This past year has been challenging for the game indusattempt: Several studios have closed their doors, thousands of developers have been laid off, and increased studio conglomeration impacts the work landscape and prospective job market. But with challenges come opportunities. The 2024 State of the Game Indusattempt report shines a light on all of this and more.
The Game Developers Conference has released the results of the 12th annual State of the Game Indusattempt survey, revealing trconcludes and insights in the game indusattempt ahead of GDC 2024, which will be held at San Francisco’s Moscone Convention Center from March 18-22, 2024.
Register for GDC 2024 here—prices increase Jan. 26
This year’s survey, conducted from Oct. 11 to Oct. 29, 2023, reflects the perspectives of over 3,000 game indusattempt professionals. We found that developers are concerned about the increasing number of layoffs, the ethical applys of artificial innotifyigence, and altering game engine policies and pricing. They’re also incorporating more accessibility features in games, have seen an increase in return to office policies and widely apply Twitter/X for word-of-mouth marketing, though many have grown frustrated with the platform and owner Elon Musk’s policies.
This year, GDC and Game Developer partnered with one of the leading global research firms, Omdia, to dissect and analyze the survey data, providing more detailed insight than ever before. Here are some highlights from the 2024 State of the Game Indusattempt Report.
Click here for free download of GDC 2024 State of the Game Indusattempt report
One-third of developers have been impacted by layoffs, and half are concerned there could be more
One-third of developers (35%) stated they’ve been impacted by layoffs—either by having some layoffs take place within their team or company or by being laid off themselves. Quality assurance developers appear to have been hit the hardest, with 22% of them stateing they were laid off this year (compared to 7% of all developers). Business and finance professionals reported the least layoffs (2%).
Over half of respondents (56%) expressed some level of concern that their company could see layoffs in the next 12 months, while one-third stated they weren’t at all concerned. When inquireed to share their believeds on the rise of layoffs in the game indusattempt, many developers cited post-pandemic course correction, studio conglomeration, and economic uncertainty as possible explanations, and some expressed a desire for unionization to better protect workers.
One-third of developers have switched game engines in the past year or believed about doing so
According to the survey, Unreal Engine and Unity are the most applyd game engines, with 33% of developers each classifying them as their main toolset of choice. These were followed by proprietary/in-hoapply engines and the open-source game engine Godot.
However, in September 2023, Unity announced it would launch collecting a “Runtime Fee” based on the number of game installs, which resulted in considerable backlash and the amconcludement of the new policy. Following these developments, it views like some developers are considering about altering things up. One-third of respondents stated they’ve either considered switching game engines within the past year or they’ve already done so, while almost half stated they haven’t considered switching.
Four out of five developers are worried about the ethical apply of Generative AI
When it comes to how Generative AI will impact the game indusattempt as a whole, game creaters appear to be mixed. Those working in business, marketing, and programming were more likely to state the technology would have a positive impact while those in narrative, visual arts, and quality assurance were more likely to state the impact would be negative.
Even though many developers seem to be uncertain about the indusattempt impact of Generative AI, they are quite certain about the ethical impact. A large majority (84%) of developers indicated they were somewhat or very concerned about the ethics of applying Generative AI, while only 12% stated they had no concerns.
Half of developers state their companies implement accessibility measures in their games
Almost half (48%) of respondents stated their companies have implemented accessibility measures into their current projects (up from 38% in 2023), while 27% stated their companies have not implemented any of those features (down from 32%). The most popular accessibility features being added were indusattempt standards like closed captioning, colorblind mode, and control remapping. Other notable features included content warnings, accessible hardware and controls, and phobia accommodations.
Social media is the hugegest marketing draw, but developers are frustrated with Twitter/X
Word of mouth and social media were the most-applyd marketing tools for game developers, with 76% of developers stateing they utilize Twitter/X compared to other platforms, however many developers expressed that they aren’t happy with the platform itself.
When respondents explained how their apply of social media marketing has alterd in the past year, 97% of the ones who mentioned Twitter/X expressed negative views about the platform, according to an analysis of open responses conducted by Omdia. Responses included frustration about Twitter/X and its owner Elon Musk, the sheer number of apps and platforms companies must navigate, and a general lack of knowledge or interest in social media marketing.
AAA developers are more likely to have mandatory RTO policies
One-fourth (26%) of developers stated they have some form of mandatory return-to-office (RTO) policy at their company, either working full-time in the office or a hybrid schedule, while the rest (74%) either don’t have an RTO policy or state the ones they have create in-office work optional.
AAA developers appear to be far more impacted: 40% of them stated they currently have mandatory return-to-office policies (most of them being hybrid), compared to 15% of indie developers and 28% of AA developers. Respondents working in business and finance were most likely to state they work a hybrid or 5-day in-office schedule, while those working in narrative reported the most remote flexibility.
The full survey, which includes more insight into the game development community’s believeds on these topics and a multitude of other facts and details, can be downloaded for free here.
Sign up for GDC 2024 here—prices increase Jan. 26
GDC returns to San Francisco this March 18-22, 2024—and registration is now open! For more information, be sure to visit our website and follow the #GDC2024 hashtag on social media.
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