The Game Developers Conference (GDC) has published a new survey about the state of the video games industry. More than 3,000 developers and industry professionals shared their thoughts on the most popular platforms, revenue shares, and the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Key data from the survey
- PC remains a top platform in terms of developer interest, with 58% of respondents saying that they’re most interested in creating games for it. PS5 comes second (44%), followed by Nintendo Switch (38%), Xbox Series X|S (30%), and VR Headsets (27%).
- 21% developers make 100% revenue on PC/Mac/Linux, followed by Android (4%), PlayStation (3%), iOS (2%), and Switch (1%).
- Revenue share remains one of the biggest issues for developers. Only 3% called the 30% revenue cut a justifiable amount, while most respondents are ready to pay between 10% and 20% of their earnings to digital stores.
- 51% of developers use their company’s existing funds, with personal funds (30%) and external publishers (17%) being among the top 3 most popular answers. Only 10% of respondents use venture capital.
- 21% of developers are concerned that subscription services like Game Pass and Google Stadia will devalue individual game prices. 30% of respondents are confident that it won’t happen.
- Most developers work 40 hours per week or less. Only 4% of respondents work over 60 hours per week. 14% of developers admitted that management pressure caused them to work more, while 73% of respondents said that they crunched because they felt like they needed/wanted to.
- 44% of respondents admitted that their games have been delayed due to the pandemic. For comparison, 33% of developers chose this answer last year, so COVID-19 remains a huge factor in the video games industry.
You can download and read the full survey here.