[Tiktaalik]

I think from a games industry POV it's worse than 2008 right now.

Beyond the raw numbers of layoffs, there's clearly a great number of other companies currently have hiring freezes on.

There's simply little to no job postings on right now. Of course it's the worst time of year for listings, and things usually improve in Spring, but it's hard to be optimistic.

[diarrhea]

How come January is the worst? I thought it was among the best.

[techcode]

Big companies mostly work on quarterly (so earnings call) cycle.

Hence depending on general economic situation (and of course specific industry/company). And just like you might be getting sweet offers to change your insurance/ISP/etc, recruiters/head-hunters might be encouraged to hit their KPIs a bit higher the closer to end of quarter/half-year/new years it is.

Also bigger companies might reorg (both teams/people and change plans/KPIs which is usually known as pivot) around new years - for those same reasons.

With all of that - January/February is usually "Let's see how the latest course of course adjustment is going to play out".

[Tiktaalik]

I guess December would be even worse. But similar reasons.

Half of January is Xmas/NY hangover. Things just slow to startup again.