The UK video game trade association, Ukie, has released the results of the second census of the gaming industry in the UK, offering an insight into the habits of Anglo-Saxon industry professionals. The census was conducted by the University of Sheffield and sampled 3,600 workers of different gender, ethnicity, and gender identity. New areas of investigation were also explored such as the effects of the pandemic on work practices in the video game industry and workplace behaviors for a deeper understanding of the industry. Before the pandemic, 66 percent of video game workers worked in the office, 9 percent from home, and 7 percent on a hybrid system. Since the fall of 2021, 80 percent have worked from home, 8 percent in the office alone and 11 percent in both places. Only 10 per cent of respondents would prefer to return to the office in the future, with 52 per cent preferring a hybrid solution and 38 per cent would like to continue working from home full time.
87 per cent of respondents are proud and satisfied to work in the video game industry, and 85 per cent particularly in the UK. But only 66 percent say the industry itself is ideal for working. 67 percent of the workforce is made up of men, women are 30 percent and 3 percent are non-binary. Twenty-four percent of the workforce claims to be non-heterosexual, three percent more than two years ago. 61 percent of respondents are under 35 years of age. 66 percent of the workforce is of British Caucasian ethnicity, 24 percent Caucasian, 5 percent black, 2 percent Asian, 2 percent mixed, and a further 2 percent fall into other categories. When it comes to mental health, 38 percent of respondents said they had suffered from anxiety, depression, or both, a considerable increase from 31 percent two years ago. 18 percent suffer from neurodevelopmental disorders, such as autism or conditions that affect the attention span.