The Impact of Layoffs on the Gaming Industry Over the Past Two Years

The gaming industry has been heavily impacted by mass layoffs over the past two years, with the effects still being felt. To better understand the situation, we analyzed the layoffs in Europe during 2023-2024, focusing on the professionals who were hit the hardest, how long it took them to find new jobs, and the impact on their income and working conditions. Our primary data source is the Big Games Industry Employment Survey 2024, conducted in Spring 2024 and presented at the Devcom conference in August 2024. The survey gathered over 1,800 responses from game industry professionals, with the majority being mid-level or higher specialists. Additionally, 19% of respondents had over ten years of experience in the gaming industry. The survey revealed that 21.6% of respondents reported experiencing layoffs, with 15% having found new jobs by the time of the survey and 6.2% remaining unemployed. The recovery process varied by seniority, with senior professionals finding new jobs relatively quickly, while mid-levels and juniors faced more challenges. The specializations most affected by layoffs were artists, QA specialists, and HR/recruitment professionals, who struggled to find new jobs quickly. Salaries for QA and HR/recruitment professionals also declined in 2024 compared to 2023, largely due to limited job opportunities and the need to accept less favorable offers. The survey also found that more than half of respondents who changed jobs in 2023-2024 found new positions in less than three months. However, 12.3% took between six months and a year to find a new job, while 8.1% reported searching for over a year. Juniors were the most vulnerable group, with nearly half taking more than six months to find a new job. Top-level experts and senior leaders demonstrated faster job searches, with 62% finding new roles in under three months. However, 25% of them reported taking over six months to secure their next position, likely due to their ability to carefully select roles that meet their expectations and requirements. The survey highlights the challenges faced by QA specialists, artists, and HR managers and recruiters in their job searches. QA specialists had the hardest time, with nearly half spending over six months looking for a new job, and 26% searching for more than a year. A total of 10% of respondents left the gaming industry during the wave of mass layoffs, with the highest percentage being among juniors at 31%. This exodus of young talent is slowing the industry's growth and hindering its ability to benefit from fresh, innovative ideas. According to the survey, 44% of specialists who changed jobs in 2023-2024 saw an increase in salary and/or career advancement, while 24% ended up in lower positions and/or with reduced salaries. Before the crisis, job changes often led to salary increases and career growth, but the new data reveals that mass layoffs have disrupted this trend. In 2023-2024, 25% of mid-levels and 26% of seniors reported accepting lower salaries and/or positions at their new jobs. Juniors faced unique challenges, with 36% accepting less favorable conditions after switching jobs. We spoke with a laid-off employee from a large game studio, who shared their experience of finding a new job after six months. They emphasized the importance of networking and personal branding in the job search process. Sasha Kononenko, recruitment lead and partner at Values Value, shared her observations on the changes in companies' hiring approaches and candidates' negotiation strategies. Companies are setting high standards and expecting finalists to meet those requirements 100%, while candidates are concerned about the stability of potential employers. To protect themselves from endless job searching, Kononenko suggests focusing on personal branding and building a network of potential hiring managers, industry experts, and interesting people who can offer expert advice or connect them to the right contacts. By doing so, individuals can increase their chances of finding a new job quickly and being prepared for worst-case scenarios.