{"id":1850991,"date":"2026-03-27T16:45:37","date_gmt":"2026-03-27T13:45:37","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/?p=1850991"},"modified":"2026-03-27T16:45:37","modified_gmt":"2026-03-27T13:45:37","slug":"john-and-brenda-romero-think-our-current-video-game-industry-crash-is-even-crashier-than-the-infamous-recession-of-the-1980s","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/?p=1850991","title":{"rendered":"John and Brenda Romero think our current video game industry crash is even &#8220;crashier&#8221; than the infamous recession of the 1980&#8217;s"},"content":{"rendered":"<article class=\"article \" data-ads=\"true\" data-article-type=\"news\" data-article-group=\"news\" data-paywalled=\"false\" data-premium=\"false\" data-sponsored=\"false\" data-type=\"article\">\n<header class=\"article_header\" data-component=\"article-header\">\n<div class=\"breadcrumbs\">\n<nav class=\"nav_breadcrumbs\" data-component=\"nav-breadcrumbs\" aria-label=\"Breadcrumb\">\n<ul class=\"nav-links\">\n<li>\n                <a href=\"https:\/\/www.eurogamer.net\/\" data-active=\"false\"><br \/>\n                      Home<br \/>\n                <\/a>\n            <\/li>\n<li>\n                <a href=\"https:\/\/www.eurogamer.net\/news\" data-active=\"false\"><br \/>\n                      News<br \/>\n                <\/a>\n            <\/li>\n<li>\n                <a href=\"https:\/\/www.eurogamer.net\/games\/doom\" data-active=\"false\"><br \/>\n                      Doom<br \/>\n                <\/a>\n            <\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/nav><\/div>\n<div class=\"headline_details\" id=\"main-content\">\n<h1 class=\"title\">John and Brenda Romero think our current video game industry crash is even &#8220;crashier&#8221; than the infamous recession of the 1980&#8217;s<\/h1>\n<p class=\"strapline\">Mighty Doom.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"headline_asset\">\n<figure class=\"headline_image_wrapper\">\n<p>        <img fetchpriority=\"high\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"headline_image\" src=\"https:\/\/assetsio.gnwcdn.com\/doom-not-stonks-final.jpg?width=570&amp;quality=85&amp;format=jpg&amp;dpr=3&amp;auto=webp\" alt=\"Custom header of stocks crashing down in crimson red, while two Doom guy's look very concerned. They are also wearing suits.\" loading=\"eager\" data-uri=\"doom-not-stonks-final.jpg\" data-lightbox width=\"570\" height=\"321\"><figcaption>\n          <span class=\"attribution\">Image credit: <cite>Eurogamer<\/cite><\/span><br \/>\n        <\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"metadata\">\n<div class=\"avatar\">\n<p>    <img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" alt=\"Connor Makar avatar\" src=\"https:\/\/assetsio.gnwcdn.com\/tAtwiaBo_400x400.jpg?width=2048&amp;height=2048&amp;fit=bounds&amp;quality=85&amp;format=jpg&amp;auto=webp\" style=\"aspect-ratio: 1\" width=\"374\" height=\"374\"><\/p>\n<p>  <img alt=\"Connor Makar avatar\" data-autosize=\"crop_lossy\" data-uri=\"tAtwiaBo_400x400.jpg\" loading=\"lazy\" style=\"aspect-ratio: 1\" width=\"374\" height=\"374\">\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"text\">\n<div class=\"byline\">\n                  <span class=\"article_type\" data-slug=\"news\"><br \/>\n                    News<br \/>\n                  <\/span><\/p>\n<p><span class=\"by\">by<\/span> <span class=\"author\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.eurogamer.net\/authors\/connor-makar\">Connor Makar<\/a><\/span>                    <span class=\"job_title\"><br \/>\n                      Staff Writer<br \/>\n                    <\/span>\n            <\/div>\n<div class=\"published_at\">\nPublished on <time datetime=\"2026-03-27T16:45:37+00:00\">March 27, 2026<\/time>              <\/div>\n<div class=\"comments\">\n      <a class=\"comments__link comments-bubble\" href=\"https:\/\/www.eurogamer.net\/john-and-brenda-romero-think-current-video-game-industry-crash-is-even-crashier-than-the-recession-1980s?view=comments\" rel=\"nofollow\"><br \/>\n          1 comment<br \/>\n      <\/a>\n    <\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"mypop-header-wrapper\">\n<p><button class=\"mypop-button button wide\" data-state=\"follow\" data-type=\"tag\" data-uuid=\"7675d439-3caa-4f0a-b86e-1f76730b75dd\" data-name=\"Doom\" data-follow-text=\"Follow Doom\" data-unfollow-text=\"Following Doom\" data-aria-follow-text=\"Follow Doom\" data-aria-unfollow-text=\"Following Doom\" data-popup=\"true\" data-force-login=\"true\" aria-label=\"Follow Doom\" title=\"Follow Doom\"><br \/>\n  Follow Doom<br \/>\n<\/button>          <\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/header>\n<div class=\"article_body\" data-component=\"article-content\">\n<div class=\"article_body_content article-styling\">\n<p>John and Brenda Romero &#8211; award winning game developers and founders of Romero games &#8211; have spoken about the state of the games industry following the radical downsizing of their Galway-based studio.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.gamesindustry.biz\/we-were-there-in-the-80s-for-the-crash-and-this-is-definitely-crashier-john-and-brenda-romero-reflect-on-the-industry-crisis\">Speaking to Gamesindustry.biz<\/a> ahead of the Dark and Doomy in Wakefield last week, Brenda Romero said the following: &#8220;I feel like the industry&#8217;s in a really horrible place. I mean, we were there in the 80s for the crash, and this is definitely crashier. There are so few people that have not been affected, or their partner&#8217;s affected, or they&#8217;re worried about being affected. It&#8217;s a really difficult time right now.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>During the early 1980&#8217;s, the American games industry suffered dramatically due to a flood of games on multiple systems that were deemed low quality. This on top of waning interest for consoles while personal computers rose in popularity resulted in substantial woes, which thankfully recovered with the introduction of the NES.<\/p>\n<figure>\n<div class=\"video_wrapper youtube\">\n<a aria-label=\"Empire of Sin: Make it Count - Official Release Trailer\" class=\"video-facade full-size\" data-platform=\"youtube\" href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/M7fCWUUDOzk?autoplay=1\" title=\"Click to play video from YouTube\"><br \/>\n<img decoding=\"async\" alt=\"Cover image for YouTube video\" class=\"video-facade__image\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/i.ytimg.com\/vi\/M7fCWUUDOzk\/hqdefault.jpg\"><span class=\"video-facade__title\">Empire of Sin: Make it Count &#8211; Official Release Trailer<\/span><\/p>\n<p><\/a>\n<\/div><figcaption>Here&#8217;s a trailer for Romero Games&#8217; last release: Empire of Sin.<a class=\"video\" href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=M7fCWUUDOzk\" rel=\"noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Watch on YouTube<\/a><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>John Romero pointed to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.eurogamer.net\/games\/battlefield-2025\">Battlefield 6<\/a> as an example of the dire state of the industry, telling Gamesindustry: &#8220;I don&#8217;t understand what that&#8217;s all about.&#8221; He pointed to the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.eurogamer.net\/battlefield-6-has-sold-over-seven-million-copies-in-five-days-data-analyst-company-claims\">high sales for the latest EA shooter<\/a>, and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.eurogamer.net\/ea-lays-off-staff-across-battlefield-studios-following-last-years-record-breaking-battlefield-6-debut\">the layoffs following this substantial success<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p><span class=\"injection_placeholder\" data-position=\"1\"><\/span><\/p>\n<p>Brenda and John&#8217;s studio, which is still in operation, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.eurogamer.net\/doom-creator-john-romeros-next-shooter-project-loses-funding-following-microsoft-cuts\">had its funding pulled as part of Microsofts sweeping cuts last year<\/a>. The studio <a href=\"https:\/\/www.eurogamer.net\/doom-creator-john-romeros-studio-not-closed-as-publishers-express-interest-in-saving-cancelled-game\">survived this ordeal<\/a>, and the shooter under-development <a href=\"https:\/\/www.eurogamer.net\/doom-creator-john-romeros-cancelled-shooter-has-been-saved-with-fresh-redesign-inspired-by-elden-ring\">was rescued too (albeit drastically redesigned)<\/a>. They&#8217;ve gone from a team of around 110 people, to nine developers, in the wake of a lengthy redundancy process.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"preferred-source\" data-component=\"preferred-source\">\nLove Eurogamer.net? Make us a <a rel=\"nofollow\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.google.com\/preferences\/source?q=https:\/\/www.eurogamer.net\">Preferred Source on Google<\/a> and catch more of our coverage in your feeds.  <\/div>\n<\/article>\n<div class=\"article_body\" data-component=\"article-content\">\n<div class=\"article_body_content article-styling\">\n<p>John and Brenda Romero &#8211; award winning game developers and founders of Romero games &#8211; have spoken about the state of the games industry following the radical downsizing of their Galway-based studio.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.gamesindustry.biz\/we-were-there-in-the-80s-for-the-crash-and-this-is-definitely-crashier-john-and-brenda-romero-reflect-on-the-industry-crisis\">Speaking to Gamesindustry.biz<\/a> ahead of the Dark and Doomy in Wakefield last week, Brenda Romero said the following: &#8220;I feel like the industry&#8217;s in a really horrible place. I mean, we were there in the 80s for the crash, and this is definitely crashier. There are so few people that have not been affected, or their partner&#8217;s affected, or they&#8217;re worried about being affected. It&#8217;s a really difficult time right now.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>During the early 1980&#8217;s, the American games industry suffered dramatically due to a flood of games on multiple systems that were deemed low quality. This on top of waning interest for consoles while personal computers rose in popularity resulted in substantial woes, which thankfully recovered with the introduction of the NES.<\/p>\n<figure>\n<div class=\"video_wrapper youtube\">\n<a aria-label=\"Empire of Sin: Make it Count - Official Release Trailer\" class=\"video-facade full-size\" data-platform=\"youtube\" href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/M7fCWUUDOzk?autoplay=1\" title=\"Click to play video from YouTube\"><br \/>\n<img decoding=\"async\" alt=\"Cover image for YouTube video\" class=\"video-facade__image\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/i.ytimg.com\/vi\/M7fCWUUDOzk\/hqdefault.jpg\"><span class=\"video-facade__title\">Empire of Sin: Make it Count &#8211; Official Release Trailer<\/span><\/p>\n<p><\/a>\n<\/div><figcaption>Here&#8217;s a trailer for Romero Games&#8217; last release: Empire of Sin.<a class=\"video\" href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=M7fCWUUDOzk\" rel=\"noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Watch on YouTube<\/a><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>John Romero pointed to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.eurogamer.net\/games\/battlefield-2025\">Battlefield 6<\/a> as an example of the dire state of the industry, telling Gamesindustry: &#8220;I don&#8217;t understand what that&#8217;s all about.&#8221; He pointed to the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.eurogamer.net\/battlefield-6-has-sold-over-seven-million-copies-in-five-days-data-analyst-company-claims\">high sales for the latest EA shooter<\/a>, and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.eurogamer.net\/ea-lays-off-staff-across-battlefield-studios-following-last-years-record-breaking-battlefield-6-debut\">the layoffs following this substantial success<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p><span class=\"injection_placeholder\" data-position=\"1\"><\/span><\/p>\n<p>Brenda and John&#8217;s studio, which is still in operation, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.eurogamer.net\/doom-creator-john-romeros-next-shooter-project-loses-funding-following-microsoft-cuts\">had its funding pulled as part of Microsofts sweeping cuts last year<\/a>. The studio <a href=\"https:\/\/www.eurogamer.net\/doom-creator-john-romeros-studio-not-closed-as-publishers-express-interest-in-saving-cancelled-game\">survived this ordeal<\/a>, and the shooter under-development <a href=\"https:\/\/www.eurogamer.net\/doom-creator-john-romeros-cancelled-shooter-has-been-saved-with-fresh-redesign-inspired-by-elden-ring\">was rescued too (albeit drastically redesigned)<\/a>. They&#8217;ve gone from a team of around 110 people, to nine developers, in the wake of a lengthy redundancy process.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Home News Doom John and Brenda Romero think our current video game industry crash is even &#8220;crashier&#8221; than the infamous recession of the 1980&#8217;s Mighty Doom. Image credit: Eurogamer News by Connor Makar Staff Writer Published on March 27, 2026 1 comment Follow Doom John and Brenda Romero &#8211; award winning game developers and founders [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[226,253],"class_list":["post-1850991","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized","tag-crawlmanager","tag-eurogamer-net"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1850991","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=1850991"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1850991\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=1850991"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=1850991"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=1850991"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}