The games industry is undergoing major shifts in how it manages profits, development costs, and staff. In short, companies expect to make more money now, spend less, and feel less beholden to the team members who create the games they sell. It’s a bleak time for folks working in games, and you have to wonder when the breaking point arrives. One recent example is Gears of War E-Day, a game I really enjoyed, but apparently cost nearly half a billion dollars to develop. That works fine if you’re GTA 6 and plan to make that money back, but early sales figures for the Xbox-exclusive aren’t strong. Let’s take a deeper look at what’s happening.

Firstly, let’s walk through the reporting that led us here. The Verge first reported that Gears of War E-Day sold only 400,000 copies. Building on reports of the game’s development and launch, Kotaku published a story on the $500 million price tag to develop E-Day. Then, Bloomberg’s Jason Schreier corroborated the costs around the 21:40 mark of a recent YouTube video. This discrepancy between development costs and early sales points to something bigger happening in the industry. Things are more expensive to make than ever, and play for consumers. As costs rise on both ends, one wonders where the limit might be.

As we eye the beginning of a new console generation sometime in the next 3-5 years, consoles will cost more than ever. Xbox in particular is rumored to be looking at multiple peripherals, including a handheld. That said, after years of failing to hook players into its ecosystem at the same rate as PlayStation, and with games like E-Day underperforming, the company needs a massive reset. It’s undergoing one now with CEO Asha Sharma. Still, the reset truly means layoffs, restructuring, and if E-Day is any indicator, a return to game exclusivity. With returns like this, however, Xbox might literally not be able to afford keeping its games off PlayStation and other consoles.

How do you see this all playing out for Xbox and the industry at large? Let us know your take on where things are heading in game development in the comments.

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