Crisis in the video game industry: 59% of developers believe that the industry is in a bad situation

Video game developers are going through a difficult time. Constant layoffs and uncertainty are putting pressure on them, which can be reflected in the games themselves. A study by the Game Developer Collective gives us a better understanding of how the people who create virtual worlds feel.

Here's What We Know

In May 2024, the Game Developer Collective surveyed more than 600 game developers, and 59% of them said that the industry is in a bad situation.

When asked about the current market conditions for the industry as a whole, 38% and 21% said they were "bad" and "very bad", while 26% remained neutral and 13% said they were "good".

By "market conditions" we mean the unusually difficult environment in the industry, such as the wave of layoffs and studio closures, as well as the financial difficulties of studios preceding these events.

49% of respondents believe that conditions are likely to remain unchanged over the next 6 months. 19% believe that the situation will worsen, while 25% are more optimistic and believe that conditions will improve.

Why is this happening? 61% of developers (of those who chose "poor/very poor" conditions) pointed to unreasonable expectations of investors. Ineffective management came in second place with 58% of respondents.

Other factors mentioned were rising development costs (41%), competition from games (22%) and other media (10%), high marketing costs (21%), and a lack of innovation (13%) and consumer demand (2%).

48% of full-time employees did not achieve their sales targets, and 40% believe that they are on the verge of breaking even. Only 13% exceeded their targets.

33% of full-time employees expect that they will not fulfil their forecasts by the end of the quarter on 30 June, while 43% believe that they will eventually level off.

Source: gamedeveloper