One in three surveyed games developers were laid off in two years

The picture for those affected is bleak. More than half (54%) of laid-off respondents are still unemployed, rising to 59% in the United States, and 27% said they had submitted at least 100 job applications. A quarter said their most recent layoff came within the past three months, 17% had been laid off twice in two years and 3% three or more times.

Insecurity extends to those still in work. Only 45% of employed respondents at least slightly agreed that their job is secure for the next 12 months, while 72% of the unemployed were not confident of finding a new role within a year. Morale is low across the board: 81% of all respondents said they are concerned about their future in the industry, and 73% disagreed that they are hopeful about where it is headed.

One caveat on scale: the survey's participants skewed heavily Western, with only 6% from East, South and Southeast Asia, so the figures should not be read as proof the global industry is shrinking. At Gamescom's dev keynote earlier this year, 1Up Ventures' Amir Satvat suggested around 750,000 people work in games worldwide, noting that China's employment is often undercounted, and argued the industry is net positive on headcount since 2022, with jobs shifting from North America elsewhere.