During the pandemic, publishers were touting live service as the future of game development, accelerating an already growing trend. Since then, many of those publishers that embraced live service have abandoned it. Is there a future for live service? Our latest GDC Insights report takes a closer look.
GDC Festival of Gaming is excited to unveil the latest GDC Insights report, “Redefining Live Service: From Monetization to Community.” Combining our State of the Industry data with expert interviews and GDC talk analyses, this report examines how game industry professionals who work in live service (or don’t) feel about its impact on players, creators, and games as a whole.
This report features exclusive interviews with some of today’s brightest minds and industry staples in live service gaming. This includes Owen Mahoney, former CEO & President of Nexon, a company that has been cited as developing the industry’s first microtransactions. We also chatted with consultant Scott Hartsman on monetization, Sugar Games Lab founder Keisha Howard on creative burnout, Game Data Pros CEO Bill Grosso on today’s challenging job market, and more.
Topics include the world of mobile and core (PC and console) live service, highlighting the similarities and differences between the two, along with what it takes to be successful in each of those markets. We also dive into the advances and disadvantages of going cross-platform, what managers can do to address developer burnout, and today’s live service job market—giving a candid take on what jobs are available and what applicants can do to stand out in the market.
Whether you’re thinking about entering the live service market, or have been part of it for years, this GDC Insights report is here to help answer some of today’s biggest questions and guide the way forward. Download our free report today.
And make sure to join us at the 2026 GDC Festival of Gaming in San Francisco this March 9-13, to learn the latest tips and techniques for succeeding in live service.