Despite the UK’s ranking as the 5th largest video game market globally, there has been much discussion surrounding what effect Brexit will have on the industry.

A recent survey from Joblift found that 40% of game companies are considering relocating part or all of their business outside of the UK in a bid to maintain access to talented, international staff. With this in mind, job meta-search engine Joblift analysed the state of the UK’s gaming job market and has found that despite fears,the potential negative impacts of Brexit have yet to take effect in the gaming sector.

According to Joblift, 31,148 job vacancies in the gaming sector have been posted in the UK in the last 12 months. These roles have seen a huge monthly increase of 12% on average – three times more than the 4% average monthly increase seen in the UK’s job market as a whole.

Despite the fears surrounding the shortage of EU staff – a predicted result of the upcoming
Brexit – gaming job vacancies have been somewhat easy to fill in the last year. Since
November 2016, gaming job postings have stayed active online for 11 days on average, four days less than the whole UK average.

Programmers are the most sought after professionals in the UK’s gaming industry,
accounting for 12% of all vacancies. With 10% of all job postings, System Developers and
Analysts place as the second most requested role, followed by Sales positions which make
up 6% of all gaming advertisements.

Unsurprisingly, London holds the largest proportion of gaming job vacancies, with 36% of postings being located in the capital. However, with an average monthly growth of 9%, the gaming job market in London is increasing more than Birmingham – the city which ranks in second place with 4% of vacancies and 8% average monthly growth. Manchester comes in third place holding 3% of gaming vacancies, buttrumps London and Birmingham with a huge 22% average monthly growth.

Incidentally, Paul Gouge, CEO of Playdemic, recently called the gaming sector, “the North West’s best kept secret,” commenting on the recent technology based investment in Manchester.

Joblift’s studies show that 20% of the gaming vacancies posted in the last 12 months require candidates to be professionally qualified, with 30% of these emphasising the need to be equipped with Java-related expertise. 18% of postings state the need for a Bachelor’s degree, however, only 3% need employees to hold a Master’s degree, with 7% of advertisements being satisfied with candidates who have reached GCSE level or equivalent.

When looking for potential hires, a positive attitude and enthusiasm rank as the most
requested soft skill, being mentioned in 29% of job ads. Following closely, 27% of vacancies asked for passionate candidates, and in third place, communication skills were desired in 21% of the job postings.

When it comes to perks, gaming employers appear focused on ensuring staff have a good work/life balance. 27% of gaming companies advertise internal sports clubs or free gym memberships. Almost a quarter of the job ads highlighted free food and drink as a benefit, while 9% offer staff the option to work remotely and have flexible working hours.

Interestingly, less than 1% of the job vacancies in the gaming sector offered employees perks associated with gaming – including free or discounted consoles or gaming
software.

 

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