Navigating the Future of Gaming: Insights from Developers on Layoffs, AI, and the Evolving Landscape at GDC 2025
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The past year has witnessed its share of transformation and sorrow for game creators. Industry layoffs have continued, work hours are increasing, and funding prospects are discouraging. Nonetheless, the sector remains strong, and so do its creators. The 2025 Report of the Game Industry highlights these challenges and their effects on the gaming community, bringing them into focus.
The Game Developers Conference has published the findings of the Thirteenth annual Report of the Game Industry survey, showcasing trends and insights in the gaming sector ahead of the GDC 2025, which will take place at San Francisco’s Moscone Convention Center from March 17-21, 2025.
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This year, we surveyed over 3,000 game developers and industry professionals (with a ±2% margin of error) in collaboration with our partners at Omdia and Game Developer to analyze the survey data. We discovered that more studios are adopting Generative AI, despite the fact that it’s becoming increasingly controversial among developers. Layoffs have persisted to such an extent that one in ten developers have lost their jobs over the past year. Opinions on live-service games are divided, and severe weather events like Hurricane Milton and the Southern California wildfires are highlighting the escalating impact of climate disasters.
Here are a few highlights from the 2025 Report of the Game Industry.
Layoffs Continue To Ripple Through The Industry
According to this year’s survey, 11% of developers indicated they were laid off in the previous year. Positions in the Narrative field saw the most significant impact, with 19% of respondents affected. The Business and Finance sectors experienced the lowest reported layoffs, impacting only 6% of respondents.
41% reported feeling the effects of these layoffs, with 29% observing their own colleagues being let go and 18% witnessing developers from other teams being dismissed. Additionally, 4% stated they were laid off due to the closure of their studios.
When asked about the reasons given for these layoffs, 22% were informed it was due to restructuring, 18% cited falling revenues, and 15% mentioned market or industry changes. Interestingly, 19% did not receive any explanation for the layoffs they observed.
Developers Remain Cautious About Generative AI
30% of respondents expressed the belief that generative AI is negatively impacting the gaming industry, representing a 12% increase from the previous year. Developers pointed to concerns such as intellectual property theft, energy consumption, a decline in quality of AI-generated content, potential biases within AI systems, and regulatory issues as the key factors behind their dissatisfaction with the technology.
More than half of the developers surveyed (52%) work for companies that have implemented generative AI, and about a third (36%) personally utilize it. Respondents within Business and Finance Roles were most likely to employ AI tools (51%), followed by Production and Team Management (41%) and Community, Marketing and PR (39%).
PC Game Development Soars
Last year, 66% of developers stated they were creating games for PC; this year, that figure rose to 80%. While the reason behind this remains unclear, it may at least partially be linked to the growing popularity of Valve’s Steam Deck. Although the Steam Deck was not specifically listed as an option for developers to mention the platform they are developing games for, among the respondents who chose the ‘Other’ option, 44% mentioned Steam Deck as a platform they are interested in.
Interestingly, browser games are also on the rise in popularity, with 16% of developers noting they are developing releases for web browsers (compared to 10% last year and 11% the year before). This marks the highest level of interest game studios have shown in browser games in the last decade.
One-Third of AAA Developers Are Engaged In Live Service Games
One in three AAA developers surveyed (33%) indicated they are working on a live-service title. Overall, 16% are currently developing a live-service game, while 13% expressed interest in creating live-service games, and 41% stated they had no interest at all.
Perceptions among developers about the value of live-service games vary widely. On a positive note, developers acknowledged the financial and community-building advantages of the approach, while those with concerns raised issues regarding diminishing player engagement, creative stagnation, exploitative practices, microtransactions, and fear
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One of the primary concerns related to live-service gaming was market saturation, with numerous developers highlighting the difficulty in creating a sustainable player base.
Most Games Are Funded By Self-Funding
Over half (56%) of participants in the survey indicated that they have invested their own finances into the development of their game. This is almost twice as much as the next highest source of funding, which includes project-based or publishing agreements, reported by 28% of respondents.
Those who claimed to have used self-funding seem to find it a viable option, with 89% stating it was at least somewhat successful for them. Co-development contracts received the highest satisfaction rate, with one-third (37%) deeming the method “very successful.” Conversely, accelerators were seen as the least effective option, with 43% categorizing them as “not successful at all.” This was followed by Venture Capital at 32% and crowdfunding at 31%.
Climate Change Affects A Significant Number of Developers
In 2024, the effects of climate change continued to impact the gaming industry, with 16% of developers reporting that they or their company were affected by natural disasters. 76% stated they have not been affected while 8% chose the “don’t know” option.
When asked to specify which natural disasters they or their company experienced, 73% of respondents mentioned floods, hurricanes, storms, and other water-related incidents. Other disasters cited included extreme heat, wildfires, and earthquakes.
The comprehensive survey, which offers deeper insights into the game development community’s perspectives on these issues as well as a wealth of other information and concerns, is readily available to access.
GDC returns this March 17-21, 2025, and our Early Registration is currently open (for a limited time)! For further information, be sure to visit our website and follow the #GDC2025 hashtag on social media.
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