Over a third of all game developers were laid off over the last two years, claims a sobering report from Game Developers Conference (GDC) about the state of the industry. The report surveyed developers from around the world about a number of hot-button topics, from job losses to AI, to get a picture of the industry as we enter perhaps its most unstable era in recent memory.
In response to a question asking about layoffs over the past 24 months, a total of 34 percent of respondents worldwide said they had lost a job in the games industry. U.S.-based developers were even more likely to be laid off at 39 percent. It’s a trend that’s only going up, the report adds, noting an increase every time the question has been asked over the past three years. Even those in employment are not exactly in stable work: only 50 percent of U.S. respondents are employed full-time (down 9 percent), with 21 percent of respondents currently unemployed.
Of those who lost their job—roughly 900 respondents according to GDC—some have faced multiple layoffs in that period. 17 percent of this group were laid off twice, with three percent facing three or more layoffs in a 24-month period. With fewer jobs available, over 54 percent say they have not yet found another job, while it took 15 percent of this group over six months to find new work. The results of those finding a job are mixed, too: nine percent ended up finding work outside games, while four percent started their own studio or company.
It paints a worrisome picture. The wealth of experience these developers possess is now at risk of being lost for good. It also hurts morale, with over half of respondents (51 percent) strongly agreeing to the statement that they were “concerned about my future in the game industry.” A total of 73 percent of respondents at least slightly disagreed with the statement that they were “hopeful about where the game industry is headed.”
AI pessimism
The sentiment across all responses in the survey noted developers held pessimistic feelings about the future of the industry and their own prospects within it. With consolidation and AI rampant, it’s hard to blame them. Speaking of AI, while there is a concern that the tech will replace jobs, its usage across the industry remains far lower than in other tech fields. Questioned on AI usage in their development work, 60 percent stated they do not use it. Older developers tend to use it more than younger developers, with significantly more men than women using the tools (45 percent vs 33 percent). Its usage in both indie and premium games was under one-third, with higher usage only being seen by devs working on free-to-play games (58 percent) and mobile-only games (70 percent).
These results go against the conceptions that AI usage is more common than is often disclosed, with a number of developers noting their company either discourages (11 percent) or entirely prohibits (23 percent) AI usage in any capacity. Those who use it however, are using it very often, most often daily. Concerns over the middling quality of vibecoded releases often give AI a negative reputation even before the issues of copyright, never mind the ways players are often quick to condemn its use. It doesn’t help 56 percent of people see it as having a negative impact on the industry.
The survey, released as part of GDC’s yearly recap of the industry, also touches on topics of working hours and the impact of work on mental health, all pointing toward an unstable time for the game industry. The instability is leading to less advocacy for improving that working situation, as well—while union support remains high at 80 percent, because layoffs so frequent and the difficulty to find a new job so high, the interest in joining unions has actually fallen. People involved in games still love them, and find immense satisfaction from making and playing them. There just isn’t much hope surrounding their future right now.
English (US) ·