We players haven’t had much to complain about this year. Big matches were splashing around our ears. In fact, it could all have been a little less. So many good games have been released that we couldn’t even finish many of them. Even more than 30 games scored 90 points or higher metacratic. Something that has never happened before. Overall, 2023 has been crazy. But did this atmosphere of benevolence also exist in the gaming industry? The painful answer is “no.” Anything but. JJ explains why in this video. As players, we can of course be very happy with a year like this, but there is also a dark side to the story. The least fun Christmas message to tell. Hence this work by JJ.

In terms of gaming, 2023 has been unprecedented for gamers

Of course, 2023 has not been miserable from a business standpoint. We’ve seen some amazing handheld launches, the Tokyo Game Show showed real signs of life, and the GTA 6 trailer recorded the highest number of views ever for a video on YouTube. It’s not as if gamers didn’t buy the games either. However, they did not do so in larger numbers than in previous years. This had unpleasant consequences, with rising production costs and stagnation. Think of the nearly 9,000 people laid off from the gaming industry this year.

The gaming industry saw 9,000 employees laid off in one year

What happened in the gaming industry this year? What events really stood out? JJ goes through the year month by month. It checks the stats when it comes to the number of games sold and sees where layoffs have occurred and why. We have already given you the conclusion: 2023 was a good year for gamers, but not so good for the gaming industry. This hurts, because we would have loved to see them rewarded for all the beautiful things they created.