Globalization: Where IP Goes to Die

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We have to solve complex problems, and we have to solve them socially. And when you implement a solution to a complex problem socially, you produce a hierarchy—because some people are better at the implementation than others.

So there's a hierarchy of competence, and then there's a hierarchy of distribution of the spoils.

And in both of those hierarchies, you get a clumping of resource at the top and dispossession at the bottom. It's in the nature of hierarchies.

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The video game industry is currently experiencing a period of stagnation—a kind of creative doldrum. This slowdown is especially evident when examining the content pipelines for both the PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X/S. Despite these consoles being well into their life cycles, the frequency and impact of major game releases have noticeably diminished.

Similarly, mobile gaming—once a thriving sector during the COVID-19 pandemic—has lost much of its cultural cachet. The App Store, once flooded with innovative and socially viral titles like Among Us, Genshin Impact, or Pokémon GO, now feels saturated with low-effort copycats and monetization-first designs.

There’s also a growing sentiment that games from 2000 to 2020 not only played better but looked better too. This echoes similar criticism found in cinema, where many argue CGI effects from the early 2010s feel more grounded and convincing than the overproduced, soulless visual spectacles common today.

Why has this happened?

For reference, about 50% of popular mobile games are either outsourced to or completely developed in Vietnam. Additionally, one in every 25 games available on app marketplaces is from Vietnam—a much higher rate than most other countries.

It’s a byproduct of how globalization scales. As production becomes more international and decentralized, quality is often forced to conform to the lowest common denominator. Rather than prioritizing artistic vision, studios are pressured to meet mass-market demands, reduce risk, and ensure compatibility across multiple platforms and regions. The result is a design-by-committee process optimized for replication rather than innovation.

Moreover, modern games increasingly prioritize monetization systems—season passes, loot boxes, in-game currencies—over creativity and gameplay depth. This design shift reflects an industry increasingly driven by live-service models and microtransaction revenue, not by groundbreaking storytelling or revolutionary mechanics.

In short, when you scale for efficiency, you often sacrifice authenticity—and in games, that trade-off is becoming more and more visible.

The trade-off is more visible to the consumer. Because they can see it. They know when they are getting something more authentic.