2024-03-22 15:43:00
The video game market has never done as well in France as in 2023. In a post-Covid rebound year, the sector generated 6.1 billion in total turnover, an increase of 10% per year. compared to 2022.
7 out of 10 French people play video games
After experiencing exponential growth during the pandemic, the industry experienced a period of stagnation, notably marred by shortages of freshly released consoles. In 2023, 1 in 7 French people played video games, noted the Leisure Software Publishers Union (Sell).
The console ecosystem accounts for 52% of this turnover. It increased by 24% compared to the previous year, generating 3.15 billion euros, a trend which can be explained in particular by the end of the shortages affecting the PlayStation 5 and the Xbox Series.
As a result, revenues from game sales, stimulated by the release of particularly anticipated titles, also increased by 7% to stand at nearly 1.75 billion euros. Culminating at the top of the rankings is EA Sport FC, formerly Fifa. It is followed by Hogwarts Legacy and The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom.
Accessories sales also saw a significant increase of 20%, “ reflecting sustained demand for equipment with high technological value », comments Sell.
Normalization in 2024
Mobile gaming has also reached new heights, with growth of 5%. It generated 1.48 billion euros in 2023. The PC gaming ecosystem, for its part, fell by 8.5% to 1.43 billion euros. A logical decline, players having equipped themselves with manufacturers during the pandemic, in 2020 then 2021.
With these figures, video games establish their status as the most profitable cultural industry in the world. On a global scale, the sector generated more than 180 billion dollars in 2023. Sell nevertheless warns that a “normalization” is to be expected, in France, in 2024. The turnover should stabilize around of 6 billion euros.
« The figures recorded in 2023, directly linked to the Covid years which had a profound impact on the cycles, constitute exceptional results, both in terms of their intensity and their very cyclical nature. They are part of the cycle opened in 2020 and are for the most part “correctives” to atypical or even abnormal past situations. », Explains the union.
He also wishes to warn, despite these high-ranking performances, of an increase in layoffs in the sector. “ The exceptional market results should not overshadow the employment challenges. The overabundance of game releases and project shutdowns pose difficulties for many production and publishing structures », he concludes.
1711124970
#video #game #market #reaches #peaks #France