"This is the worst crash we've seen since the 1980s," says Tim Sweeney
Epic Games CEO Tim Sweeney and other industry experts warn that the gaming industry is facing a 'Crash 2.0' due to rising development costs and hardware component shortages. The surge in AI investment is driving up prices for essential components like RAM and storage.
Why it matters
The competition for hardware resources between the AI sector and the gaming industry could significantly impact the future of game development and consumer hardware availability.
Industry experts speak to Edge magazine's Alex Spencer about how the industry is facing "Crash 2.0"
Contributing editor Alex Spencer spoke with nine experts in issue 428 for their views on "Crash 2.0", and what the future might hold for the industry.
Sweeney noted the industry faces "internal dysfunctions," such as the high cost of AAA game development , and outside challenges including the ongoing component shortage .
"It's an unexpected, severe disruption," he said, in reference to the component crisis. "There's an unprecedented wave of investment in building AI systems and data centres, based on the belief that they're going to have a really transformational role in the economy, and the scale of the economic opportunity there means they can outbid the entire entertainment industry for all the components."
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