Shams Jorjani, the chief executive of Arrowhead Game Studios—the studio behind Helldivers 2—recently told GamesIndustry.biz at Gamescom that the video‑game sector is undergoing a profound transition. He argued that the playbooks that guided developers and publishers throughout the 2010s have essentially become obsolete.
"Sometimes there’s a sense of doom and gloom, but overall the industry is healthy," Jorjani said. "What’s changed is that the assumptions we built our business models on have been turned upside down.
The formulas that worked from 2010 to 2020 simply don’t work anymore. The bottom line has vanished from every old business case.
No one could guarantee a title would sell a certain number of copies, and now that number is effectively zero. That’s the new reality." Jorjani identified several forces driving this upheaval. One of the most visible is the continued ascent of developers from the Asia‑Pacific region.
This year’s Gamescom Opening Night Live, for instance, highlighted the capabilities of studios in China and South Korea, underscoring a decade‑long trend of Asian games and companies gaining footholds in Western markets. "There’s always been a gradual rise of Asian games and companies into the West," Jorjani explained. "It’s been happening for ten years, but now we’re seeing game after game after game that truly break through." China, in particular, appears to have reached a tipping point in terms of production quality. While the Chinese market remains heavily mobile‑centric—a factor that shapes design sensibilities—the overall polish and ambition of Chinese titles are accelerating.
Jorjani noted that artificial intelligence is amplifying this speed, allowing more games to be released at a faster cadence worldwide. The impact of AI, however, is perhaps the most unpredictable variable on the horizon. Jorjani compared AI to previous hype cycles such as virtual reality, but stressed that AI represents a structural transformation rather than a fleeting trend. He observed a stark cultural divide in how the technology is embraced: Western studios are wrestling with ethical considerations, data‑training permissions, and artistic integrity, whereas many Eastern developers appear to adopt AI without moral hesitation, focusing solely on functional outcomes.
"In the West we’re asking if it’s ethical, if companies should be allowed to train on certain data, and whether we should oppose it on ideological or artistic grounds," he said. "In the East, they simply don’t care. They’ve shifted to AI completely, because when you’re writing functional code you’re not trying to connect with human emotion the way you do with entertainment." Jorjani acknowledged that this philosophical split could lead to a slower uptake of AI in Western game development, but he expects the technology will eventually permeate the industry regardless of the initial resistance. Beyond AI, another major challenge is the length of development cycles for AAA titles.
Large‑scale projects often span five to six years and involve multiple teams across disparate time zones. This prolonged timeline makes publishers wary of investing in new intellectual property, prompting a reliance on established franchises that already enjoy brand recognition.
"When you have a long development cycle and a market that’s shifting, you need a very solid bet," Jorjani said. "The only thing that really mitigates risk at that level is brand and recognisability.
Players know what they’re getting, so you can offset that risk." He illustrated this point with the example of classic series like Worms, which have persisted for decades and provide a safety net for both developers and consumers. While new games may generate buzz, data from Steam indicates that a significant portion of player time is still spent on titles that are more than 18 months old. "People shout for new IPs, but they don’t actually buy them," Jorjani observed. "We tend to purchase remakes or sequels that we already trust." This environment, however, creates a strategic advantage for indie developers.
Jorjani highlighted that smaller studios can iterate quickly and obtain early validation from players, a practice that reduces uncertainty and allows rapid course correction. He cited the success of indie hit Tiny Glade, which gained momentum after early GIFs went viral week after week. In contrast, a four‑year AAA cycle forces teams to wait until the final product is complete before launching a massive marketing push, missing the benefits of early feedback. Arrowhead itself is adopting this indie‑style approach for its next project.
The studio plans to expose early prototypes to a curated group of Helldivers fans, gathering data on preferred themes, such as alien settings, to fine‑tune the experience before broader testing. Jorjani explained, "We’ll put the game in the hands of about 100 Helldivers players, ask them about their favorite IPs, and see how our concept resonates.
If they love aliens and enjoy Helldivers, we know we’re on the right track. This early validation helps us hit a specific niche rather than waiting two years for broad user tests." He concluded by emphasizing the need to abandon the old playbook of keeping a project under wraps for years and then unveiling it with a grand spectacle.
Instead, the future belongs to developers who can iterate openly, leverage AI responsibly, and tap into the growing influence of Asian studios while maintaining a clear focus on their target audience. This shift, Jorjani believes, will define which companies thrive in the rapidly evolving gaming landscape.