Why Washington State Is A Gaming Industry Hub
Read on to find out why Washington State is one of the biggest gaming industry hubs.
Author:Elisa MuellerReviewer:James PierceMar 22, 2023101 Shares2.1K Views
Over the past few decades, Washington State has become a very important hub for the gaming industry in North America. With hundreds of thousands of developers flocking there every year, it is no surprise that gaming is now one of the things Washington is most famous for. In fact, Washington is now the go-to state for gaming in the United States, and it is only getting bigger.
High-speed internet
Whether you want to develop the Best Online Casinoanyone has ever seen, or you want to create a cute indie game, you will need the internet. While Washington State doesn’t have the fastest internet in the United States, it is still more than good enough and very affordable.
Work opportunities
The early establishment of Washington as a gaming industry hub led to an explosion in work opportunities. Over 30 major developers are headquartered in Washington, as well as dozens more small and indie developers. This means that because more people have moved to Washington due to its gaming roots, more developers are then created, existing companies are expanded and yet more jobs are created.
Indie game scene
While having a massive concentration of developers is great, not everyone is going to get a job at Valve or Nintendo. This is another area where Washington excels, as it also has a bustling indie developer community.
This subsection of the gaming industry has enabled even more developers to enter the space, creating an even bigger pool of talent with which to grow gaming in the state.
Career security
Job security is another major reason why Washington became, and has remained, a gaming industry hub. If you are talented in any way, you will always have a job as a developer and be able to stay in Washington.
This job security has encouraged further growth of the industry in the area because so many people come to Washington, but very few leave.
Concentration of talent
Another factor that reinforces the idea of Washington being a gaming industry hub is the massive pool and depth of talent. If you want a game made, you go to Washington; if you want to find a bright young developer, you go to Washington.
Washington could very easily be viewed as the Silicon Valley of gaming, as it has all the talent in the world to do and create almost anything.
New studios are built all the time
Another major reason why Washington is a games industry hub is because new studios are being created all the time. The area has become a breeding ground for talent to come together and create studios out of nothing.
It is no surprise, considering how easy it is to find employees in Washington State, but the size of the employee pool has been proven to fuel the growth of studios and the industry as a whole in the area.
Major developers in Seattle
As already mentioned, there are several major developers headquartered in Washington, or who at least have an office in the area, but the following are four of the biggest.
Unity
Unity Technologiesare responsible for creating the Unity game engine. It is a major player in the creation of 2D, 3D, virtual reality and augmented reality gaming, and has been involved in developing over 50% of the mobile games that exist today.
While Unity is headquartered in San Francisco, it has expanded its offices in Bellevue, Washington, and now produces tools for the film, construction, gambling and automotive industries.
Valve
Even if you’re a gaming newbie, you probably already know who Valve is. Not only is Valve the creator of one of the best games of all time, Half-Life, but it is also the mastermind behind Counter-Strikeand the Steam platform.
Not only was Valve way ahead of the curve when it created Steam, but it also launched SteamVR all the way back in 2016 as a platform to cater to all of your VR game needs.
Epic Games
While it may be headquartered in North Carolina, Epic Games has one of its biggest offices in Bellevue, Washington. Famous for creating Fortnite, Epic was already launching great titles before the BR craze hit, as it is the creator of the Unreal Engine and games such as Unreal Tournament.
Nintendo
The legendary developers at Nintendo really need no introduction, of course, having created classics such as the Legend of Zelda, the Pokémon series, Super Mario Bros and, of course, consoles such as the NES, the Wii and the Switch, and handhelds such as the GameBoy.
While the company was founded in Japan, Nintendo looked to Redmond in Washington for its North American headquarters. Many believe this is one of the main reasons why Washington is viewed as it is, considering the gaming giants that call the Evergreen State home.
Elisa Mueller
Author
James Pierce
Reviewer
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