Digital cashflow didn’t grow last year either, so the situation in one of the most important countries in the gaming industry isn’t exactly glamorous…
Video games cashflow in the UK closed 2024 with a 4.4% drop (£4.6 billion), the main factor being a huge drop in in-store sales, which fell by almost 35% (!!!) compared to 2023, with disc/boxed games generating just £324.4 million. This figure was released by the Entertainment Retailers Association (ERA), citing data from Nielsek-GfK, India and GSD.
The digital games market fared better, with sales of console, PC, mobile and tablet games totaling $4.29 billion. That’s still a decline, but at least it’s not in double digits (-1% is still -1%…). The data shows that PC downloads are down 5% and console downloads are down 15%, while mobile/tablet downloads are up 2.6% and subscription revenue is up 12%. Therefore, even after 2023, the UK video game market will still lag behind the movie and video market after 2024.
The UK bestseller in 2024 was EA Sports FC 25, but it’s no surprise that Electronic Arts’ game sold 2.9 million copies last year (80% of digital sales here, according to ERA), as this country is a huge football fan. “After the breakneck growth of recent years, it is no surprise that the games market has slowed, but it remains a giant. Despite the appeal of digital business models for developers, we believe there is still a role for physical games to play,” said ERA boss Kim Bayley.
A boom is predicted for 2025, with the Nintendo Switch 2 (yet to be officially named) due for release that year, and many games looking forward to Grand Theft Auto VI, due for PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series in the fall. These will all generate a lot of money and sales in the UK.
Source: VGC
