One quarter of all game developers now creating mobile titles

Twenty-five percent of game developers are now building titles for the mobile platform, up from 12 percent just a year ago, according to Game Developer Research's new 2009/2010 State of Game Development Survey. Almost three quarters of the 800-plus videogame professionals surveyed who are creating mobile properties are targeting Apple's iPhone and iPod touch devices, a percentage more than twice the reported support for traditional handhelds like the Nintendo DS and Sony PSP. By comparison, just over 70 percent of respondents are developing at least one game for PC or Mac (including browser and social games), up slightly from the previous year, with 41 percent working in consoles--69 percent of console developers are targeting Xbox 360, followed by 61 percent for PlayStation 3. Only 30 percent are developing for the Wii.

Citing ongoing economic strife and resulting layoffs, Game Developer Research notes that many experienced developers are now heading their own small studios, or have begun developing games on their own. While the proportion of developers at companies of 500 or more employees slipped 2 percent year-over-year, the number of developers employed by companies of 50 employees or fewer increased 7 percent.

For more on the Game Developer Research survey:
- read this release

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