2023 was an exciting year for the gaming community, full of major releases, but the gaming industry itself is facing major challenges.
Cost cuts and redundancies at many game studios threaten to affect the production of new games in the coming years. This effect is expected to become noticeable in around two to three years, which could lead to a phase of six to twelve months in which fewer new games come onto the market.
Despite the current drought in game releases, the expected launch of Rockstar Games’ open-world game GTA 6 in 2025 is coming into focus as it is seen as particularly significant for the future of the industry.
Industry analyst Mat Piscatella, who works at Circana (formerly NPD Group), expressed concern about the outlook for the games industry in 2024, with forecasts predicting a 2 to 10 percent drop in overall spending. The uncertainties surrounding hardware and game content, along with questions about who will develop the games, contribute to a general lack of clarity.
Surprise successes such as “Palworld” and “Helldivers 2” have provided positive momentum, but without further hits it could be difficult to match the previous year’s sales figures, which were largely driven by the blockbuster Hogwarts Legacy. With most of the highly anticipated games not appearing before 2025, the situation for 2024 looks bleak.
Nevertheless, Piscatella remains optimistic about the future prospects, especially because of the enormous potential of GTA 6 in 2025. According to him, this game could become perhaps the most important release for the industry ever, attracting a new wave of interest and many new buyers. Piscatella emphasizes the unique importance of GTA 6 for the gaming industry and sees it as an opportunity for a significant revival of the market.
