In 'Zoran's Update', experienced games manager Zoran Roso comments on current industry topics on LinkedIn. This time's topic: How the games industry deals with crises, or how it should deal with them.
In the video game industry, we have a romanticized view of "The Crisis." We tend to picture it like an action movie: A sudden explosion. A server crash on launch day. A critical engine failure one month before Gold Master. When these moments happen, the industry’s default reflex is speed. We rally the troops, order the pizzas, and try to sprint our way out of the burning building.
But after sitting down with Jean-Marc Broyer, a veteran who has navigated production at Ubisoft, EA, and Amazon Games, I realized we are diagnosing the problem completely wrong. Most studios aren't destroyed by explosions. They are destroyed by slow fires.
During our recent interview, I asked Jean-Marc about his "war stories" from managing massive teams and budgets. I expected tales of overnight disasters. Instead, he offered a counter-intuitive take on how production hell actually begins.
"Fires are rarely sudden," Jean-Marc told me. "They are almost always the result of small misalignments stacking up over time."
A crisis in game development is rarely a technical accident. It is usually a clarity debt. It’s the result of months of unclear ownership, unchallenged assumptions, and "hoping" a mechanic will become fun if we just add more assets to it. The fire didn't start when the milestone was missed. The fire started six months ago when leadership prioritized a deadline over a definition of "what good looks like."
Jean-Marc pointed to a specific culprit that fuels these slow fires: The Spreadsheet.
In an industry driven by hits and creativity, we have an obsession with predicting the unpredictable. We build P&Ls and greenlight decks that imply certainty where none exists. We promise specific ROI and retention metrics before a prototype has even proven it’s fun.
This creates a "False Certainty." Teams are forced to execute on a plan that was built on a guess. As production realities clash with that rigid plan, the friction creates heat. Eventually, that heat catches fire.
Here is the most valuable—and difficult—advice Jean-Marc shared for leaders facing a production crisis:
When the fire starts, do not speed up.
"Fires are rarely solved by moving faster," he said. "They are solved by seeing clearly."
When a project is in trouble, the instinct is to add headcount, increase velocity, and crunch. But if the root cause of the fire is a lack of clarity, adding speed only means you are running in the wrong direction faster.
If your team is burning out, the solution isn't to ask them to run harder. The solution is to:
1. Stop
2. Simplify
3. Enforce Clarity
You have to be brave enough to pause the assembly line to fix the machine.
The Bottom Line
As we look toward 2026, the studios that survive won't be the ones who can crunch the hardest. They will be the ones who refuse to tolerate ambiguity.
If you are a producer, a studio head, or a team lead, ask yourself: Where is the smoke coming from?
Are you sprinting because you have a clear destination, or are you sprinting because you’re afraid to stop and admit you’re lost?
Zoran Roso stands as a highly influential veteran of the video game and entertainment industry, with a distinguished career spanning over 25 years in global publishing, marketing, and leadership roles. His professional journey includes serving in significant executive positions at some of the world's most recognizable gaming giants, including Rockstar Games/Take 2 Interactive, Activision Blizzard, and Sony PlayStation, where he was instrumental in the marketing and strategic positioning of flagship AAA franchises and brands. Most recently, he leveraged this extensive experience as the Global Publishing & Marketing Director at Tencent Games, a critical role focused on expanding the company's international reach and developing successful go-to-market strategies for its massive portfolio of internal and partner studios.
Now operating as the founder of ZR Consulting, Zoran continues to drive success in the industry by advising major global publishers and developers. His firm specializes in crafting winning strategies for international brand development, optimizing live service performance, and executing flawless launch plans across all major platforms, including console, PC, and mobile. An active figure in the global games community, his career is marked by a clear strategic vision and a successful track record in translating complex products into global commercial successes.
Contact details:
ZR Consulting
eMail: [email protected]
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/zoran-roso/
