The state of games journalism in 2025: surviving, innovating, and finding meaning again

In 2025, games journalism finds itself at a crossroads between crisis and renewal. The industry is growing faster than ever, but the way we write about, talk about, and read about games is changing dramatically. Traditional newsrooms have thinned out, algorithms are unpredictable, and the audience: well, the audience is on the move.

What remains is the need for human stories. For voices that do not just explain what is happening, but also why it matters.

Game Informer lives again (and that says a lot)

When Game Informer temporarily shut down in 2024, it felt like the end of an era. But in March 2025, the legendary magazine returned with a refreshed team, a contemporary design, and a clear mission: back to the core of the craft (1).

No algorithm-driven clickbait, but personal stories, exclusive reports, and interviews with creators. The resurrection of Game Informer shows that, despite all technological disruption, there is still demand for journalism with a soul. The magazine has become a symbol of what games journalism can still be: critical, knowledgeable, and culturally relevant.

An unprecedented exodus

According to data from Press Engine, published by Video Games Chronicle, more than 1,200 games journalists worldwide have left the media over the past two years (2). That represents a decline of roughly a quarter of the total active workforce.

Figures from The Game Business confirm the trend: the number of published articles about video games dropped by more than 100,000 in 2025 compared to previous years—an over 13% decline in just one quarter (13).

As The Guardian wrote in May 2025: “When video games journalism eats itself, we all lose out.” (21)

Journalist Keza MacDonald warns that newsrooms are under pressure from cutbacks, acquisitions, and a toxic online culture. Not only are jobs disappearing, but depth and reader trust are also at risk.

Yet in the middle of this exodus, something new is emerging. A striking example came in September 2025, when former Polygon staffers launched the independent website Rogue: a platform that consciously breaks with ad-driven algorithmic journalism and focuses on content “made by humans, for humans” (23). Games journalism is not dying; it is relocating—from media companies to communities.

AI: friend, foe, and mirror

Generative AI turned the media sector upside down in 2025. Google’s AI Overviews and Bing’s Copilot summaries now display direct answers above search results, causing some websites to lose up to 80% of their traffic (3). According to The Game Business, this is the heart of the problem: games media has become too dependent on external algorithms, writing not for readers but for search engines (14). Analyses by Nieman Lab, The Guardian, and The Verge (16) show how AI is reshaping journalism.

The strongest editorial teams now use AI as a tool for transcription, data research, and archive analysis—but it remains a tool, not a creator. Algorithms can organize; only humans can interpret. AI can describe what a game does, but not what it means.

Readers are flooded daily with automated texts, summaries, and suggestions, yet gravitate toward what sounds real. In a sea of synthetic words, the human voice remains the lighthouse.

Social search and creator power

According to the Reuters Institute, more than 40% of young gamers get their news via social media (4). TikTok, YouTube Shorts, Reddit, and Discord have become the new front door to information.

A survey by The Game Marketer, titled How Players Discover Indie Games: 2025 Survey, showed that community and word of mouth remain the most important discovery channels (20). The message is simple: make something people want to share.

For games journalists, this means the playing field is shifting. Discoverability in 2025 is about participation. Distribution is no longer secondary; it is publishing.

Too many games, too little attention

According to Spilled.gg, more than 13,000 new games were released on Steam in 2025, nearly half of which failed to recoup even the $100 publishing fee (5). The market is saturated.

This makes curation the core of quality games journalism. Gamers do not want algorithmic lists, but human guides who say: “This game is truly worth your time.”

The Netherlands: a drifting generation

Dutch games media took heavy hits in 2025. Gamer.nl, long the leading platform, disappeared in spring 2025 (6). InsideGamer survives only as an archive.

The future of PlaySense.nl also became uncertain after a recent acquisition. According to Tweakers (26), it remains unclear which direction the new owner will take, although a new team started on October 7.

As described by Bloggersander.nl in “The landscape of Dutch games journalism in 2025” (25), the future no longer lies with large newsrooms but with independent creators and micro-communities.

The physical memory of games

In the Netherlands and Belgium, events such as retro game fairs and TCG events have taken on an unexpected media role in 2025. They function as living platforms where stories are shared and preserved.

A small but growing print movement has also returned: micro-magazines and game zines. Especially within retro and indie communities, physical mini-magazines are reappearing—a counterreaction to digital noise (27).

How gamers consume media in 2025

Today’s gamer is no longer a passive reader, but a participant in the conversation.

1. Multimodal behavior: reading on mobile, watching on YouTube, listening to podcasts (7).
2. Social-first generation: TikTok and Reddit as search engines; creators as journalists (8).
3. Trust as currency: authentic voices over brand media.
4. Community over brand: interaction beats hierarchy.
5. Audio and longform revival: podcasts and essays gain ground (7).

Games as culture and mirror of the times

In 2025, games are mature culture, intersecting with art, politics, music, and identity. Games journalism becomes culturally relevant not through summaries, but through interpretation.

The human as the final differentiator

AI can analyze, but it cannot feel. The human voice, with passion, nuance, and perspective, remains the true differentiator.

Between dream and reality: professional or volunteer?

The key question in 2025: can you still make a living from this, or is it a passion project?

Many creators now work hybrid models: paid assignments combined with voluntary community-driven work (10).

PixelPact: a new foundation for the future

In the summer of 2025, the PixelPact Network launched as an independent platform connecting games journalists, bloggers, podcasters, and media creators (11).

Looking ahead: the horizon of 2026

The path forward is not restoring the old, but strengthening what works: authenticity, collaboration, and humanity.

Conclusion: from crisis to reinvention

Games journalism in 2025 is not a dying profession, but a transforming craft. Smaller in scale, perhaps...but more honest, warmer, and more relevant than ever.

The future of games journalism begins here.

Sources

1. Game Informer (March 2025) – “Game Informer Is Back”.
2. Video Games Chronicle (2025) – “More than 1,200 games journalists have left the media in the last two years”.
3. The Guardian (2025) – “AI summaries cause ‘devastating’ drop in web traffic”.
4. Reuters Institute – “Digital News Report 2025”.
5. Spilled.gg (2025) – “Over 5,000 Steam games failed to make back $100”.
6. Dutch media context – Gamer.nl, InsideGamer, local initiatives (PixelPact, PowerPraat, retro events).
7. Deloitte (2025) – “Digital Media Trends Report”.
8. Frankwatching (2025) – “Social Search Strategy for Gen Z”.
9. GamesIndustry.biz / The Verge (2025) – articles on culture, AI, and media.
10. GamesIndustry.biz (2025) – “Industry Employment Trends Report”.
11. PixelPact Network (2025) – platform and games journalism course.
12. Reuters Institute (2025) – “Journalism, Media & Technology Trends and Predictions”.
13. The Game Business (2025) – “The number of video game articles dropped by over 100,000 in Q1”.
14. The Game Business (2025) – “Can the video games media survive?”.
15. Frankwatching / Marketingfacts (2025) – articles on the creator economy and knowledge communities.
16. Nieman Lab / The Guardian / The Verge (2025) – analyses on AI and journalism.
17. PowerPraat Podcast – Power Unlimited.
18. Laadscherm Podcast – About games and game news.
19. N1-UP Podcast – YouTube.
20. The Game Marketer (2025) – “How Players Discover Indie Games: 2025 Survey”.
21. The Guardian (May 2025) – “When video games journalism eats itself, we all lose out”.
22. Nintendojo (May 2025) – “Editorial: Game Journalists Lost the Plot and Lost the Fans”.
23. GameDeveloper.com (September 2025) – “Former Polygon staffers establish independent video game website Rogue”.
24. Bloggersander.nl (July 2025) – “Your click, their future – why games journalism needs its readers”.
25. Bloggersander.nl (May 2025) – “The landscape of Dutch games journalism in 2025”.
26. Tweakers (October 2025) – “Future of gaming website PlaySense.nl uncertain after acquisition”.
27. CreatorZine / itch.io (2025) – micro-zine and print zine community.
28. SocialBlade / SimilarWeb – traffic analysis (Nov 2025) – analyses of declining X (formerly Twitter) traffic for games news.
29. IGN Careers / Eurogamer AMA (Ask Me Anything) (Nov 2025) – introduction of ‘community editor’ roles.