The way people play games is constantly changing, and the market experienced incredible growth in just a few decades. Being one of the fastest-developing industries in the world, its revenue is projected to reach $196 billion in 2022, and it is expected to grow even more. Let’s see why online gaming is set to grow constantly in the years to come.
The Industry’s Growth Over Time
This form of entertainment got some serious attention during the 1990s, as the internet started becoming more accessible to the general population. In 2015, there were 1.5 billion players across the globe. Nowadays, it is clear that mobile gaming is the future of the industry.
Only 3 years ago, in 2019, around 2.4 billion people spent time playing mobile games. These games are now the third most popular and most downloaded app type in online app stores.
Wide Variety of Popular Games
Different players have different interests, but the gaming industry successfully caters to so many of them. There are many games that have gained great popularity over the years and will be played passionately in the years to come. Here are some of the most popular:
PUBG (PlayerUnknown’s Battlegrounds)
PUBG was one of the most played games in 2021 and will undoubtedly be the most popular online game in 2022. It was launched in 2018, and its popularity exploded so much that the number of players has reached 100 million.
PUBG’s gameplay is simple – it is based on armor and H1Z1, allowing up to 99 players to be involved at once. Its popularity mostly lies in amazing graphics and realistic situations with exciting missions that involve the killing of enemies in hiding.
Online Casino Games
People all over the world regularly visit online casinos, driven by the need to experience the excitement of betting real money and hoping to win big. Thanks to the increased accessibility of the internet and mobile devices, players can place wagers from any place in the world.
“Before they sign up for a particular casino, players can even do research on websites before they play,” says Adam Nadeau, who manages Playcasinos.ca, a site dedicated to reviewing the best online casinos in Canada. Naturally, similar websites also exist for the USA, and other countries, providing information about available games, bonuses, and much more.
Minecraft
First launched in 2011, Minecraft is among those games that reached more than 95 million players and it has been popular with every new version that pops out. It comes with several modes (survival, adventure, spectator, and creative) where the users must survive and succeed in building their campuses while having authority over people and resources. It is a 3D sandbox environment with very few restrictions when it comes to what players can do.
Gaming Was Not Harmed but Boosted by the Pandemic
The global Covid-19 pandemic has damaged almost all markets by forcing people to stay inside as much as possible. The fact that people now spend more time in their homes and less time socializing actually helped the gaming industry grow even more. Faced with new restrictions in their everyday lives, people have been looking for fun pastime activities and ways to keep socializing while keeping the distance – logically, this type of entertainment offers both.
Looking at the revenues makes it clear that almost every brand involved in this market has grown significantly. For example, Nintendo experienced a 24% increase in Switch sales, while Microsoft stated that their Game Pass service has reached a total of 10 million users.
New Technologies
As the technology is continuously developing, the gaming industry is also introducing some of the most exciting tech innovations:
Virtual Reality
Virtual reality had very limited availability to the general public due to the high prices of the equipment. However, since market leaders like Valve and Oculus are announcing more affordable headset options, more and more players will start enjoying the blurred lines between reality and fantasy. This opens a whole new world of extremely realistic scenarios and graphics, right at people’s fingertips.
Real-Time Personalization
It is expected that games in the near future will be able to automatically generate content pre-defined to fit every player’s style, personality, and preferences, all based on their previous activity and data collected over time. The user will get to enjoy fully personalized gameplay, stripped from any unwanted elements.
Cloud Gaming
The widespread adoption of cloud services also changed the way games are created, played, and delivered. The creation process is much faster, and the players have the chance to access their favorite games wherever they are, as long as there is an internet connection. As opposed to consoles, the cloud functions by moving content from the console to the cloud, where the users can stream their games just like they would stream Netflix videos.
Online gaming is expected to grow and transform with amazing innovations in 2022, and the following years to come. The industry has kept a rapid growth rate in recent years, and external conditions such as the global pandemic and new technological advancements are helping it thrive even more.