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 emphasized that the tactics and expectations that guided developers and publishers throughout the 2010s have largely become obsolete. "There have been moments of pessimism, but overall the industry remains healthy," Jorjani remarked. "What’s changed is that the foundations of our assumptions have been upended.
The playbooks that served us from 2010 to 2020 simply don’t work anymore. The bottom line of every business case has vanished.
In the past we could at least guess a minimum sales figure for a title; now you have to subtract that number entirely. That’s the new reality." Several forces are driving this shift. One of the most visible is the continued rise of developers from the Asia‑Pacific region.
This year’s Gamescom Opening Night Live highlighted the capabilities of studios from China and South Korea, underscoring a trend that Jorjani says has been building for a decade but is now reaching a tipping point. "Asian games and companies have been making steady inroads into Western markets for ten years," he explained. "Now it’s game after game after game that’s breaking through." China, in particular, appears to have arrived at a watershed moment in terms of the quality and ambition of its output.
Jorjani noted that while the Chinese market remains heavily mobile‑centric—shaping the design sensibilities of its developers—the overall pace of production is accelerating, a trend he attributes in part to artificial intelligence. "The Chinese scene is definitely picking up," he said. "There’s still room to grow, but the sensibilities are evolving faster, especially as AI tools enable developers to iterate and ship titles at an unprecedented speed." Artificial intelligence, according to Jorjani, is the most disruptive technological wave the industry has seen in recent memory.
Unlike previous hype cycles such as virtual reality, AI is already altering development pipelines, content creation, and even market dynamics, making it difficult to predict where the industry will be in five or ten years. He also highlighted a stark cultural divide in how the West and the East approach AI.
"In the West, the conversation revolves around ethics, data ownership, and artistic integrity," Jorjani observed. "In the East, there is far less hesitation—developers simply adopt AI because it works. It’s akin to the IT world where everyone has shifted to AI‑driven coding without moral qualms." He added that Western developers are experiencing an "existential crisis" because they must reconcile their artistic identity with software that can now be generated by algorithms.
"We’re slower to adopt, but the uptake will inevitably happen," he concluded. Beyond technology, the sheer length of AAA development cycles remains a major obstacle to agility. Large‑scale projects often span five to six years and involve multiple studios across different time zones. This reality has pushed many Western publishers to lean on established franchises rather than invest heavily in new intellectual property.
"Long cycles mean you need a very safe bet," Jorjani explained. "Brand recognition is the only real risk mitigator. If you launch a title under a known name, players know what to expect, which reduces uncertainty." He illustrated this point with the phenomenon of "analysis paralysis"—the overwhelming flood of new releases that makes it hard for consumers to decide what to try next. Familiar franchises like Worms provide a shortcut: players instantly understand the experience, even if the game isn’t groundbreaking.
Data from Steam Replay 2025 shows that roughly half of all playtime is spent on titles older than 18 months, indicating that gamers often gravitate toward familiar, proven experiences rather than untested new IPs. Jorjani praised Arrowhead’s own fortunate breakthrough with Helldivers, describing it as a mix of luck and a "secret sauce" that made the game both recognizable and distinct.
He also cited companies such as Riot Games and Supercell, which juggle multiple projects simultaneously; when one hits massive success, the others can fade into obscurity. This environment, he argued, offers a strategic advantage to indie developers. "The secret to a successful game is early validation," he said.
"The sooner you can show something to a real player and receive positive feedback, the quicker you can iterate and improve." Indie studios often operate on much shorter cycles and share progress openly—posting GIFs, screenshots, or short videos that generate community buzz. Jorjani recalled the indie hit Tiny Glade, which exploded in popularity after early GIFs went viral week after week. In contrast, a four‑year AAA development timeline forces studios to wait until the final product is polished before launching a massive marketing push, missing the benefits of early community input.
Arrowhead intends to incorporate this indie‑style validation into its next project. The studio is experimenting with a mobile‑game‑like approach: presenting concepts to players early, often through ad‑style snippets, and measuring which ideas resonate.
Jorjani described a plan to give a select group of 100 Helldivers veterans early access, then survey their preferences for themes such as aliens versus other sci‑fi tropes. By comparing responses from this targeted group to a broader control group, Arrowhead hopes to gauge whether the game hits the right niche before committing extensive resources. "We want to make games for a specific connoisseur, not just any action fan," he said. "Early testing lets us confirm we’re on the right track, rather than waiting two years to discover we missed the mark." In summary, Jorjani’s message is clear: the old playbook—long development cycles, reliance on big brand names, and cautious rollout—must be abandoned in favor of rapid iteration, early community validation, and a willingness to embrace disruptive technologies like AI.
While the West may lag behind the East in adopting AI, the industry as a whole is moving toward a more fluid, experimental model where indie studios can thrive and established developers must adapt or risk obsolescence.