PS5, Switch Game Dev Takes a Back Seat as 80% of Devs Focus on PC

The Game Developers Conference's (GDC) 2025 State of the Game Industry report reveals a significant trend: 80% of game developers are prioritizing PC game development. Let's delve into the key findings of this insightful report.

The 2025 State of the Game Industry Report

PC Dominates: 80% of Developers Target This Platform

GDC's January 21, 2025 report unveiled that a staggering 80% of game developers are focusing on PC game creation—a 14% jump from the 66% reported in 2024. While the exact reasons remain unclear, the report suggests the rising popularity of Valve's Steam Deck might be a contributing factor. Interestingly, although the Steam Deck wasn't a selectable platform option, 44% of those who chose "Other" specified the Steam Deck as a target platform.

Last year, the report already identified PC as the dominant platform, even with the emergence of user-generated content (UGC) platforms like Roblox and Minecraft, and the anticipation surrounding the Switch 2. This continued PC dominance, growing from 56% in 2020, is a persistent trend. While this trend suggests a surge in PC game releases, the upcoming Switch 2, with its enhanced graphics and performance, could potentially influence this landscape.

Live Service Games: A Third of AAA Developers Dive In

The report also highlighted that one-third (33%) of AAA developers are currently working on live-service games. Expanding this to all respondents, 16% are actively developing live-service titles, with another 13% expressing interest. Conversely, 41% showed no interest, citing concerns such as declining player interest, creative stagnation, predatory microtransactions, and burnout.

GDC points out "market oversaturation" as a major challenge for live-service games, with developers struggling to maintain sustainable player bases. Ubisoft's recent shutdown of XDefiant, just six months after launch, serves as a stark example of this struggle.

Underrepresentation in the GDC Report: A Note of Caution

A PC Gamer article on January 23, 2025, raised concerns about the underrepresentation of developers from various countries in the GDC report. Nearly 70% of respondents were from Western countries (US, UK, Canada, Australia), notably excluding major game development hubs like China and Japan. This skewed representation may limit the report's ability to fully reflect the global game development landscape.