In 2018, the gaming industry made more than $40 billion from just the US market. This includes all the hardware, accessories, and everything that comes with gaming. With the current mobile trend, E3 Announcements, and boom in esports, 2019 looks like it’s going to beat that mark.
To get a better grasp of what $40 billion entails, the average cost of a AAA game in the US is around 63 bucks. With $40 billion, you could get a whopping 634,920,635 games. Or, 333,333,334 PS4s.
That’s because the average American gamer spends around $200 per year on gaming. With an estimated 200 million gamers in the US, that’s 40 billion dollars spent on games alone. Not even counting consoles, peripherals, and microtransactions.
The reason
It all comes down to consumer pride and brand loyalty. The marketability of a product is often determined by its demand or the number of fans that want it. In the case of games, fans still gravitate to the newest rendition of, let’s say, a Call of Duty or NBA game.
Even in cases where the newest game is just a carbon copy of its predecessor but with a new paint job and a guy named Jack, brand loyalty compels fans to buy them. That’s 60 bucks a pop, but that’s not all.
Fans usually need to have all the best stuff when they buy the game of their choice. That includes the peripherals, newest DLC, and anything else they can use for bragging rights.
Microtransactions for the big bucks
After sifting through as many sources as I could find and running some averages, it turns out that a little under half of all adult PC and console players in the US will spend money on in-game purchases. The amount of money spent varies from game to game with an average of about $10 per player for casual gaming and a little over $50 for those hard-core gamers playing casino games.
With 40% of US gamers consisting of adults spending an average of $30 a year for microtransactions, that makes about $120 million dollars a year from just that. That’s money in the bank for the gaming industry.
While there’s some controversy over microtransactions, the numbers don’t lie. It makes for a solid model for making extra cash on a game that’s already been purchased.
To sum it all up
As long as there are gamers, there is going to be a gaming industry. Demand for new games, sequels, special additions, and exclusives keep skyrocketing, but the industry is in no threat of running out of ways to get our money.
That’s all for now folks. I’ve got to go pre-order my copy of Shootyduty XII: Doom Patrol exclusive, with the special addition plush Jack and in-game laser saw. See ya later.
Photo credit: The feature image has been done by Anthony Brolin.
Sources: Statista as linked / Hilary Russ (Reuters) / Liz Lanier (Variety) / Erik Kain (Forbes) / Liz Lanier (Variety)
