As the gaming world keeps changing with the economy, tech advances, and new ways to make money, the Game Developers Conference (GDC) 2025 became the perfect spot for industry leaders to pause and share ideas. The event, which ran from March 17 to 21, 2025, gave us a better idea of where the industry is now and what’s coming next.
In this article, we’re sharing the biggest takeaways from three well-known names who attended GDC 2025: Ismael Jorge Soler from Yodo1, Alex Bubb from Samsung Electronics, and Ben Wibberley from Digital Age Quality Assurance.
Each of them brought their own perspective, from publishing and tech to game quality, and offered useful insights on both the struggles and the exciting opportunities ahead for the gaming space.
Ismael Jorge Soler
IP Licensing BD Lead at Yodo1
Ismael Jorge Soler spoke first about his licensing takeaways from GDC 2025. “Despite the industry’s overall state, licensors showed strong attendance at the event. I had more meetings with licensors this year than in previous years.” He added that the commercial landscape is clearly shifting.
“Studios are increasingly hesitant to offer royalties, viewing licensing as a gamble. They are less willing to share potential earnings from what they perceive as a risky investment.” He also observed that studios are approaching licensing with a more strategic purpose.
“More studios with prototypes are seeking licenses to strengthen their pitch to investors. This trend started last year but has significantly intensified, with licensors receiving more pitches than ever before,” he added.
When sharing his broader takeaways from the conference, Ismael pointed out that GDC felt smaller this year. “Attendance has noticeably declined over the years. This year, the show floor felt emptier, and finding seats in hotel lobbies once impossible was surprisingly easy.”
However, he emphasized that the quality of participants was higher, with fewer mid-level attendees and a strong executive presence. On the publishing front, he noticed a shift toward “Publishing Lean,” where publishers reduce upfront Minimum Guarantees but still offer support in other areas.
Summing up, Ismael reaffirmed that GDC remains a key event for the industry. He acknowledged ongoing concerns about attendance and location, but stated that the presence of decision-makers made it a productive experience. If licensing opportunities convert into deals, he believes this could be one of the most successful GDCs yet.
Alex Bubb
Gaming Partnerships Manager for Europe at Samsung Electronics
Alex Bubb reflected on the conference from a mobile gaming and partner engagement perspective. He explained, “Specifically relating to mobile, team Samsung was there to showcase some of the successes that partners had seen around the cloud channel on Samsung Mobile Gaming Hub, for example, Vizor seeing a 25% better D60 ROAS than on more traditional campaigns.”
Alex noted that GDC 2025 had a different feel this year, which felt different than previous GDC conferences. He noted that partners were generally now more open to exploring D2C, alternative app stores, new UA channels and new markets, which made for some interesting and engaging conversations.
He also mentioned that he noticed a shift in the attendance dynamics. “Attendance was definitely down for Game Developers, but I would say that Publishers were very well represented outside the halls themselves. A good range of informal mixers and the opportunity to network with high-level executives added to the experience,” he shared.
Overall, on the event, he reflected optimistically and said, “Certainly, I took away that new avenues for growth are still there with the right innovation” and concluded by saying the thinks “2025 can still be a fantastic year.”
Ben Wibberley
Founder and Managing Partner at Digital Age Quality Assurance
Ben Wibberley focused on the operational and production insights he gathered at the event. He began with an emphasis on efficiency. “Many hear from clients that they need cost savings, most mistake this for ‘drop your prices’. I do not believe this is the case.” Instead, Ben believes there are smarter paths forward.
“We waste so much time, effort, and money due to a lack of optimization that can be achieved through smarter practice and process, plus more effective use of tools and tech,” Ben noted.
He also highlighted the growing presence of specialized teams. “The rise of the boutique studio that act as partners and who are hyper-specialized in what they do. This compliments what we’re seeing with micro studios, games teams built on a small, key core who then work with specialized disciplines.”
He advocated for leaner development approaches, where he suggests Bootstrapping works; you don’t need to build big teams with ongoing costs. In closing, he said: “Feels like we’re at the bottom of the curve and starting to see movement back upwards, as is usually the case with economic cycles.”