It's still grim out there, even if you aren't AAA: Industry report claims that 1 in 10 respondents were laid off in 2024—with 'narrative' roles taking the biggest overall hit

Chai, the protagonist of Hi-Fi Rush, sits slumped against a console with his eyes dulled.

2023 was one hell of a tough year for game developers, with over 16,000 layoffs happening across the industry—but hey, at least things are improving, right? You are now permitted to imagine me laughing nervously and looking very, very tired. 2024 was no stranger to shutdowns and layoffs like, say, the Microsoft carnage at Activision Blizzard. And, as this grim bloody summary by our own Wes Fenlon tabulates, around 15,000 were laid off in total which, while a smaller number, still smarts like hell.

But it's not just the AAA market that's been feeling it. A recent "State of the Industry" survey by GDC (that's the Game Development Conference) dug up some similar findings among its respondents which, weirdly enough, are mostly indie developers: Namely, that 1 in 10 of them were laid off.