Geoff Keighley couldn’t help but notice a bad year for game developers

Now, you can’t talk about how amazing 2023 was for the quality of the games that were released this year without mentioning how bad it was for the people who made it. But that’s exactly what Geoff Keighley did during this year’s Sports Awards.

Figures vary, but estimates are anywhere between Six and seven thousand workers have lost their jobs only this year. No level of room size or success was spared. And those who have been laid off are now forced to fight for a reduction in the number of vacancies.

“This is one of the most uncertain periods in the game industry in the last 15 years,” said Jakin Vela, director general of the International Game Developers Association. in an interview with Polygon.

To be clear, Geoff Keighley is not responsible for these layoffs, and layoffs are an unfortunate but normal part of this and many other businesses. But with Keighley’s situation, he has a responsibility to his audience to know the circumstances under which the games are held to celebrate his achievements. He had done it before.

In that same thread, he also recognized the strength and visibility of his position.

“I also know that we have a great foundation that can accelerate and inspire change,” he posted. “We are committed to that, but we must work together to create a better and more inclusive environment so that everyone feels safe to create the best games in the world.”

Throughout this year’s awards show, Keighley and the developers talked about the impact of video games on our culture and their powerful ability to change minds and expand ideas. (Since the organizers will allow the model to speak before playing them or, in one case, cut them off entirely.) Apparently, The Gameplay is about celebrating video games and the showing the achievements of the people who did it.

Video games are not made without people, and those people are suffering now in an unprecedented scale. Not remembering that, even after showing the strength of his position, is at best, dismissing the responsibility of his position if not cowardice. It’s an even more disappointing situation since Keighley has already shown that he pays attention to the wider field of video games beyond the launch of “world premieres” and with his partners – and the Muppets .