Retaining IT talent: Poland's rise as a gaming hub

International success

Belgium’s Larian Studios registered its Polish branch in March 2024, while Activision Blizzard, recently acquired by Microsoft, has just announced the establishment of a new studio in Warsaw. This is the company’s second studio in Poland.

The opening of these studios arrives against a backdrop of a growing Polish gaming industry. As reported by the Polish Agency for Enterprise Development, Poland currently has the second largest European gaming industry, behind UK and on a par with France, while boasting 23—37% growth year on year since 2017. Poland is de facto doubling its game developer base every three and a half years.

Recipe for success

The Polish gaming industry market is able to grow thanks to its excellent local talent pool. Poland continues to be renowned for producing top quality programmers (regularly ranked in the top three in the world). This can be attributed to the high quality of the higher education system with more than 50 universities offering formal education for game development. The percentage of women in the industry is one of the highest in the world, at around 24%. At the same time, the Polish gaming industry is attractive for specialists from other countries, with Ukrainians and Belarussians the most prominent foreigner groups strengthening the Polish developer labour market.

Homegrown success

Developers have plenty of reasons to stay as Poland’s studios offer excellent and diverse opportunities to gain experience and growth. Small- and medium-sized studios continue to grow steadily, with an average team size of these studios of 31 members (more than twice the size of the average team in Germany, the UK, or Sweden).

There is a significant variety among Polish studios, ranging from the major AAA studios like CD Projekt Red and Techland, through to a strong indie gaming scene (Poland currently ranks second for country of origin of games in the Steam wishlist Top200 after the US), to serving as a major hub of external development, porting, asset production, quality assurance (QA), and other similar services in a sector employing approximately 4,500 professionals.

Cross-border success

More than 65% of games produced in Poland are translated into more than two languages (compared to only 29% outside of Poland), indicating a strong emphasis on creating products for export, and the opportunity for developers to gain experience that can be used in other countries. This is reinforced by Poland’s high level of international security, relatively low cost of living and tax benefits, and support initiatives for both companies and developers.

With all those factors taken into account, it is no wonder that Poland is attracting both big studios and talented professionals alike, creating an international environment for development and cross-border growth.

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Bartosz has earned a reputation as a trusted advisor and a skilled negotiator for his clients  supporting businesses with expert know-how in new technologies.