The German Games Industry Association (GAME) announced at gamescom press conference that thanks to many blockbuster games and strong demand for game consoles, the German games market returned to growth for the first six months of 2023.
In all, online gaming services, games, and gaming hardware generated approximately 4.7 billion euros in sales revenue – an increase of 4% compared to the same period in the previous year. The data is based on surveys carried out by the market research companies GfK and Data.ai. Sales revenue from purchases of games for PCs, game consoles and mobile devices grew by 4% to about 2.7 billion euros.
Felix Falk, Managing Director of The German Games Industry Association and co-organizer of Gamescom, said, “After the German games market managed to stabilize at a high level in 2022, it returned to growth in the first six months of 2023. The market posted a 4% increase, a significant figure in light of the economic uncertainty that has marked recent months. The many outstanding blockbuster games during the first six months played a particularly large role in these results. Other notable factors were continued strong demand for game consoles, which can now finally be better satisfied.”
Gaming hardware – a category that includes gaming PCs, game consoles, and the corresponding accessories – accounted for revenues of roughly 1.6 billion euros. This equates to a year-on-year increase of 6% compared to the first six months of 2022. One of the growth drivers of the games market in recent years – online gaming services – weakened slightly during the first six months, with this submarket declining by a little less than 1% to 413 million euros.