Abstract:
The "State of the Game Industry in November 2026" survey report recently released by the Game Developers Conference (GDC) shows that generative artificial intelligence (AI) still causes significant differences within the game industry. The survey covered more than 2,600 game industry practitioners from different functional departments, covering topics such as the current status of industry layoffs, re-employment rates after resignation, and the future direction of the industry.
Data shows that a total of 40% of game practitioners surveyed said they have used generative AI in their daily work. In terms of specific positions, commercial operations or service positions have the highest utilization rate, reaching 63%; marketing and public relations personnel follow closely, with a utilization rate of 51%; and program development positions, 48% of practitioners integrate generative AI into their daily work.
There are obvious differences in the popularity of AI applications in different types of studios and game categories. Independent game studios that have been operating for a long time have relatively low acceptance of AI, with only 29% of respondents confirming their use; among practitioners engaged in buyout paid game development, the AI usage rate is only 32%. In contrast, the AI usage rate in free-to-play (F2P) games is as high as 58%, and the AI usage rate among mobile game studio employees reaches 70%. At the level of internal corporate policies, 23% of the respondents said that their studios explicitly prohibit the use of AI, only 1% of companies mandate its use, 17% of studios encourage the use of AI tools, 12% allow employees to make their own decisions, and 11% of studios discourage it.
Among the surveyed practitioners who have used AI in their work, 57% said they use it frequently every day. Looking at specific application scenarios, 72% of AI users use it for text generation, 62% for code generation, and the proportions for image generation and video generation are relatively low, at 22% and 7% respectively.
Although generative AI has been widely used in various game studios, the overall attitude of practitioners is still pessimistic. The survey results show that 55% of the respondents believe that AI will have a negative impact on the video game industry, 35% of the respondents have a mixed and ambivalent attitude, and only 8% of practitioners believe that it has brought positive effects. Supporters believe that this technology can help improve development efficiency, reduce production costs, and reduce boring and repetitive chores; while practitioners who are opposed and worried point out that AI may not only replace human jobs, but also weaken human emotional expression in game creation, and eliminate creativity in the game design and development process.
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