Game Devs Believe Players Have “Unrealistic Expectations” When It Comes To Content

Mario Bautista May 24, 2025

Summary

In an effort to dispel any misconceptions, over two dozen developers spoke about what gamers get wrong about the game-making process.
Specifically, one Palworld exec outlined how expectations are often skewed due to other games being able to churn out content.
No two development teams are the same, and some excel at things better than others.

Gaming, like life, is chock-full of misconceptions. Whether that be how long it takes to develop a game or just how impactful something as seemingly innocuous as a review bomb can be.

The entire party in Clair Obscur: Expedition 33.

Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 Gives Me Hope For The Games Industry

It feels good to see a game like Expedition 33 succeed.

In speaking with GamesRadar for a larger project, over 30 game developers helped put to bed some of the biggest misconceptions in gaming, from the development process itself to content rollout. The end result is an in-depth look at how grueling and often unforgiving the game development process is.

Not Every Studio Can Turn Around Content At A Breakneck Pace

As part of a discussion of the human element of game development, Palworld publishing manager John Buckley said that “people have very unrealistic expectations of timelines.” Specifically, that not every game can push content like Fortnite or Call of Duty on a seeming never-ending basis.

“I think gamers have just become so used to this kind of constant cycle that they’re now applying it to every game they play,” Buckley said. “A new island in Palworld, that’s half a year’s work. That takes six months.

“And when it comes out, people are super excited, but you just get so many nasty comments before that about these things. And you try to explain it, and there’ll always be a few gamers who get it, and they really appreciate that dialogue, but quite a lot of them don’t.”

He’s not wrong, as it is sometimes easy to assume that every process is linear while also being spoiled by juggernaut developers that it’s easy to forget that no two games are the same.

Offbrand Games CEO David Gorman said there isn’t “one way to make a game,” because, “depending on their background, certain things might be easier or harder for them.” Post-launch content could be one of those things. Which is to say developers almost certainly receive some more grace when it comes to their games specifically.