Disney Laying Off 700 Workers from Interactive Unit

[xie]

You are entitled to your opinion, I am going on what I am reading and being told by people in the industry.

The overall opinion is that gaming has crested and is fading. now I am not saying it's all going away, there will always be some gamers. However, fewer people will be needed to service what is still going to be around. As you said if Apps are the only thing growing, you don't need people to design games systems and you don't need people to design games for individual systems. A game is designed for all the apps.

The bottom line is you need much fewer designers.

AKK

I hear you, but we'll have to agree to disagree. I have hundreds of friends and former coworkers who are still in the industry, and thriving.

Just to give you an impartial reference, here's a recent Gartner press release regarding a white paper on gaming industry sales growth. It's not dying. It's growing every year. The only changes are that the pie slices (types of games being sold) grow and shrink and redistribute as different technologies (PC, console, phones, tablets, etc.) come into play (no pun intended). Human beings will NEVER stop playing games.

http://www.gartner.com/newsroom/id/2614915

 

[tjkraz]

You are entitled to your opinion, I am going on what I am reading and being told by people in the industry.

The overall opinion is that gaming has crested and is fading. now I am not saying it's all going away, there will always be some gamers. However, fewer people will be needed to service what is still going to be around. As you said if Apps are the only thing growing, you don't need people to design games systems and you don't need people to design games for individual systems. A game is designed for all the apps.

The bottom line is you need much fewer designers.

AKK

A few random points:

1) Xbox One and Playstation 4 are selling new consoles at a pace MUCH faster than their predecessors did 7-8 years ago. I couldn't find a figure after a quick search but I think it's around 50% more consoles over same time period for Xbox and even better for Sony.

2) If you read any numbers on retail game sales (monthly figures are published by NPD), these figures do not include digital game sales. That market is also growing at a very brisk pace.

3) Microsoft and Sony have opened-up their platforms to independent studios such that pretty much anyone with a tax ID number and a mailing address can get free digital tools to publish their own game. Both console makers have cited dozens of independents currently designing games for their consoles.

4) Smartphone & tablet gaming is still an expanding platform as more and more users are buying this technology.

5) Amazon, Google and probably Apple are on the verge of creating their own console gaming systems to compete with the likes of Sony and Microsoft.

All of that said, Nintendo's current console--the Wii U--has been a major disappointment. Sony's Playstation Vita handheld has also underperformed.

Some have suggested that console gaming is entering its death throes as smartphones and tablets generate more and more revenue. But if so, it hasn't been reflected in PS4 and Xbox One sales yet. Even Nintendo's DS handheld systems are selling very well, despite being the closest parallel to tablets and smartphones.

There will always be studios opening / closing / merging / being acquired or sold, but right now the overall gaming industry appears to be VERY healthy.

 

[frank430316]

Read in the paper that of the 700 laid off, over 400 were from Playdom (Marvel Alliance, Disney CityGirl), which only had about 700 employees to start with.

 

[jeffbear]

2) If you read any numbers on retail game sales (monthly figures are published by NPD), these figures do not include digital game sales. That market is also growing at a very brisk pace.

This. I have a lot of friends in the industry and live in a gaming software development hub, and what I'm hearing is that the part of the industry that's contracting is the big ticket huge platform games. There are less opportunities for those as the costs for development go up and the large game houses focus on updating existing game franchises that have proven successful.

What's growing is the smaller, independently developed games ... many of which are downloadable. That segment of the market is on fire and growing.

And that's not exactly Disney's cuppa tea, now is it? They'll stick in the industry but rely more on subcontracting out development. Which is fine so long as they manage quality control.