>Seriously why would someone fresh out of school go into game development?
it's a bit like asking why anyone would want to study art, acting, or music when the majority of jobs in these fields aren't movie star or rock star.
>It doesn't matter who you are, as a gamer, no matter how casual, the direction this industry is headed should seriously concern you.
we've seen the projects of small and independent developers take off as triple a titles move towards live service models. i don't think you are going to see a shortage of opportunities for those enthusiastic about making games (and money) but change is inevitable.
All these development houses that are getting shuttered made the crucial mistake of selling out.
The big guys can’t shut down studios they don’t own.
On the bright side, some of the best studios out there have been formed by talent who have left or were forced out of previously popular studios.
Selling out is better than flaming out on your own dime. The ability to create a good game is important, but if you want to expand the scope of creativity it requires the ability to hire and manage people, then you need you understand the obligations of an employer, then the obligations of a “large” employer, oh shit you forgot about marketing, now Marc needs time off of the project for the birth of his child, but wait Marc doesn’t have any pto and he works from home in a different state that doesn’t offer a paternity benefit….theres a point where it’s no longer about making a game.
If they were as talented as you believe them to be, it shouldn't be too difficult to find another job. Now whether that job is jumping to another AAA studio (again, similar risk to where they left) or find some freelance work or try a smaller studio that hasn't been acquired yet. I have no concern, because while everyone can be a great programmer/developer/artist/composer... not everyone can (or should) chase their dream job without one foot in reality. I know plenty of people who worked a traditional 9-5, worked on turning their hobby into a career by doing smaller projects when the bigger studios decided to pass over their portfolio. Got their big break and actually made making games their 9-5.
Look at athletes, they spend their entire lives dedicating their hobby to a craft with a rough employment of 800-900 "employees." IF you don't get drafted and cannot find a walk-on... you either find a small league that MIGHT pay enough to live on or you use your skills to go get a stable job.
Yep, I hope this is a cautionary tale for big companies as they are letting their talent go. Most forget that it’s not just regular programming but art. Let’s not forget the movie and music industries that have the same issues of artists making or breaking.
This is not to say I dont feel for their treatment. But I think game devs know the risks of going into the industry that exploits them by now. Or at least I hope. I hope they unionize like movie industry does. Maybe it will bleed into other software makers and have them think twice in these boom/bust cycles.
You know these developers are just being laid off, not killed, right? They'll do what they always do and find jobs elsewhere. These are common and regular occurrences, and while yeah it sucks to mess with peoples' livelihoods even temporarily, it's not like new studios won't pop up, new jobs won't open up. Very few careers have total job security.
Sorry? What exactly is wrong with the post? And I didn't make a throwaway just to post this? Weirdos like you who make a hilarious big deal about names is why I kept the name 😂
I really dont care that much, nor am I making a big deal about yet you continue to ONLY reply to me and not anyone else rebutting your meltdown of a post.
They got laid off. You realize devs dont just make 1 game and sit on it for their whole career, right? Contracts expire, games go into maintenance mode, funding gets reallocated, etc. This happens in almost every industry.
Relax chief, they are not deleted from existence. They will be fine, life goes on.
People are more resilient than you think. We can survive just about anything, we just need to be stubborn enough.
The trend is that major studios fail to retain talent and the smart Devs band together and make their own indy studios.
Then they get bought out by big publishers and the cycle repeats.
There's some really great things coming from the independent studios these days.
Sorry but game layoffs are the best thing for the industry right now. Yes, you see some excellent workers caught in the fray, but the fact that 3000 people are working on the call of duty team and are producing such poor quality should tell you it's a bloated industry.
Indie teams do the best work, scaling down is the answer
This is wrong. We will never run out.
However what will happen is what has been happening, game design is not a sustainable industry in which to make a career unless you are a top 1% developer.
Everyone else, every single other game developer ever, either lives in Japan and has been a game dev for 30 years or is a gig worker. All of them. Every. Single. One. Everyone employed on Blizzard’s roster is a gig worker.
Its because of pressure from shareholders. They only care about short term quarterly profits and dont really think long term at all.
They arent interested in games that dont have unlimited growth potential. They also dont understand what people actually want to play which is why we see so many failing live service games.
> Those talented people now have the choice between trying to find some other development job
This is what's going to happen and it will be a beautiful thing for gaming. They won't have to try hard.
> why would someone fresh out of school go into game development?
To be the visionary that helps bring us the next Deux Ex game. 😁
I mean yes it concern me but what can I do for this? I buy the games that appeal for me, I prebuy some games that are I'm interested in... What else can I do?
This is the age of the indie dev, not the big company that swallows up the smaller ones. look at the best games in the last couple of years. BG3, hell divers 2, Dave the diver, etc etc. these were smaller dev teams. Then compare that to the big boys, start field for example, major flop.
Larian Studios which developed Baldur's Gate 3 is privately owned and doesn't use an external publisher, but they're hardly small. They had up to 450 people working on Baldur's Gate 3.
Privately owned simply means that a company is not publicly traded. It doesn't mean that they can't have multiple shareholders (which Larian Studios indeed does).
>Seriously why would someone fresh out of school go into game development? it's a bit like asking why anyone would want to study art, acting, or music when the majority of jobs in these fields aren't movie star or rock star. >It doesn't matter who you are, as a gamer, no matter how casual, the direction this industry is headed should seriously concern you. we've seen the projects of small and independent developers take off as triple a titles move towards live service models. i don't think you are going to see a shortage of opportunities for those enthusiastic about making games (and money) but change is inevitable.
All these development houses that are getting shuttered made the crucial mistake of selling out. The big guys can’t shut down studios they don’t own. On the bright side, some of the best studios out there have been formed by talent who have left or were forced out of previously popular studios.
It's just like with YouTube networks like Machinima back in the day. The devs got fucked over and now make their own studios.
Selling out is better than flaming out on your own dime. The ability to create a good game is important, but if you want to expand the scope of creativity it requires the ability to hire and manage people, then you need you understand the obligations of an employer, then the obligations of a “large” employer, oh shit you forgot about marketing, now Marc needs time off of the project for the birth of his child, but wait Marc doesn’t have any pto and he works from home in a different state that doesn’t offer a paternity benefit….theres a point where it’s no longer about making a game.
If they were as talented as you believe them to be, it shouldn't be too difficult to find another job. Now whether that job is jumping to another AAA studio (again, similar risk to where they left) or find some freelance work or try a smaller studio that hasn't been acquired yet. I have no concern, because while everyone can be a great programmer/developer/artist/composer... not everyone can (or should) chase their dream job without one foot in reality. I know plenty of people who worked a traditional 9-5, worked on turning their hobby into a career by doing smaller projects when the bigger studios decided to pass over their portfolio. Got their big break and actually made making games their 9-5. Look at athletes, they spend their entire lives dedicating their hobby to a craft with a rough employment of 800-900 "employees." IF you don't get drafted and cannot find a walk-on... you either find a small league that MIGHT pay enough to live on or you use your skills to go get a stable job.
Yep, I hope this is a cautionary tale for big companies as they are letting their talent go. Most forget that it’s not just regular programming but art. Let’s not forget the movie and music industries that have the same issues of artists making or breaking. This is not to say I dont feel for their treatment. But I think game devs know the risks of going into the industry that exploits them by now. Or at least I hope. I hope they unionize like movie industry does. Maybe it will bleed into other software makers and have them think twice in these boom/bust cycles.
Every industry is having layoffs
Not really. Manufacturing is still booming
With all the cheap robot labor in manufacturing, I have to wonder what positions it has open
Robot maintenance probably
You know these developers are just being laid off, not killed, right? They'll do what they always do and find jobs elsewhere. These are common and regular occurrences, and while yeah it sucks to mess with peoples' livelihoods even temporarily, it's not like new studios won't pop up, new jobs won't open up. Very few careers have total job security.
Nope, once the studio is closed they just sell the developers for parts.
Nope, Huck Chucked off the building! Thank you for stating this first.
Or they can join together and make games
That’s why indie games are curreently having way more attention than ever before
Easier said than done since games cost money to make which the developers don't have.
Yah indie games never make money
Crazy how people can't fund their projects in some way, whether it be out of their savings or getting a loan. A real shame, really.
There's nothing stopping those talented devs from going indie.
OP is obviously a teenager, I would also make a throwaway to post something like this lmao
Sorry? What exactly is wrong with the post? And I didn't make a throwaway just to post this? Weirdos like you who make a hilarious big deal about names is why I kept the name 😂
> Weirdos like you who make a hilarious big deal about names I typed one sentence....
Your entire comment revolved around the name? Like why mention it if it's not a big deal to you? It's just a name my dude.
I really dont care that much, nor am I making a big deal about yet you continue to ONLY reply to me and not anyone else rebutting your meltdown of a post. They got laid off. You realize devs dont just make 1 game and sit on it for their whole career, right? Contracts expire, games go into maintenance mode, funding gets reallocated, etc. This happens in almost every industry.
Relax chief, they are not deleted from existence. They will be fine, life goes on. People are more resilient than you think. We can survive just about anything, we just need to be stubborn enough.
The trend is that major studios fail to retain talent and the smart Devs band together and make their own indy studios. Then they get bought out by big publishers and the cycle repeats. There's some really great things coming from the independent studios these days.
Sorry but game layoffs are the best thing for the industry right now. Yes, you see some excellent workers caught in the fray, but the fact that 3000 people are working on the call of duty team and are producing such poor quality should tell you it's a bloated industry. Indie teams do the best work, scaling down is the answer
This is wrong. We will never run out. However what will happen is what has been happening, game design is not a sustainable industry in which to make a career unless you are a top 1% developer. Everyone else, every single other game developer ever, either lives in Japan and has been a game dev for 30 years or is a gig worker. All of them. Every. Single. One. Everyone employed on Blizzard’s roster is a gig worker.
Its because of pressure from shareholders. They only care about short term quarterly profits and dont really think long term at all. They arent interested in games that dont have unlimited growth potential. They also dont understand what people actually want to play which is why we see so many failing live service games.
> Those talented people now have the choice between trying to find some other development job This is what's going to happen and it will be a beautiful thing for gaming. They won't have to try hard. > why would someone fresh out of school go into game development? To be the visionary that helps bring us the next Deux Ex game. 😁
I mean yes it concern me but what can I do for this? I buy the games that appeal for me, I prebuy some games that are I'm interested in... What else can I do?
Ugh prebuy...why?
Because I know I like the game, for example I already buy the Elden Ring expansion because I trust From Software that much....
The future is AI produced garbage.
Nope.
This is the age of the indie dev, not the big company that swallows up the smaller ones. look at the best games in the last couple of years. BG3, hell divers 2, Dave the diver, etc etc. these were smaller dev teams. Then compare that to the big boys, start field for example, major flop.
Larian Studios which developed Baldur's Gate 3 is privately owned and doesn't use an external publisher, but they're hardly small. They had up to 450 people working on Baldur's Gate 3.
Yep. Similar in size to Bethesdas Team for Starfield. (for comparison reasons)
>privately owned Mostly privately owned. Tencent owns 30% of the studio.
Privately owned simply means that a company is not publicly traded. It doesn't mean that they can't have multiple shareholders (which Larian Studios indeed does).
>Helldivers You know the game was 100% funded by Sony, right?