UK game industry could be devastated by Brexit

The UK’s gaming industry could be devastated by Brexit, if a new survey is to be believed.

Industry trade body Ukie published its findings on Thursday, saying two fifths of gaming companies were considering relocation as a result of the UK’s looming departure from the European Union.

It found that the top concern of firms in the industry was the loss of the ability to attract talent from other EU countries, creating a skills shortage.

Of the companies surveyed, 40% said such a skills shortage could lead to their departure from the UK, woth 57% saying they employed workers from other EU countries.

The survey suggested that, at the companies with EU employees, they made up around one third of their workforce on average.

Ukie found that the industry held some strong beliefs about EU workers, too, with 98% of the responding companies saying EU citizens skilled in game development should have an automatic right to work in the UK post-Brexit.

“The damaging uncertainty caused by Brexit to our EU employees, and not having open access to the brightest and best European talent, some of whom are now refusing to resettle in the UK, is forcing us to have to assess whether it will be at all possible to produce our future games in this country,” said Bossa Studios co-founder and CEO Henrique Olifiers.

In terms of consumer revenues, the UK is the world’s sixth-largest gaming market, with consumers spending £4.33bn in 2016.

More than 2,000 firms exist in the industry in the UK, employing around 12,100 full-time workers.