Fortnite is Jira for children

My favourite type of video games are the ones that feel like work. And as someone who despises hustle culture, it’s confronting to realise I live for the video game grind.

But as it turns out, I’m not alone. Video games are becoming a critical part of our new routine during COVID. Humans really like checking things off their to-do lists – it provides a sense of control and accomplishment. Even tiny humans like it, with the popular video game Fortnite being compared to Jira in this article.

When you log on, you’re presented with a list of tasks, some new, some leftover from previous games. After a week off, [my friend] RobotHowells comes back and groans at the tasks that have built up. “Oh god, I have such a backlog,” he says. And indeed, it’s like returning to work after a holiday and facing the unread emails.

What I really want to know is this: will Fortnite groom the next generation of relentless scrum managers?