🎙️ Game Developer Conference (GDC) 2024 Recap

We discuss key themes, GDC Talks, key takeaways, and rumors from the best games conference of the year!

Mar 30, 2024

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Last week was GDC, my favorite games conference of the year, and it was filled with insightful events, panels, and random meetups that provided so many insights into what’s currently happening in the games industry.

I recap key learnings and themes from GDC this week with a few friends.

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Speakers:

Matthew Kanterman. Director of Business Development at Supersocial.
Joseph Kim. CEO at Lila Games.
Kenneth Landen. Director of Product at Hit Factor.
Brett Nowak. CEO at Liquid & Grit.

All right, this week, I gathered some game industry folks to discuss their experiences and learnings from the Game Developers Conference (GDC) 2024.

The wide-ranging discussion hit on four main areas:

Key Themes & Trends:

VC investment and publisher deals are down significantly, with investors being more cautious
Studios are focusing more on live ops vs. new game development to drive efficiency
Game development processes are moving towards much tighter efficiency with greater discipline, auditing, and more granular milestones
Most likely, we see more pain coming over the next 3-6 months with additional layoffs and game business rationalization
UA deterioration since the beginning of the year
AI is a huge area of focus and excitement, though practical applications are still emerging
Web3 gaming remains niche for now, with questions around long-term sustainability

Top GDC Talks:

Supercell's "Frank Squared" talk on removing loot boxes from Brawl Stars was a highlight
King's AI talk showed practical uses of AI/ML to improve live ops efficiency
Epic's Unreal Editor for Fortnite (UEFN) talks generated buzz, though monetization remains a question

Key Takeaways:

AI will be transformative, possibly as impactful as the Internet, so ignore it at your peril - further, exponential growth means that huge changes are coming very fast
UA and marketing are critical and an increased focus, back to being one of the three pillars alongside product and live ops for mobile game success
Private networking events and relationship building remain one of the most valuable parts of GDC

Rumors & Gossip:

Several studios are currently being shopped; some smaller struggling studios that we can guess, but also larger ones that seem to be doing well
Gearbox considered a management buyout before being acquired by Take-Two, the current market likely indicates an inability to raise debt financing
Crypto gaming remains active underground, with some big raises and token sales

Overall, GDC 2024 showcased an industry in transition—grappling with a tougher economic climate while investing in new technologies and business models to drive the next wave of growth and innovation in games. The discussions at the conference reflected the challenges and opportunities facing game makers today.

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