In a recent joint report published by the Entertainment Software Association and Circana, it was revealed that consumer spending on video games in the US through 2023 totalled a whopping $57.2 billion. It marked an increase year-on-year of almost $1 billion. In terms of a breakdown, gaming-based consumers spent $48 billion on ‘video game content’, $6.6 billion on hardware, and $2.6 billion on peripherals and accessories.
Phenomenal Growth
Over time, more gamers are finding their way into the industry as the space becomes increasingly accessible. It has been estimated that there are more than 3 billion gamers on Earth – the vast majority of which play mobile games, which pound-for-pound is the most valuable sector in the games industry.
In the recent report published jointly by the Entertainment Software Association and Circana, it was revealed that a 13% increase in digital download spending was recorded through 2023 (compared to 2022).
In a statement, the ESA President, Stanley Pierre-Louis, said:
These figures reinforce the position of the video game industry as a growth engine for the United States economy. When combined with the fact that nearly two-thirds of Americans play video games regularly, cutting across all demographics and backgrounds, these results confirm the video game industry’s impact as an economic and creative powerhouse with far-reaching cultural influence.
The report pulls together figures from the breadth of the entire industry, looking at everything consumers spend their money on, including:
- Physical and digital copies of games
- DLC and microtransactions
- Subscription spending
- Hardware
- Accessories
The insights also revealed that the top-grossing game in the United States through 2023 was Hogwarts Legacy, closely followed by Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3. In terms of mobile games, Monopoly GO and Candy Crush Saga topped the charts.
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