Gamers’ spending power increases during pandemic

Gamers are spending 60% more on games due to the ongoing pandemic

The demand for video games and eSports grew higher as the spread of COVID-19 hit different corners of the world. Several countries issued a corona virus-induced shut down as a preventive measure to curb the spread and this encouraged the transition of millions of sports fans into other avenues of sports, shooting up the annual revenue globally to 6.3% in the gaming industry. An infographic, by Kryptoszene, reports that revenue generated worldwide is projected to increase from $164.6 billion to $178.2 billion in 2021.

Meanwhile, the widespread use of smartphones and the constant advancements in technology also influenced the growing trend of gaming due to the pandemic causing a shutdown of all sports activities. The increase in gaming before the crisis was at 60%, with gamers between the ages of 16 to 29 years, spending an average of €15 (about R280) on games. Also, German gamers have been spending about €24 (about R450) a month on games and all its extra offers since the spread of the coronavirus.

Data compiled by SafeBettingSites.com stated that, Google play games had the top five grossing games which hit $316 million in revenue in September, amassing about $113.9 million profit from android users. Lineage M for instance, was one of the leading mobile games in the Google play store last month.
With smartphones becoming the fastest way for gamers to participate in games, there has been an exponential increase of 40% in revenue in the past few months in contrast to the 35% the gaming industry recorded in 2018. The only sector within the gaming industry with a decline in their revenue are browser-based games or PC games which have fallen from 25% to 21% throughout the pandemic. Expert analyst Raphael Lulay explained that the industry ‘is proving to be both high growth and a crisis resistant sector’ and ‘the rapid growth in the field of mobile games, in particular, could make investors sit up and pay attention.’

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