--- title: Developers discuss the pain and prevalence of side work... description: Game developers share experiences with overly broad side work clauses in employment contracts that restrict personal projects, moonlighting, and even... canonical: https://daily.dev/posts/developers-discuss-the-pain-and-prevalence-of-side-work-clauses-ycse7gnna twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:site: @dailydotdev og:type: website og:site_name: daily.dev og:title: Developers discuss the pain and prevalence of side work clauses | daily.dev og:description: Game developers share experiences with overly broad side work clauses in employment contracts that restrict personal projects, moonlighting, and even... og:url: https://daily.dev/posts/developers-discuss-the-pain-and-prevalence-of-side-work-clauses-ycse7gnna og:image: https://api.daily.dev/og/posts/Ycse7GnNa.png og:image:alt: Developers discuss the pain and prevalence of side work clauses og:image:width: 1200 og:image:height: 630 og:locale: en --- > ## Documentation Index > Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://daily.dev/llms.txt > Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further. # Developers discuss the pain and prevalence of side work clauses **[Game Developer](https://daily.dev/sources/gamedeveloper)** · 12 min read · 2 upvotes · 0 comments ## Summary Game developers share experiences with overly broad side work clauses in employment contracts that restrict personal projects, moonlighting, and even mentoring. Anonymous sources describe blanket denials of side project approvals and feeling policed outside work hours. Indie developer Alice Ruppert successfully negotiated clauses away by requesting written exceptions, while art director Louise Meijer-Åström was forced to abandon her hobby project despite prior verbal approval. U.S. employment lawyer Wendy Stryker explains these clauses are generally enforceable when personal work overlaps with the employer's scope, but advises workers to disclose projects upfront and seek written permission. The piece highlights how restrictive clauses harm morale, stifle creativity, and limit career growth, particularly in an industry already battered by layoffs. ## Full article daily.dev links to this article rather than hosting it. Read it at the original source: ## Questions this post answers ### Are non-compete or side project clauses in game industry employment contracts legally enforceable? Yes, generally these clauses are enforceable when the personal work falls within the scope of employment, according to a U.S. employment law specialist. If work is genuinely differentiated from what a company employs someone to do, such as a completely different genre or market, there may be room to argue against ownership claims, though a written exception is still recommended for protection. _Developers weighing contract terms against personal projects can find similar workplace stories on daily.dev._ ### How can a game developer negotiate the removal of a non-compete or side project clause from an employment contract? Persistence and specificity work: one indie developer successfully had a clause narrowed to cover only the type of project relevant to the employer, or removed entirely, by signing a 'Declaration of Outside Interests' outlining the outside activities and confirming they would not affect job performance. Raising the request early and again during contract review helped secure the adjustment. _Anyone navigating job offers and contract clauses can track similar career negotiation stories on daily.dev._ ## Similar posts on daily.dev - [They Made Me An Offer I Couldn’t Refuse](https://daily.dev/posts/they-made-me-an-offer-i-couldn-t-refuse-rhd6yifgf) · Lobsters · 1 upvotes · 0 comments - [Stop building side projects. Nobody cares — and here's the uncomfortable math.](https://daily.dev/posts/stop-building-side-projects-nobody-cares-and-here-s-the-uncomfortable-math--azxnbhn3v) · DEV · 47 upvotes · 20 comments - [After half a decade of job losses, there is no “business as usual” \| Opinion](https://daily.dev/posts/after-half-a-decade-of-job-losses-there-is-no-business-as-usual-opinion-0vhucjhjc) · GamesIndustry.biz · 0 upvotes · 0 comments - [The fine print that follows you out the door: non-compete clauses are spreading and holding back growth](https://daily.dev/posts/the-fine-print-that-follows-you-out-the-door-non-compete-clauses-are-spreading-and-holding-back-gro-femnn6eoa) · Hacker News · 0 upvotes · 0 comments --- Tags: [#game-development](https://daily.dev/tags/game-development) [View this post on daily.dev](https://daily.dev/posts/developers-discuss-the-pain-and-prevalence-of-side-work-clauses-ycse7gnna) ```json {"@context":"https://schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https://daily.dev/#organization","name":"daily.dev","url":"https://daily.dev","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://daily.dev/apple-touch-icon.png","width":180,"height":180},"sameAs":["https://twitter.com/dailydotdev","https://github.com/dailydotdev","https://www.linkedin.com/company/daily-dev-ltd"]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https://daily.dev/#website","url":"https://daily.dev","name":"daily.dev","publisher":{"@id":"https://daily.dev/#organization"},"potentialAction":{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https://daily.dev/search?q={search_term_string}"},"query-input":"required name=search_term_string"}}]} {"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"TechArticle","headline":"Developers discuss the pain and prevalence of side work clauses","url":"https://daily.dev/posts/developers-discuss-the-pain-and-prevalence-of-side-work-clauses-ycse7gnna","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://daily.dev/posts/developers-discuss-the-pain-and-prevalence-of-side-work-clauses-ycse7gnna"},"datePublished":"2026-07-28T08:38:39.421Z","dateModified":"2026-09-13T20:31:55.769Z","description":"Game developers share experiences with overly broad side work clauses in employment contracts that restrict personal projects, moonlighting, and even...","image":"https://media.daily.dev/image/upload/f_auto,q_auto/v1/posts/39f37b8519205df700c2a4471cbed8b0?_a=AQAEuop","thumbnailUrl":"https://media.daily.dev/image/upload/f_auto,q_auto/v1/posts/39f37b8519205df700c2a4471cbed8b0?_a=AQAEuop","isAccessibleForFree":true,"articleSection":"Game Developer","inLanguage":"en","publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"daily.dev","url":"https://daily.dev","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://daily.dev/apple-touch-icon.png","width":180,"height":180}},"author":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Game Developer","logo":"https://media.daily.dev/image/upload/t_logo,f_auto/v1/logos/5fbb7418db8746769a45f55309bbdf13","url":"https://daily.dev/sources/gamedeveloper"},"commentCount":0,"discussionUrl":"https://daily.dev/posts/developers-discuss-the-pain-and-prevalence-of-side-work-clauses-ycse7gnna","interactionStatistic":[{"@type":"InteractionCounter","interactionType":{"@type":"LikeAction"},"userInteractionCount":2},{"@type":"InteractionCounter","interactionType":{"@type":"CommentAction"},"userInteractionCount":0}],"keywords":"game-development","timeRequired":"PT12M"} {"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https://daily.dev"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Game Developer","item":"https://daily.dev/sources/gamedeveloper"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"name":"Developers discuss the pain and prevalence of side work clauses"}]} {"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"FAQPage","@id":"https://daily.dev/posts/developers-discuss-the-pain-and-prevalence-of-side-work-clauses-ycse7gnna#faq","mainEntity":[{"@type":"Question","name":"Are non-compete or side project clauses in game industry employment contracts legally enforceable?","acceptedAnswer":{"@type":"Answer","text":"Yes, generally these clauses are enforceable when the personal work falls within the scope of employment, according to a U.S. employment law specialist. If work is genuinely differentiated from what a company employs someone to do, such as a completely different genre or market, there may be room to argue against ownership claims, though a written exception is still recommended for protection. Developers weighing contract terms against personal projects can find similar workplace stories on daily.dev."}},{"@type":"Question","name":"How can a game developer negotiate the removal of a non-compete or side project clause from an employment contract?","acceptedAnswer":{"@type":"Answer","text":"Persistence and specificity work: one indie developer successfully had a clause narrowed to cover only the type of project relevant to the employer, or removed entirely, by signing a 'Declaration of Outside Interests' outlining the outside activities and confirming they would not affect job performance. Raising the request early and again during contract review helped secure the adjustment. Anyone navigating job offers and contract clauses can track similar career negotiation stories on daily.dev."}}]} ```