It may not please game developers who are still clinging to consoles, but in the State of the Game Industry 2025 report surveying the opinions of over 3,000 game developers from the Game Developers Conference (GDC), 80% indicated that they are currently developing games on PC. This marks a significant increase from the previous year’s survey, which stood at 66%.
Developers who specified that they are working on games for consoles such as PS5 accounted for 38%, Xbox Series X|S at 34%, and Nintendo Switch at 20%. Another intriguing platform is web browser games, with 16% of respondents showing interest, up from 10% last year.
The popularity of PC game development is believed to be influenced by various factors, such as the popularity of portable gaming devices like the Steam Deck (with a notable 44% responding “Other” as there was no direct Steam Deck option in the survey), as well as the accessibility and affordability of game development tools on PC compared to consoles.
33% of developers in the large AAA studio group, roughly a third, indicated that they are currently focusing on developing live service games, demonstrating continued interest in this genre despite some developers noting a decline in player interest in new games within this category.
Layoffs in the gaming industry remain a prevalent issue, with 11% of respondents stating that they had been laid off in the past year, and 29% acknowledging that they had seen colleagues being let go. Among different professions in the industry, those involved in narrative aspects faced the highest rate of layoffs at 19%.
Source – GDC, Techspot
**TLDR: The game industry is seeing a shift towards PC game development, with a majority of developers focusing on PC rather than consoles. Live service games continue to be popular, but layoffs within the industry remain a significant concern. Interest in web browser games is on the rise, indicating evolving trends in the gaming landscape.**
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