Who works at a game studio

Sources

• Take-Two Interactive Software, Inc. Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended March 31, 2026 (Item 1, Business; Human Capital: full-time employees and those focused on product development) · Take-Two Interactive Software, Inc., 2026
• Are Our Best Days Behind Us or Ahead of Us? (Supercell's CEO on its independent game teams, February 15, 2022) · Supercell (Ilkka Paananen), 2022
• GDC 2026 State of the Game Industry reveals impact of layoffs, generative AI and more (survey of more than 2,300 game industry professionals) · Game Developers Conference (GDC), 2026
• Press Release: The IGDA and Western University Release 2023 Developer Satisfaction Survey (777 respondents, May to October 2023; published May 2, 2024) · International Game Developers Association (IGDA), 2023
• Occupational Outlook Handbook: Special Effects Artists and Animators (jobs in 2025, pay in May 2025, projections 2025-35) · U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, 2025
• O*NET OnLine: 27-1014.00 Special Effects Artists and Animators (tasks and work context) · O*NET, U.S. Department of Labor, 2026
• O*NET OnLine: 15-1255.01 Video Game Designers (tasks) · O*NET, U.S. Department of Labor, 2026

Every number

• 12,909sec.gov ·2026 · Take-Two's full-time employees at the end of March 2026 (its Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended then).
• 9,998sec.gov ·2026 · Take-Two's full-time employees "focused on product development" at the end of March 2026 (its Form 10-K).
• 77%sec.gov ·2026 · Worked out: 9,998 ÷ 12,909, rounded. Take-Two's full-time employees focused on product development, end of March 2026.
• 50 peopleexample (example number: Our example studio: a studio making one mobile game that gets a new update every few weeks.) · Our example studio: a studio making one mobile game that gets a new update every few weeks.
• 3 peopleexample (example number: Our example studio: producers.) · Our example studio: producers.
• 6 peopleexample (example number: Our example studio: game designers.) · Our example studio: game designers.
• 14 peopleexample (example number: Our example studio: artists and animators.) · Our example studio: artists and animators.
• 14 peopleexample (example number: Our example studio: engineers.) · Our example studio: engineers.
• 6 peopleexample (example number: Our example studio: testers.) · Our example studio: testers.
• 3 peopleexample (example number: Our example studio: live ops and community.) · Our example studio: live ops and community.
• 4 peopleexample (example number: Our example studio: the shared business team: marketing, money, hiring and pay.) · Our example studio: the shared business team: marketing, money, hiring and pay.
• 5 peopleexample (example number: Our example studio: the smallest version, a studio just starting out.) · Our example studio: the smallest version, a studio just starting out.
• 20–35 peoplesupercell.com ·2022 · The size of Supercell's teams for its live games, as its CEO described them in 2022.
• 2,300gdconf.com ·2026 · Game industry professionals who answered GDC's 2026 State of the Game Industry survey ("more than" this many).
• 28%gdconf.com ·2026 · Share of respondents to GDC's 2026 survey who were laid off in the past two years. People who chose to answer.
• 33%gdconf.com ·2026 · Share of respondents in the United States to GDC's 2026 survey who were laid off in the past two years.
• 777igda.org ·2023 · People who answered the IGDA's 2023 Developer Satisfaction Survey.
• 28%igda.org ·2023 · Share of respondents to the IGDA's 2023 survey who said their job involved crunch time.
• 25%igda.org ·2023 · Share of respondents to the IGDA's 2023 survey who worked long or extended hours not classified as crunch.
• $50,980/yearbls.gov ·2025 · Median yearly wage for all US occupations, May 2025 (BLS).
• $102,030/yearbls.gov ·2025 · Median yearly wage for special effects artists and animators, May 2025 (BLS). Wage and salary workers only.
• $127,670/yearbls.gov ·2025 · Median yearly wage for special effects artists and animators working at software publishers, May 2025 (BLS).
• $58,600/yearbls.gov ·2025 · The lowest-paid tenth of special effects artists and animators earned less than this, May 2025 (BLS).
• $177,110/yearbls.gov ·2025 · The highest-paid tenth of special effects artists and animators earned more than this, May 2025 (BLS).
• 0%bls.gov ·2025 · Projected change in jobs for special effects artists and animators, 2025 to 2035; BLS calls it little or no change.
• 4,200 openings a yearbls.gov ·2025 · Openings for special effects artists and animators projected each year, on average, 2025 to 2035, mostly to replace people who leave.
• 63%bls.gov ·2025 · Share of special effects artists and animators' jobs held by self-employed workers, 2025 (BLS).
• 60%onetonline.org ·2026 · Share of special effects artists and animators who answered O*NET's work-context survey whose typical week is more than forty hours.
• 12 triesexample (example number: Our example: how many tries the sword should take to earn.) · Our example: how many tries the sword should take to earn.
• 9 winsexample (example number: Our example: wins in those tries for a typical player.) · Our example: wins in those tries for a typical player.
• 3 lossesexample (example number: Our example: worked out: 12 tries minus 9 wins.) · Our example: worked out: 12 tries minus 9 wins.
• 40 coinsexample (example number: Our example: coins for winning a level.) · Our example: coins for winning a level.
• 8 coinsexample (example number: Our example: coins for losing a level.) · Our example: coins for losing a level.
• 360 coinsexample (example number: Our example: worked out: 9 wins × 40 coins.) · Our example: worked out: 9 wins × 40 coins.
• 24 coinsexample (example number: Our example: worked out: 3 losses × 8 coins.) · Our example: worked out: 3 losses × 8 coins.
• 384 coinsexample (example number: Our example: worked out: 360 coins + 24 coins.) · Our example: worked out: 360 coins + 24 coins.