H1 2022 Gaming Industry Report & Other News
Game Development Trends 2022
Perforce published a report on the ‘2022 Game Development Trends & Forecast’, for which they surveyed 300+ professionals in the game dev industry.
Which Game Development Platform will Grow the Most by 2025?
Streaming is expected to grow by 40%.
Customers are increasingly demanding to play their favourite games on whichever system they want to use.
Streaming helps gaming move forward faster with less reliance on hardware which in turn makes it more accessible to those who otherwise couldn’t play without an expensive console or PC build.
Mobile by 24%.
Metaverse by 18%.
This is in alignment with Microsoft Gaming CEO Phil Spencer’s prediction that console-exclusive games are “something we’re just going to see less and less of”. In an interview with Bloomberg, he positioned that games being made available on multiple systems is better for the long-term health of the industry.
Sentiment on Different Gaming Technologies’ Impact by 2025
49% of developers said NFTs would either have no impact or minimal impact.
Explanations as to why included: no understanding as to how they benefit gamers; a way for big gaming studios to make more money with no added value to customers; concerns over environmental sustainability.
37% say the metaverse (defined in report as a “network of 3D virtual worlds”) will have some impact.
75% said AR/VR will have some impact and 33% said it will have a major impact.
What will likely keep it from being mainstream will be a lack of availability, accessibility and affordability.
Biggest Trends in Game Development by 2025
Moving to a subscription-based model
Xbox Game Pass counted over 25 million users in April 2022, up from 18 million back in January 2021.
“The increase in subscription model game development as a replacement to free-to-play game models. We are seeing major publishers work to achieve exclusivity rights to IPs in the game libraries they offer for a subscription fee.” – Anonymous Respondent
Increase in indie studios
“I think the big push towards open source and Epic Games’ involvement in supporting small studios will play a large role in pushing Unreal and other game engines, further eroding AAA studios and moving production to small groups.” – Anonymous Respondent
GameFi Industry Report 2022
CoinMarketCap and Footprint Analytics released a report delving into the performance of the nascent GameFi industry from January to July 2022, examining which blockchains, tokens and games to keep an eye on for H2 2022.
Key Takeaways from H1 2022:
Mainstream hype during the bull market has not been a good indicator of sustainability or future success.
Both Axie Infinity, the first crypto game to become a household name with all of its news coverage, and STEPN, the first move-to-earn title, came and went.
Alien Worlds and Splinterlands, two titles that are unheard of outside the GameFi space, now dominate.
A dominant, go-to chain for GameFi projects has yet to emerge. It's too early to predict long-term leaders.
The 2 largest GameFi chains by number of transactions WAX and Hive are still hugely reliant on the success of Alien Worlds and Splinterlands users, respectively, which comprise 54.55% and 99.85% percent of their total gamers.
Developers are increasingly aiming to create multi(block)chain ecosystems.
Animoca Brands has said that its soon-to-be-launched AAA title, Phantom Galaxies, will be a multichain experience.
With its subnet technology, Avalanche aims to make it easier for games to build out on multiple chains (i.e., their own network on AVAX infrastructure).
Here is a great summary thread:
You can read the full report here.
Gamescom Showcases New Gaming IP
Dune open world survivor MMO.
Atlas Fallen, a sci-fi fantasy action-RPG from the developers of Lords of the Fallen and The Surge.
Wyrdsong, an open-world RPG and debut project from new studio Something Wicked Games, created by former Bethesda lead Jeff Gardiner.
Where Winds Meet, a supernatural action-adventure, open world game which allows players to explore medieval China.
Scars Above, a sci-fi horror game set on a hostile alien world.
+ so many more
Ready Player Me closes $56M Funding Round
Led by Jon Lai (@Tocelot) from a16z Games Fund One and Chris Dixon (@cdixon) from a16z Crypto with participation from Roblox, Twitch, Fractal, King Games founders and more.
“Ready Player Me exists to break down walls to build a more connected virtual world. We are the avatar interoperability layer for the metaverse.”
“We've spent eight years building avatar tech, so they don't have to. Our tools give developers a world-class avatar creator they can integrate in days. […] We believe that building an open marketplace of avatar assets (with the right economics for developers) will increase the market size for everyone involved and will create a much better end-user experience.”