The number of investors in the gaming industry is growing at a frantic pace. Ask, “Why?”. It’s simple – investment in this industry is a wide audience, a constant increase in the number of game genres, and an increase in the availability of technologies. This game market is rapidly becoming more accessible; it seems that there are no people left who are not interested in it.
As already mentioned, the diversity of the gaming industry is really impressive. It is impossible to list everything, but the basis will forever remain to gamble: sports betting, online roulette, and cards. This is an eternal classic.
Now we turn to the basic information about the general statistics of the gaming market, about those who invest in this market, and the subtleties of investment.
From the Statistics of the General Gaming Market
1. Market profitability
This industry does not stand still. Analyst companies claim that from 2018 to 2022, the universal gaming market has grown significantly from $138 billion to nearly $200 billion. That’s 41.8%! Good result? In most cases, this is a direct merit of mobile games. This year, the market has exceeded the amount of revenue by 200 billion dollars.
2. Audience
The gaming market segment is incredibly large. The average age of a player is approximately 34 years old. The number of players is constantly increasing. If you return to 2019, there were about 2.55 billion players in the world, then last year, this number increased to 3.2 billion.
3. Mobile gadgets are considered a more profitable platform.
Users spent about $95 billion, a 7.3% increase over the previous year. At the end of 2022, miHoYo’s Genshin Impact was recognized as the most profitable mobile game. In total, the game brought the developers $239 million.
4. Competition
Exceptionally strong competition in the mobile games group. For example, Google Play releases over two thousand offers daily, about 15,000 per week, and more than 65,000 monthly.
The Most Invested Gaming Subsectors 2023
The industry has an infinite number of different projects, and it is simply impossible to mention all of them. Still, we can easily recall those gaming subsectors where the quantitative indicator of investment breaks all records.
- Mobile games that are focused on constant online purchases of various game resources are necessary for full functioning.
- Games for PC and console. This entertainment requires large investments but does not ultimately bring the desired income.
- Esports and community platforms industry is a place where rivalry is foreseen. Players present their gameplay and compete on equal terms with other players
- Virtual and augmented reality. Usually, they are created by special studios that focus on a separate market. This is also due to the rather low level of market demand.
- Technological systems are organizations that develop special supportive methodologies and infrastructures for game industry managers.
- Metaversion and Web3. Most are confident that games will be important for virtual worlds that plan to make up part of the expected web iteration.
The Main Types of Investors in the Gaming Industry
For general reference, the following list of the most common types of investors.
These are VC funds, organizations that work on combining the finances of several investors and later use this technique to invest in large companies.
The next type of investor is Angels, wealthy people who prefer to invest small amounts in a new startup. This type of investor has a special direct relationship with the company and its founders and is generally considered more independent.
They have quite similar views on things that unite them in one way or another, even though the criteria and methods of their evaluation may differ significantly. These two types emphasize the idea, the team, the market in which the game is launched, and the working conditions of the team and the founder.
Although angels and venture capital funds are the most common types of investors in the gaming industry, many organizations and private investors also play an equally important role in financing projects and companies.
Equity crowdfunding is a type of crowdfunding where you can invest in exchange for shares in the company. It is a good option for developers who plan to raise funds through more people. This is a lesser-known way of making money compared to crowdfunding platforms. Equity crowdfunding is heavily regulated due to the high risks associated with this type of investment promotion.
In Conclusion
The gaming industry is at the apogee of technological progress in the IT industry, so it needs an uninterrupted flow of investment. If we compare this industry to sectors of the global economy and to classic investment vectors, the contribution to online games pays off many times faster and provides a high income level. The modern industry is one of the main consumers of IT resources. It is the industry that instantly puts the latest developments into use.
