8,450 game industry workers have been laid off since July 2008, according to M2 market analyst Wanda Meloni.

Writing on Gamasutra, Meloni calculated that 75 percent of the layoffs – about 6,300 – were made in North America, representing 12 percent of the region’s total workforce, with the rest spread across Asia and the UK.

Referencing the closure of developers including Microsoft's Aces Studio and Ensemble Studios, Meloni noted that “a handful of others are on life support, operating with a skeletal workforce and actively looking for buyers."

However, Meloni also said that there is a silver lining to the layoffs.

“The real story here is there are 6,300 industry professionals in North America alone [are] looking for something new. Many people are looking at the current market dynamics and starting their own small development studios. With this desire to branch out on their own, they are part of what I am calling the Gaming Renaissance Movement.

“What these new studios lack in financing and slick marketing, they are making up for in creativity, vision and sheer grit. Many of these startups are self-funded by groups combining their severance packages. However they get going, these talented individuals are making up a next wave of independent studios and are the future of renaissance gaming.”