Saber Interactive, one of the biggest video game companies, says that it is now making games in other countries outside of North America.
Saber Interactive's Tim Willits recently shared a few words that reflect the sobering state of the games industry for interactive entertainment's biggest-spending region, which is that companies are simply moving the bulk of their games development operations out of North America, likely due to unpredictable economics like higher costs of living.
Popular Now: Xbox CEO Asha Sharma spends hours personally responding to support ticketsIn a recent interview with GamesIndustry.biz, Willits says that Saber Interactive currently has "no real development in North America any more." Saber's HQ is still there, GI.biz reports, but the group is mostly handling development across other regions like Serbia, Armenia, Spain, Sweden, and even Australia.
Willits says publishers and devs should be smarter with where they choose to make their games:
"We are not afraid of any territories. Some publishers are afraid to work in territories they don't understand, but we're like, let's go, let's find some people that are talented, let's give them what they need, and let's make awesomeness. You don't need to be in California to be a brilliant programmer or artist or animator."
As to how many people currently work at Saber, or how big the group actually is, that number seems a bit nebulous; Saber's site apparently used to list 3,500 people, and estimates put the number at around 3,000 people, however Saber's site now only lists that it has 15 studios.
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It's unclear when, or if, the situation will shift and game development swings back to the West after so many decades of prevalence.
