Japan (one day each year). ITS members can enter the parks at a discounted rate for these events. (Because these are very popular events, employees are only eligible to apply for one day, and participation may be determined by lottery.)

 

And more

  • Safety confirmation service
    To prepare for wide-scale disasters such as earthquakes, typhoons, accidents, etc, the company is enrolled in a security service that is used to swiftly confirm the safety of employees and employees’ family members.
  • Disaster preparedness
    Each employee is issued a disaster preparedness kit, including drinkable water, nonperishable food, a survival blanket and necessary first aid and hygienic equipment.