The Publisher Perception Report – a landmark study of mobile game developers released by Sandsoft – reveals an industry that’s ready to move on from the gloom that has dominated recent years, with 81% of mobile developers working on new titles. 51% of those surveyed say the current wave of layoffs is mostly over, while 83% of respondents have managed to raise capital to help develop, launch or market a mobile game.
While the game developers surveyed are bullish about their future prospects, they’re far from oblivious to the challenges they face. Among developers who are working on new titles, just 9% have progressed as far as the soft launch stage. Almost half (49%) anticipate further significant layoffs, 44% attribute the layoffs primarily to overhiring and mismanagement, while 67% are concerned for their own job security. When it comes to the publishing landscape, 27% of respondents feel publishers take more than they give due to concerns about unfavorable deal terms and revenue share, or loss of creative control.
The research, conducted among 454 senior developers in US, Spain and France, revealed Latin America is seen as the most attractive emerging market to publish games into, while Southeast Asia is felt to be producing the best homegrown content. 93% of developers say it’s important to localize and culturalize gaming content.
More findings from The Publisher Perception Report:
New games now: 81% of experienced mobile game developers are working on at least one new title. 83% have raised capital to help develop or market a mobile game.
Publisher pain vs gain: 34% of mobile game developers say publishers provide a valuable service. On the other hand, 27% of mobile game developers feel publishers take more than they give. Developers who have previously worked with a publisher give the collaboration an average performance rating of 7.7/10.
Choosing a publisher: The deal terms on offer are the single most important factor in publishing deals, cited by 39%. 87% of mobile game developers say it’s important that their publishing partner has a diverse team.
Hyper hybrid: Hybrid-casual is viewed as the most viable type of game in the current market (43%) followed by casual (34%). Just 15% feel it’s hypercasual.
Market challenges: Access to talent is most regularly cited as the industry’s biggest challenge despite huge layoffs. There is little consensus, however, with issues such as saturation and discoverability, rising UA costs and difficulty raising capital also cited.
Layoffs: When it comes to job losses, experienced developers are split as to whether they’re largely over (51%) or will continue (49%). The majority are concerned for their jobs and see unionization as a positive.
