A new report has revealed the number of companies and employees in the German games industry has fallen in the last year “after years of growth.”
The decline was announced by The German Games Industry Association (game) on July 23, 2025, and is based on data from gamesmap.de in cooperation with Goldmedia.
According to this data, the number of game publishers and developers in Germany has dropped 4% in the past year, to 910, of which 454 are exclusively developers, 52 are publishers, and 404 cover both areas.
In addition, the number of employees at games companies in Germany has seen a 2% decline over the last year, with worker numbers falling from 12,408 in 2024 to 12,134 as of May 12, 2025.
This drop follows several years of growth for the German games industry, with a boom in start-ups fuelled by the introduction of the German Federal Games Funding Programme in 2020.
Since this funding programme, and despite the overall decline, the number of game companies in the country has risen by 46% since 2020. The German games industry has also seen a 23% rise in workers from 2020 to 2024.
In the press release announcing this data, game states that this boom “has now completely subsided,” with 2024’s figures indicating a slowdown.
According to game, the decline in developers and publishers is “due in particular to the consolidation of the global games market and the unreliable availability of games funding to date in Germany.” The association claims that “three times” since 2020, there have been “months-long suspensions” placed on funding applications.
The release goes on to say that the current conditions for the German games industry, which “offer limited scope for planning” due to repeated funding restrictions and stoppages, are impacting the job market.
“Last year was another very difficult one for the German games industry,” Felix Falk, managing director of game, wrote in the press release revealing the findings. “Germany’s international competitiveness was further decreased by the ongoing flip-flopping of the games funding policy, which ran right into the consolidation wave that swept the global games sector.”
However, it seems steps are in place to curb this decline and “level the playing field for companies.”
“The future funding budget is to be increased and thus adjusted to actual needs, and applications can be submitted from August onwards,” Falk continued. “These are crucial growth impulses that are urgently needed. The additional funds will not only give companies more planning security, but also time to implement additional tax breaks for games, as set out in the coalition agreement between the CDU, CSU and SPD.
“The improved conditions will finally give games companies a boost, which will hopefully soon be reflected in more start-ups and the creation of new jobs.”
