This year’s Game Developers Conference (GDC) began on Monday, March 18 at the Moscone Center in San Fransisco. This five-day event has been successful so far, as it is being praised heavily for offering game developers a platform to address an issue that the industry is dealing with at present.
The gaming industry has been battling a layoff wave for the past few months. A lot of the workforce was let go by several game companies, which include big names like Riot Games and Unity Technologies. Moreover, it also led to the closure of many game studios. Hence, it was truly a breath of fresh air when developers at GDC 2024 were allowed to express themselves openly without being kicked off the stage for exposing big corporations.
The GDC awards are where it’s at. I know and have interacted with half the presenters, everyone has said something about the layoffs, they’re allowed to say what they need to say without being kicked off stage. It’s all about the awards and coming together as industry workers.
— Corey “Big Slice” Strobbe (@BigSliceGaming) March 21, 2024
All the developers who attended the event were given the opportunity to say what they wanted and weren’t forced to leave the stage, unlike The Game Awards 2023. There was a lot of criticism against TGA authorities for prioritizing announcements, and not giving game developers enough time to speak.
Right? No ads. Only developers celebrating each other. And I’m here for it.
— Corey “Big Slice” Strobbe (@BigSliceGaming) March 21, 2024
the callout on things needing to be more accessible was awesome to see
— chase (@Pyvetal) March 21, 2024
Naturally, with GDC having more developers than media personnel or fans, the audience loved how most called out issues in the industry and focused on things that needed to be more accessible. It was a welcoming change as the event put the devs in the limelight instead of banking on new game announcements or commercials.
What is the Game Developers Conference or GDC?
The Game Developers Conference, better known as GDC, is an annual event hosted for video game developers. This multiple-day event includes an expo, networking events, and awards shows. Moreover, many industry veterans also host roundtables on topics related to programming, design, management, and visual arts.
Among the various events, there are award shows like the Game Developers Choice Awards (GDCA) and the Independent Games Festival (IGF). However, instead of gathering votes from fans, the various game developers attending the event get to select the winners for these awards. Incidentally, Baldur’s Gate 3 was named the best game at GDCA 2024.
The highlight of this annual event is the space it provides for video game developers to come together and celebrate games. Apart from brainstorming and learning from each other, the developers also get to talk about the issues in the gaming industry, like the 2024 edition specifically addressed the ongoing layoffs across the industry.
