How do game industry executives look back at 2025 and what do they think about 2026? We spoke to Jan Theysen, Owner, Co-founder and Co-CEO of King Art Games, to find out.
GamesMarkt: What is your verdict as you look back on 2025?
Jan Theysen: "The last few years have been difficult for the industry, but I believe we have finally turned the corner. I saw a lot more optimism at Gamescom this year. Turns out players still want to play games and publishers have realised they cannot simply shut down projects and studios if they still want to sell games in a few years. I think that too much money poured into the industry during and shortly after Corona and that this money was not always invested wisely. But just as the enthusiasm was exaggerated, the downward correction has also overshot the mark. I hope that the market will now return to more normal conditions, beyond investment frenzy and exaggerated expectations."
GamesMarkt: What are your predictions for the gaming industry in 2026?
Jan Theysen: "As the founder of an independent AA studio, this may sound a bit self-serving, but I hope that good AA games and smaller AAA games will continue to have room to shine. This year saw several successful games that offered players high quality and were developed for a reasonable budget. I hope that more publishers will focus on finding and supporting promising teams and projects - internally and externally. In my opinion, building good teams and retaining them in the long term is essential for working efficiently. Killing teams and projects left and right because some didn't have their costs under control will come back to haunt them."
GamesMarkt: How is King Art Games positioned for 2026?
Jan Theysen: "2026 will be the biggest year in our 26-year history. With Dawn of War IV, we will release our biggest project to date. The response to the announcement of the first two closed alphas has been overwhelming, and everyone here is looking forward to finally getting the game into the hands of more players. At the same time, we are continuing to develop our second major project, a 3rd-person shooter based on our own IP, and we look forward to finally being able to tell you more about it. We are in discussions about our next projects and are very pleased that we have not only come through this difficult period without major damage but will emerge from it stronger than ever."
King Art Games is an independent game developer with 25 years of experience in developing games for all platforms. Around 110 developers from all over the world currently work in several teams at the Bremen office. The studio is renowned for its games, including Iron Harvest (real-time strategy), The Dwarves (action role-playing game), The Book of Unwritten Tales 1 & 2 (adventure game), and Battle Worlds Kronos (tactical strategy game).
