More than 96% of the Polish video game industry’s revenue comes from exports, and domestic productions have been building Poland’s international recognition for years. Despite global successes, the sector has entered a period of clear slowdown for the first time in years: employment is falling, revenues are declining and more studios are closing. The industry warns that without new support instruments and legislative changes, it will become increasingly difficult to maintain international competitiveness. That is why the Ministry of Culture is working on a strategy for the gamedev sector.
“The gamedev industry is crucial for the Polish economy. Worldwide, gamedev is the largest industrial sector and the largest business in the cultural segment. It contributes not only to the GDP of individual economies. Gamedev is one of the few sectors, if not the only one, that truly involves every branch of culture, because we are talking about graphic designers, musicians, scriptwriters and writers,” Piotr Jędrzejowski, spokesperson for the Ministry of Culture and National Heritage, told Newseria.
According to the report “MKiDN x Gamedev – Round Table with the Polish Video Game Industry”, Poland currently ranks second in Europe in terms of employment in the gaming sector, behind only the United Kingdom. The industry generates PLN 5.5–6 billion in annual revenue, of which more than 96% comes from exports. Video games are now among the most recognisable Polish cultural products and are becoming one of the most important tools for building Poland’s international visibility.
“The gamedev industry is unique on the map of the Polish economy because it is 100% focused on productions that go global immediately. It is not like traditional manufacturing, where a product is first created for the local customer and only later, possibly, tested more broadly and introduced to neighbouring markets. Here, producers are fully focused on the international audience,” said Wojciech Trusz from the Institute of Creative Industries.
Polish productions such as The Witcher, Cyberpunk 2077, Dying Light, Frostpunk and This War of Mine are highly popular among millions of players around the world and are among the most recognisable Polish cultural brands. According to CD Projekt data, The Witcher series alone has already sold more than 85 million copies worldwide, while Cyberpunk 2077 has exceeded 35 million copies sold.
“There are more and more studios achieving spectacular international careers, as shown, for example, by last year’s awards for Western and Central European computer games, where Poles dominated,” said Jędrzejowski.
The authors of the report point out that Polish productions now function as a tool for promoting Poland’s culture, history and contemporary identity. Games created by Polish studios reach hundreds of millions of people worldwide, often becoming their first contact with Polish culture. For example, the success of The Witcher has had a greater impact on perceptions of Poland abroad than many traditional promotional campaigns.
“The potential of the gamedev industry in promoting Poland, whether economically or culturally, is being used, but it could be used even more. At the moment, Polish games are present at several global events, but there are many more events and markets. We have diplomatic missions in almost every country in the world, and through them we can promote Poland precisely through games,” said Trusz.
“For me, the most important thing is the cultural impact of the gaming industry. We need to realise that very often, for young people around the world, this is their first contact with Polish culture at all. We should look at what image of Poland is being shaped in these games,” said Aleksandra Szymańska from the Institute of Creative Industries.
According to the Round Table report, in 2021 Poland was the global leader in the Steam Top 200 Wishlist ranking, with 38 titles on the list of the most anticipated games. In the latest edition of the report, however, this number fell to 12, and Poland dropped from first to seventh place. For the first time in its history, the industry is recording a clear slowdown. Data from The Game Industry of Poland 2025, cited in the report, show that employment in the sector fell from 15,300 to 14,500 people, while around 120 studios disappeared from the market within two years. Industry revenue decreased from around PLN 6 billion to PLN 5.5 billion, and fewer than one-third of Polish studios currently generate stable and regular revenues.
“The gamedev industry was in a downturn and is still trying to get out of it, but it is moving in the right direction,” said Trusz. “It needs both support and legislative changes, because the surrounding reality is changing, while the law is not keeping up. The legislative process takes a long time, so technological changes require mainly an adjustment in the pace at which new regulations are created.”
According to the report’s authors, one reason for the worsening situation is the growing advantage of countries that have been investing heavily in the development of the gaming industry for several years. Germany’s federal support programme for gamedev is expected to have a budget of EUR 125 million in 2026. Since 2019, it has supported more than 640 projects. In the United Kingdom, a tax relief system for game producers is in place, while similar instruments are being developed by countries such as Czechia, Finland and Estonia.
In Poland, after the end of the GameINN programme, the industry was practically left without large-scale support instruments. Across four editions of the programme, PLN 474 million was allocated to 150 projects. Meanwhile, the current Video Game Support Programme run by the Institute of Creative Industries has an annual budget of PLN 5 million.
“Support for games in Poland is not sufficient today. I would not reduce this only to financial support, because the Polish games sector has shown how well it has managed without it. I am optimistic about the tools we received as the Institute of Creative Industries in the form of a programme supporting the development of video games and the Creative Sectors Development programme, through which we support educational activities as well as those related to the professionalisation and promotion of Polish games. But this is indeed only a substitute. Today, the budget of a video game is comparable to a film budget, so these funds are certainly insufficient,” argued Szymańska.
Industry representatives emphasise that support for gamedev should also include the development of creative skills, education and the promotion of Polish studios at the most important industry events worldwide. They also point out that video games today combine technology, culture and creative industries, which is why they require a different approach from traditional technology sectors.
“It is important to see the gaming sector, on the one hand, in the context of the economy, supporting companies, developing exports and thinking about our potential, but on the other hand, it is extremely important to support creative skills. After all, it is people who graduate not only from IT schools but also from art universities who decide whether a game becomes a masterpiece. That is why this requires a systemic view and support through public policies at every level,” said the expert from the Institute of Creative Industries.
One of the problems identified by the industry remains the treatment of gamedev mainly as part of the IT sector, rather than as a fully fledged branch of culture and the creative industries. According to industry representatives, this leads to support systems, tax law and regulations being poorly adapted to the specifics of the games market, where production cycles often last several years.
“The unclear status of the gaming industry has broad consequences: tax-related, legal and procedural,” Jędrzejowski pointed out. “The Ministry is preparing a sectoral strategy for the gamedev industry. We have completed talks with industry representatives. Two months ago, we published a report from all the meetings held as part of a major Round Table with the gaming industry. It brings together all the demands of the sector, which are now being analysed in terms of how they should be reflected in Polish legislation.”
Among the industry’s demands are changes to copyright and tax law, including issues related to the IP Box and R&D tax relief, as well as simplifying the rules for concluding contracts. Sector representatives also want a more transparent system for supporting and evaluating projects, as well as a permanent team of video game experts to cooperate with public administration.
An opportunity to discuss the gamedev industry was provided by the opening of the interactive exhibition Join the Game: 40 Years of Polish Games, prepared to mark the 40th anniversary of the release of the first Polish adventure game. The exhibition is available until 30 June at the Okno na Kulturę gallery in Warsaw. It is organised by the Institute of Creative Industries in cooperation with the Ministry of Culture and National Heritage.
