The gaming industry is in decline, despite the growth of consumers

According to the Newzoo Global Games Market Report for2022, about 3.2 billion people spent time playing video games in 2022 , compared to 2.9 billion in 2020 , and this figure could reach 3.5 billion by 2025 . Despite the boom, the games market fell 4.3% to $184.4 billion in 2022 . With the exception of the post-pandemic period when so many people were in quarantine with nothing to do but play video games, this is probably an easy fix.

Record levels of investment in the video game business, as well as record levels of video game engagement, were seen in both 2020 and 2021 . Since people have been looking for ways to pass the time during the quarantine phase of the pandemic, this has also attracted many players to spend time after a long absence. Due to pandemic restrictions, the bulk of industry revenue in 2020 came from digital sales, which prevented shoppers from visiting stores physically.

The Asia-Pacific region, which spends about $87 billion annually on games and makes up 48% of the industry, will have the most players in 2022. North America, with 48.4 billion spending, comes in second and accounts for 24% of the total. annual expenses. Globally, this figure is declining on both PC and consoles, especially after the yearly spending on game consoles skyrocketed by more than $50 billion in 2020 .

In 2022, revenue increased in only one category: Latin America and the Middle East/Africa . Accounting for about 50% of gaming spending, mobile games mainly provide the industry with about $2.3 billion in annual revenue .

The Global Games Market Report suggests that games are recession-proof given how well the industry has fared during the pandemic and how well it will continue to thrive in the face of global financial turmoil in 2022. By 2025 , they predict that the gaming business will generate $225 billion in annual revenue, so the current 4.3% decline is not even a setback for the sector as a whole.

Given the continued huge growth potential of the industry, the markets are likely to stabilize only as more people return to their normal activities after the pandemic.