GDC's State of the Game Industry report for November 2026 reveals widespread distress across game development. The survey of industry workers, drawing from a pool of 900 laid-off developers, found that 68 percent of those laid off from AAA studios lost their jobs in the past year. Among the unemployed, 27 percent have submitted 100 or more job applications, and 54 percent remain without work.
Generative AI adoption is rising in studios. Forty percent of surveyed professionals now use generative AI tools in their work, up from 36 percent last year. However, 55 percent of game industry professionals believe generative AI is having a negative impact on the industry, unchanged from last year's 54 percent. Workers in quality assurance and community support expressed the most unfavorable views at 76 percent, followed by game design and visual and technical arts at 65 percent each, and audio at 57 percent. Thirty-five percent said the impact is mixed, while eight percent reported a positive impact.
Overtime is common. Fifty-three percent of surveyed workers report working over 40 hours weekly, with 13 percent working 51 hours or more per week on average.
The report indicates most surveyed workers agree generative AI should remain limited to non-creative uses only.