In a recent report, it was revealed that a whopping 75% of all games sold through August in the United Kingdom were digital purchases. It was documented that 1.74 million games were sold during the four weeks, and only 25% of them were hard copies, representing a 10% drop in physical game sales year-on-year.
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The report, which was covered by GamesIndustry.biz, confirmed that in August 2023, 65% of sales in the UK were digital. Over time, consumers in the United Kingdom have given up on physical media, and there are several reasons for that.
Firstly, digital gaming is becoming much easier and more accessible over time, with consoles shipping with larger storage drives and price parity stabilising across the board. Also, internet speeds are getting faster all the time, which means downloading or streaming games is also improving from an experience perspective.
Second, it’s important to stress that physical storefronts are dying out, and only GAME in the United Kingdom represents a ‘high street presence’ for the games industry across the entire region. In recent months, the decades-old retailer has faced severe struggles that have left many doubting the long-term prospects for the company.
With supermarkets boasting slim-to-nil catalogues of games and online storefronts often having some of the highest price points on the market, many gamers are turning to pre-ordering their treasured titles digitally, pre-loading them so they can start playing from the second the game goes live.
GamesIndustry.biz’s report also mentioned that Grand Theft Auto 5 sits atop the digital sales charts in the United Kingdom, which shows how the region is eagerly anticipating the arrival of Grand Theft Auto 6.
For more Insider Gaming coverage, check out the news that Microsoft spends $1 billion a year on third-party Game Pass titles
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