The games industry has been in a spot of bother for a while now. Layoffs, canceled projects, and underwhelming returns have become commonplace, and a higher-up at Google believes AI, of all things, could be crucial in facilitating a turnaround.
Jack Buser, now the global director for games on Google Cloud and previously the global director of games on Google Stadia, discussed the state of things with GamesIndustry.biz. "Once you start to look underneath the surface of what's going on in the industry, you realize like, oh my gosh, we are in trouble," he says, touting rising development costs and a stat suggesting more than half of players are happily enjoying games over six years old.
