Research

Report: Use of Game Engines Is Expanding Beyond Gaming

• By John K. Waters
• 08/19/24

Game development technology is being utilized beyond its traditional gaming roots, according to the recently released annual "State of Game Development" report from development and DevOps solutions provider Perforce Software.  

According to the report, more than 50% of the 576 global respondents to a survey are now using real-time game engines—such as Unreal, Unity, and Godot—for projects outside the gaming industry. These include applications in the automotive industry, manufacturing, education, architecture, and virtual production.

The survey compiled data from practitioners, senior management, and executives in gaming, media and entertainment, automotive, and manufacturing organizations in 64 countries to take a deeper look at the widespread adoption of game technology, the company said.

"The report's findings on game engine use aligns with the unprecedented adoption of game technology we've seen in other industries," said Brad Hart, CTO and VP of Product Management of Digital Creation at Perforce, in a statement. "I really credit the game developers. They have pioneered versatile workflows, around a set of foundational tools, that streamline collaboration and manage complexity at a global scale."

The report, conducted in partnership with IDE maker JetBrains, underscores the versatility of game development tools in addressing challenges across various industries, Hart said. With game developers historically at the forefront of innovation, their tools are now being adapted to support complex environments and facilitate collaboration across distributed teams, capabilities that are increasingly in demand outside gaming, according to the two companies.

"We see a huge opportunity in generative AI, especially in the game development segment following the recent breakthroughs of AI applications in both the development process and in-game mechanics," adds Vladislav Tankov, Team Lead of JetBrains' AI group.

Among the notable findings, more than 65% of respondents reported using AI tools in their work, with ChatGPT being the most popular choice at 47%. The top challenges identified by survey participants include securing funding (36%), improving collaboration (21%), and finding time for innovation (21%).

The biggest obstacle to effective collaboration, according to 38% of respondents, is the difficulty in moving large files, surpassing concerns about remote working. Additionally, a lack of talent (51%) and aggressive timelines (33%) were cited as significant barriers to innovation.

The report also sheds light on the evolving job market, with 98% of managers ranking the "ability to learn new skills" as the most important trait when hiring new team members. Interestingly, access to senior leadership was valued more highly (90%) than the ability to work remotely (81%).

For the full 2024 State of Game Development report, visit the Perforce Software site here.