Where are the 50 year old game developers?

[Scottt]

Most studios seem to be composed of developers whose ages range anywhere between their 20s to their 40s. But it's rare for working developers to be older than that. Not many people seem to reach retirement age as a game developer.

The "why" of this is easily guessed at, though it's not really what I'm wondering here. The common answer is "burn out," which again points toward the unhealthy working conditions of game development and the need for unionization in the industry. The ebb and flow of development cycles also forces workers to relocate to new studios and cities fairly often, rather than remaining with one studio for the duration of their career.

But for now, where do all of those people go? What kind of work do they transition into? Do you know of any stories of people changing their careers after game development?

 

[Phediuk]

Let me tell you about a guy named Hideo Kojima.

 

[Deleted member 10737]

isn't sakurai like 70?

 

[Lant_War]

isn't sakurai like 70?

Click to shrink...

He's eternal.

 

[Fularu]

Most studios seem to be composed of developers whose ages range anywhere between their 20s to their 40s. But it's rare for working developers to be older than that. Not many people seem to reach retirement age as a game developer.

The "why" of this is easily guessed at, though it's not really what I'm wondering here. The common answer is "burn out," which again points toward the unhealthy working conditions of game development and the need for unionization in the industry. The ebb and flow of development cycles also forces workers to relocate to new studios and cities fairly often, rather than remaining with one studio for the duration of their career.

But for now, where do all of those people go? What kind of work do they transition into? Do you know of any stories of people changing their careers after game development?

Click to shrink...

Game development takes a heavy toll on you, also the industry is rather still young so you won't find that many old people from the 80s (say, C64, spectrum, Amiga, CPC or ST games developers) but they're still around in some sort (for example DICE was created by Amiga demomakers if I remember right, same with Shin'en)

 

[Rex Dart: Eskimo Spy]

They go into management, mature into other industries with similar skillsets but less BS, and generally grow up.

 

[RockmanBN]

He's eternal.

Click to shrink...

He gets younger after every game.

 

[Eolz]

Most studios seem to be composed of developers whose ages range anywhere between their 20s to their 40s. But it's rare for working developers to be older than that. Not many people seem to reach retirement age as a game developer.

The "why" of this is easily guessed at, though it's not really what I'm wondering here. The common answer is "burn out," which again points toward the unhealthy working conditions of game development and the need for unionization in the industry. The ebb and flow of development cycles also forces workers to relocate to new studios and cities fairly often, rather than remaining with one studio for the duration of their career.

But for now, where do all of those people go? What kind of work do they transition into? Do you know of any stories of people changing their careers after game development?

Click to shrink...

Some are rich, some transitioned in an administration role, some are saying what future games should be like...
Some are all three.

 

[Jackano]

Maybe moving to management, maybe in other IT or movie industries?
My current boss was a developer, and now have his own video game studio (obviously).
My most aged co-worker is still developer at 43, and isn't the kind of guy seeking for more responsabilities.
That's just the thought I can give about that.

 

[Deleted member 10737]

He's eternal.

Click to shrink...

i meant in his current reincarnation

 

[chezzymann]

They left at ~35 after working in the games industry for ~10 years cause they couldn't take crunch anymore and are now in a more typical office career job

 

[7threst]

They're either go into management, retire or found the secret to eternal youth and are called Sakurai.

 

[Dremorak]

The average amount of time anyone stays in the industry is 5 years. FIVE YEARS.
That should tell you all you need to know.

I've been in it for 7.5 years, at this point I'm a dinosaur.

 

[sanstesy]

Lot of them are in management. Basically all past directors at Nintendo for example are producers/higher-ups now.

 

[thomasmahler]

How many developers do you actually know?

My point is, this industry is pretty good about keeping talent obscure, probably so that the wages don't explode. I know quite a few folks that are 50+ that still dabble away on games, they're just not well known. Most developers aren't, even if they were the creative minds behind big hits.

 

[AxeVince]

Most leave the hell of game dev after turning 35.
I am a dev and people above 40 in the studios around me are a rarity mostly because even though it became better, 5-10years ago and before it was all about crunch and it did not go well.

 

[KiNolin]

I can only think of old ones, i.e. all the famous ones like Warren Spector, Peter Molyneux, Nintendo's entire old guard, Mikami, Ed Boon, Sakaguchi, Matsuno,...

 

[Mad]

https://gdcvault.com/play/1024944/Failing-to-Fail-The-Spiderweb

Jeff Vogel 26+ years in the industry and still going

The entire thing is fun to watch and a great explanation/look into the industry

 

[8bit]

At Rockstar. They were in their 20s last week though.

 

[FlawlessCowboy]

They're still around, usually in management positions.

Think about it. 30 years ago, a game took like 5 people to make. Now they take 150 people. The people who've been working in games since the 80s and 90s are just outnumbered by younger people because of the explosion in team sizes over the last 15 years or so.

 

[theotherMittens]

isn't sakurai like 70?

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He's 48, along with Hideki Kamiya and Fumito Ueda. So we just have to wait two more years and then we'll finally have three fifty-year-old game devs.

 

[stinkyguy666]

Lorne Lanning is 54 and still kicking around. Pretty sure Sherry McKenna is too but I could be wrong.

 

[saenima]

In less exploitative pastures.

 

[Slam Tilt]

They go into management, mature into other industries with similar skillsets but less BS, and generally grow up.

Click to shrink...

This. If you're still directly hands-on-keyboard after that age, you're either an independent developer doing it for fun, or you've seriously pissed off someone somewhere. Anyone with that level of experience would be tasked to supervise and advise the junior developers.

 

[PepsimanVsJoe]

How many developers do you actually know?

My point is, this industry is pretty good about keeping talent obscure, probably so that the wages don't explode. I know quite a few folks that are 50+ that still dabble away on games, they're just not well known. Most developers aren't, even if they were the creative minds behind big hits.

Click to shrink...

This.

 

[HighFive]

At Rockstar. They were in their 20s last week though.

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Lol

 

[carlosrox]

He gets younger after every game.

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The tears of gamers keeps him young.

 

[Stouffers]

Probably mature out of the toy biz.

 

[Tempy]

Jeff Minter is 56.
John Romero is 50.
etc.

And there are plenty of other, lesser-known devs doing their thing.

 

[Becks']

Aonuma is 55 and he is still making Zeldas. Yuji Horii is 64 and he just released Dragon Quest XI. But I guess it is just Japan. I know Warren Spector is still around, making System Shock 3.

 

[MikeProtagonist]

Read Retro Gamer. They have tons of interviews with old developers who have usually transitioned to lead roles somewhere or just left the industry to do some tech startup or another.

I talked with the original DICE at one point. They're all spread out into other companies at this point or doing their own things. Markus Nyström stuck around up to Mirror's Edge but I think now they're gone.

 

[pswii60]

Jeff Minter is 56.
John Romero is 50.
etc.

And there are plenty of other, lesser-known devs doing their thing.

Click to shrink...

Ken Levine 52.
Dave Jones 52.
Yu Suzuki 60.
Miyamoto 65.

OP, what exactly do you mean "developers"? Producers, directors, artists, programmers, designers?

The game industry has changed dramatically since the 80s/90s: you didn't have 500 people working on a game back then. Many of people working in that environment would likely hate today's environment and either left the industry, or been promoted in to more senior role.

 

[Damaniel]

80 hour weeks might work when you're 25, but nobody wants to do that shit when you're 45, let alone 55.

Most of the examples of 50+ 'game developers' listed so far are in architectural/managerial/technical lead roles (rather than front line development roles), or run their own studios (which allows them to keep whatever hours they want). In either case, they're generally not the ones hunched in front of their PCs for 100 hours a week trying to keep to their management's unreasonable time/schedule demands.

 

[blastprocessor]

Retired well that's what i'm doing at 50.

 

[Platy]

At Rockstar. They were in their 20s last week though.

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this is both hilarious xD
and the reason why it is so rare =/

 

[Billy Awesomo]

Aren't most people at Nintendo at least 50? I know they have younger devs but pretty sure a lot of their best devs are like 50 and up. Same with Companies like Square-Enix and so forth I thought? no?

 

[Gakidou]

Probably mature out of the toy biz.

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Bruh that's not how that works, they dont employ actual children to make products for children.


I think there's a decent and growing amount of 50+ year old devs. The industry was just SO MUCH SMALLER in the 80s. A lot of the old guard do end up going into teaching and software though. There's certainly something to be said for the high pressure (and low avg pay) of many disciplines in the industry, but there's also a wave of demand for lecturers and producers with real industry experience as a result of the industry's growth in the last 30 years. I've been around 10 years and I might plan to stick around till retirement. At which point I plan to become a titty streamer. xxGAMERGILFxx you heard it here first.

 

[Hydrus]

They probably got sick of game development and left.

 

[lazygecko]

Check out Matt Barton's interviews if you want to see what the old codgers of the industry are up to. Mostly going to be computer focused as that's where all the American and European talent was in the 1980's.

 

[Fall Damage]

They're still around, usually in management positions.

Think about it. 30 years ago, a game took like 5 people to make. Now they take 150 people. The people who've been working in games since the 80s and 90s are just outnumbered by younger people because of the explosion in team sizes over the last 15 years or so.

Click to shrink...

This was my initial thought.

It will be interesting to see how games change once the industry's growth slows down and the work force collectively ages.

 

[Deleted member 5535]

You can encounter many of them in the japanese industry, not so much on western. Many of them are now producers/directors and in high positions

Aren't most people at Nintendo at least 50? I know they have younger devs but pretty sure a lot of their best devs are like 50 and up. Same with Companies like Square-Enix and so forth I thought? no?

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The most known yeah, but there's people on high positions in their 30s and 40s as well in Nintendo, much like in other jp companies.

 

[Scottt]

Ken Levine 52.
Dave Jones 52.
Yu Suzuki 60.
Miyamoto 65.

OP, what exactly do you mean "developers"? Producers, directors, artists, programmers, designers?

The game industry has changed dramatically since the 80s/90s: you didn't have 500 people working on a game back then. Many of people working in that environment would likely hate today's environment and either left the industry, or been promoted in to more senior role.

Click to shrink...

I purposely meant it as a general, encompassing term, but specifics might have been more helpful. A lot of the examples others have mentioned here are people who have graduated to the role of producer/group management, and likely started in the industry when teams were much smaller and working conditions were much different. There are always exceptions of people who stay with one studio for, say, twenty years or so.

I wanted to ask the question because those management roles are very few in comparison to the hundreds and thousands that can work on a given game if it's developed by a large studio. Out of hundreds, not all will graduate to higher positions or stay on in the industry for the length of time that people like Levine or Aunuma have, and I'm always curious about where they end up.

 

[CaviarMeths]

Horrid work conditions drive most people out of the industry by 40, I guess.

 

[Richietto]

Probably retired as to not deal with the bullshit of the video game industry.

 

[Scottt]

How many developers do you actually know?

My point is, this industry is pretty good about keeping talent obscure, probably so that the wages don't explode. I know quite a few folks that are 50+ that still dabble away on games, they're just not well known. Most developers aren't, even if they were the creative minds behind big hits.

Click to shrink...

Personally, I only know a few, each of whom no longer works on games. One now works in IT, one is a teacher, and the other does freelance web development.

But your thought is a good one. The faces that perform interviews or presentations for a company might usually be on the younger side, but aren't necessarily representative of the studio as a whole.

 

[PepsimanVsJoe]

80 hour weeks might work when you're 25, but nobody wants to do that shit when you're 45, let alone 55.

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Even at 25 you're taking a big risk doing 80 hour weeks.
I know a game developer who was diagnosed with collagen disease back in 1992. Imagine going to your doctor in your mid-20s and they're telling you you have maybe a year and a half to live.
Thankfully he was able to recover, though he was bedridden for over a year.

 

[Yasuke]

Not crunching for 100 hours, that's where.

 

[Jaded Alyx]

Most studios seem to be composed of developers whose ages range anywhere between their 20s to their 40s. But it's rare for working developers to be older than that. Not many people seem to reach retirement age as a game developer.

Click to shrink...

Have you heard of Japan

 

[Ravelle]

Kojima's 250 but you can barely tell.

 

[Kurdel]

It's a feature of the game industry, not a bug.