Mobile games, the fastest-growing segment of the gaming industry, continue to break records and generate billions of dollars in revenue every year. The most significant portion of mobile gaming earnings comes from Asian countries, which are home to almost half of all mobile gamers in the world.
According to data provided by MejoresApuestas, the number of mobile gamers in Asia reached nearly 1.3 billion in 2021, more than North America, Europe and Latin America combined.
Asia is home to 60% more mobile gamers than Europe as the second-largest market
It has completely changed the gaming industry by bringing continuous entertainment on the go through mobile games, cloud-based games, and apps that work offline. The countries of the Asia Pacific region, which have the largest share of smartphone users globally, have experienced a boom in mobile game markets in recent years, especially after the COVID-19 outbreak.
China, the world’s largest gaming market, is a prime example of this impressive growth. According to Statista data, the number of mobile gamers in the country has increased by 36% in the last three years to exceed 560 million in 2021. Additionally, Chinese mobile gaming revenues grew 80% during this period, from $22.8 billion in 2018 to $41.4 billion in 2021.
The DFC Intelligence survey showed that Europe is the second largest mobile gaming market globally, with 551.7 million users in 2021, almost 60% less than leading Asia.
Latin America ranked third in the mobile gaming segment with over 309 million users this year, nearly 100 million more than North America, the fourth largest market worldwide. This is followed by the MENA region and Sub-Saharan Africa with 145.8 million and 126.2 million mobile players, respectively.
Asian mobile gaming revenues to reach $100 billion by 2025
The Asian mobile gaming industry was thriving even before 2019. But after the pandemic crisis, revenues and the number of users increased and reached new record levels. Statistics show that Asian mobile gaming revenues have increased by an impressive 46% over the past two years, from $46.5 billion in 2019 to $68.1 billion in 2021, or 77% of total game revenues in the region this year.
By contrast, Europe saw mobile gaming revenues increase 42% to $12.5 billion during this period. North America follows with a 35% increase and $22.7 billion in revenue in 2021.
By 2023, Asian mobile gaming revenues are expected to grow another 25% and exceed $86 billion, and the entire market is expected to reach $100 billion by 2025.