Games Connection Asia Pacific 2026 hosted an array of talks charting the modern complexities of the video games industry. Some talks focused on what success looks like and how to create an award-winning game. Other presenters ruminated on what the future looks like and how to best prepare for the challenges ahead.
‘Myth-busting the games industry’, a talk by game developer and Gyld co-founder Emre Can Deniz, considered both sides of the coin, presenting a data-driven approach to understanding the challenges and opportunities currently facing game developers.
Here are all the key lessons we learned from this talk.
Myth-busting the games industry – quick links
Things feel scary, but the change isn’t as vast as suggested
Deniz opened his talk by suggesting it would cover darker topics than other discussions at GCAP, but there were also bright sparks of hope as he dived into his dataset and discussed his findings about the games industry.
‘Things are scary,’ Deniz said.
But per data collected by Gyld from a range of sources, including PC platform Steam, things in the industry aren’t as dire or as changed as they appear. Extrapolating from data, Deniz and his team have found there are more game players than ever and more daily online activity than ever – findings also backed by other sources.
Data cited in the talk outlined an annual increase in total global spending on video games by around 11.4%.
The real challenge is that most of the money made is being shared by a top handful of new games. Per data in the slides, around US$1 billion is being made by 10 games, while US$2.2 billion is being shared by 12,200 games.
The most popular games are making a lot of money and making up the majority of spending, but that doesn’t mean other games aren’t making money – they’re just sharing in a smaller pool, with more games competing for attention and player interest.
What success looks like in the games industry
Per Deniz, on average, around one in 21 games released hit a 90% positive rating on Steam and 1000 reviews from players. Around 50% of games made over US$100,000 in their first 90 days on sale.
That’s a fairly positive indicator about potential success but as Deniz explained, it’s not so simple to make money in this sector. Game developers must ‘know what they’re doing’ to get anywhere. That means relying on experience, which can encourage better reception and sales.
As Deniz said, the games audience is pretty receptive when it comes to games made with experience, by people who know what they’re doing. While perceptions suggest that gamers may be harsher now than ever before, Deniz outlined research suggesting this isn’t the case – and in fact, players are treating new games ‘kinder’ and sticking around for longer. Players are actually ‘less harsh’ overall.
Deniz also outlined that player tastes are unchanged overall, despite popular perceptions. Research has shown that tastes remain consistent over time, alongside core expectations. The challenge facing game developers is largely to meet those expectations, while also standing out in a crowded field of competitors.
‘Games must be above mediocrity,’ Deniz said.
Players have patterns of expectations that must be met, he said, and this emerges from heritage and understanding of genre. The core of any game is the promise made by developers, and this core promise is upheld by established game features, delivered ‘in a surprising and new way’.
Fulfilling the promise to game players
As Deniz said, the most successful games fulfil their promises. They conform to the expectations of genre, but allow room for excitement and fresh twists. The augmentations and points of difference are what ‘push boundaries’ for games and help them to reach beyond mediocrity. They also help to grow a loyal audience, as they see a point of difference couched within a welcome familiarity.
Another core point in Deniz’s talk was the value of fun, safe games. Deniz described these as a perfect fallback, and a way to help de-risk game development.
‘A fun core can be more successful than an innovative one,’ Deniz said.
Fun is safety, and it helps to tick necessary boxes and meet player expectations.
Concluding his talk, Deniz encouraged game developers to rely on their experiences and past knowledge more than on gut feelings or vibes, particularly in the modern era, with its many challenges to success.
‘You must build games with intent,’ Deniz says.
This, he said, was key to creating games that make an impact and are more likely to be successful in the long term.
