6 months Ago
Sales Up, But Confidence Down
The Dutch gaming scene is still very much PC and online gaming, as well as applied or "serious" games for industries such as healthcare and law enforcement. The number of companies ticked up slightly, by 614, but employment slipped to 4,300 people, a loss of 269 jobs. The DGA further asserted that this decrease was a result not of layoffs but of companies growing out of the traditional definition of gaming.
Despite the growth in the industry, it also saw a large decrease in business confidence. Only 57 percent of gaming professionals believe that their company is thriving today, down from 78 percent three years ago. Only 22% are optimistic about the future, compared with 50% in the earlier poll.
The Fight for Funding, and the Death of Studios
The DGA blames the uncertainty on a wider slowdown in global gaming investment. Studios around the world are facing challenges carefully, with projects and timelines delayed or scaled back — and some even cancelled outright — over financing.
This financial pressure is not exclusive to small developers. Prominent Dutch studios like Ronimo Games and Paladin Studios have also taken a beating. Ronimo went bankrupt, and Paladin folded earlier this month as a result of long-standing financial struggles.
