“Gamers are tired of sequels, spin-offs, and games-as-a-service,” says Raphael Colantonio, co-founder of Arkane Studios. “We need to adapt.” The visionary behind Prey and Dishonored explains why the video game industry is struggling.

The gaming industry is facing one of its toughest periods in history, with widespread layoffs, game cancellations, and studio closures. In just a few years, the landscape has shifted drastically, and financial uncertainty has driven publishers toward games-as-a-service models or “safe bets” like remasters, remakes, and sequels. Gamers are increasingly vocal about these issues, and even industry veterans are speaking out.

The Decline of the Gaming Industry

Among them is Raphael Colantonio, who recently shared his thoughts on X/Twitter about why the industry is in crisis, stressing that studios must listen to what players want. One key issue, he notes, is that “more games have flooded the market than ever before in recent years,” which is backed up by the staggering 18,000+ titles released on Steam in 2024 alone.

Another major problem fueling the industry’s decline is the ballooning budgets of AAA games. To put things into perspective, Marvel’s Spider-Man 2 reportedly cost over $300 million to develop, meaning it must sell millions of copies just to break even. This is an unsustainable model for many studios, especially as players grow increasingly disillusioned with games-as-a-service and predictable sequels.

“Gamers are fed up with sequels, spin-offs, and games-as-a-service,” Colantonio states, urging studios to “adapt.” In a follow-up tweet, he clarified, “Gamers are tired of generic sequels churned out by soulless corporations, loaded with microtransactions designed to squeeze every penny from them.” Now at the helm of WolfEye Studios, he stresses that the industry must evolve to survive—meaning studios need to rethink not only how they fund their projects but also how they engage with their audience.

Source: 3djuegos