GDC Europe survey finds devs flocking to PC, mobile

The European wing of the Game Developers Conference has unveiled the second annual European State of the Industry Survey, a study that suggests most European game developers see their future on the PC or mobile devices.

According to the survey, PC and mobile platforms boast the lion's share of active development projects. 58 percent of developers replying to the survey had PC projects in the works, while 65 percent were developing mobile games. On the console side of things, the PlayStation 4 holds a minor advantage over its Microsoft counterpart. 18 percent of those surveyed claimed to be working on PS4 games, while that number drops to 13 percent for the Xbox One. That gap may be widening though, as 33 percent of respondents believed their next project would appear on PlayStation 4 while only 23 percent said the same of the Xbox One.

Before you visit the comments, keep in mind, this survey is not an objective judgement on which hardware is best for gaming. GDC Europe did not just dictate that your iPhone is a better gaming machine than your PlayStation 4, or that your Xbox One has no value. These findings say nothing of technological quality, only where game developers feel they might be able to make money employing their skills.

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GDC Europe 2014 European State of the Industry Survey Shows Developer
Migration to PC and New Consoles

Survey Shows Rising Popularity of Crowd-funding,
Marks the Rise of Sweden as Europe's Top Development Hub

COLOGNE, Germany – July 8, 2014 – The Game Developers Conference (GDC) Europe has released the results of its second annual European State of the Industry Survey, which reveals trends around regional development hubs, tax incentives and platform preferences leading up to the start of GDC Europe in August.

The 2014 European State of the Industry Survey serves as the second in a series of yearly reports that offer insight into the evolution of the local video game industry prior to the start of GDC Europe 2014 in Cologne. Organized by UBM Tech Game Network, GDC Europe 2014 will run Monday through Wednesday, August 11-13 at the Congress-Centrum Ost in Cologne, Germany, co-located with Europe's biggest video game trade and public show, gamescom.

European developers continue to flock to PC and mobile
Top platforms for game development were once again PC and mobile. A full 58% of respondents are working on PC titles, and 60% expect their next game to be released on PC. In turn, 65% of those surveyed were currently working on mobile titles, with 64% planning to release their next title on mobile devices.

(These percentages are even higher than those pulled from respondents to the same question on this year's GDC survey, which surveys developers from across the North American game industry, indicating a continuing trend.)

PlayStation 4 leads, as new consoles gain developer buzz
Within new console hardware platforms, PlayStation 4 retains the lead as the most active platform, with 18% currently working on games for PS4, compared to 13% on the competing Xbox One platform. Projecting into the future, 33% of developers polled expect their next game to be developed on PlayStation 4, versus 23% for Xbox One.

Crowdfunding is gaining traction in Europe
While less than 10 percent of European developers use crowdfunding for their current project, a startling 41 percent of all respondents plan to use it for their future projects, showing crowdfunding's massive rise of importance for video games - even in Europe, where legislation often makes it trickier. For comparison's sake, roughly 11 percent of North American survey respondents said they accepted crowdfunding for their current project, up from 4 percent in 2013.

Sweden respondents' choice for premier European development hub
The 2014 survey saw professionals pick Sweden - home of Minecraft, the Battlefield franchise and Goat Simulator - as the premier current game development hub in Europe. The survey also shows the UK and Germany as expected to overtake Sweden as the region's top hub in five years time.

Tax Incentives Best in the UK
47% of respondents felt that the UK offers the best tax breaks for local game development, with Finland, France, Germany and the Netherlands tied for a distant second, with 9.5% of the votes each. Despite this, the UK is still seen - according to comments from many respondents - as inferior to Canada in regards to tax incentive programs, with Canada seen as a model for drawing talent domestically and from abroad.

The GDC Europe developer survey tabulates the responses and observations of more than 400 European games industry professionals who are readers of Gamasutra.com, have attended previous GDC events, or will be attending GDC Europe 2014.

In its sixth year, GDC Europe will again provide the essential pan-European perspective on game development and business trends throughout the continent by gathering the world's leading game industry professionals to discuss timely and relevant topics across platforms and disciplines.

For more information on GDC Europe, please visit http://www.gdceurope.com/

About the UBM Tech Game Network
A core provider of essential information to the professional game industry, the UBM Tech Game Network offers market-defining content, and drives community through its award winning lineup of print, online, event and research products and services. These include the Game Developers Conference®, the Webby Award-winning Gamasutra.com and network of sites, the Game Advertising Online ad network, the App Developers Conference™, the Game Developers Conference® Next, the Game Developers Conference™ Europe, the Game Developers Conference™ China, the Game Career Seminars and GameCareerGuide.com, the Independent Games Festival and Summit, and the Game Developers Choice Awards. Visit: www.jointhegamenetwork.com