Double Fine founder Tim Schafer says he no longer “understands the economics” of game development following Xbox’s mass layoffs and industry-wide studio closures.
It’s a rough time to be a game developer. Even if you’re behind some of the year’s most successful releases, you still aren’t safe from the chopping block; for example, staff who worked on Battlefield 6, which enjoyed a stellar launch last year, were axed after releasing the game to critical acclaim and resounding financial success.
Xbox, one of the biggest publishers and console developers in the business, is also in the midst of a huge restructuring, resulting in thousands of planned layoffs and the divestment of several game studios — studios that have been forced to downsize due to their resulting independent status.
Tim Schafer’s Double Fine was one of the studios that separated from Xbox as a result of its massive internal shuffle. Schafer has made no bones about gritting his teeth and doing everything he can to prevent his company from closing, and his latest remarks are a reflection of that determined attitude in the face of an increasingly inscrutable industry.
“I don’t understand the economics of making games to be honest,” Schafer told the BBC in a September 23 video interview. “I often for years thought I understood them, because there are layoffs, which is bad, and then the people who make games realize, ‘Oh, we need people to make games.’ The executives are like, ‘Oh, we fired everybody, we need some people to make this game,’ they hire them back, and then they… you know.
“So I always assume, ‘Oh, there’ll be this cycle of ups and downs, and ups and downs.’ But it’s been down for like, four years, and I don’t know why. I really don’t, because people are playing games, and people are making money, so I don’t know why there’s a big loss of jobs. I just assume it’s, like, someone is being greedy somewhere. But I hope it is a cycle, and I hope it bounces back.”
Schafer went on to say that the entire industry is volatile across both AAA developers and indie studios, alike, despite the high amount of creativity, ideas, and energy from workers in the space right now.
“I think there’s a lot of life and excitement and creativity in the games industry now, especially in the indie space,” he continued. “I’m not one of those snobs who says only indie games are creative. I think a lot of AAA games do a lot of great creative work.
سەرچاوەی فەرمی بە زمانی ئینگلیزی: https://www.ign.com/articles/double-fine-founder-tim-schafer-questions-economics-of-the-game-industry-amid-mass-layoffs-and-studio-closures
