Despite the UK video game market remaining stable at a value of £ 7.05 billion according to a UKIE report, console hardware and then software market values are falling.
Console hardware fell 27% to £ 832 million, while pc hardware fell 14% to £ 760 million and console accessories fell 15% to £ 396 million.
In total, the value of the hardware market fell by 19% to a value of £ 2.16 billion.
Dorian Bloch, Senior Client Director at GfK, said: “console hardware remained the largest sector in gaming hardware, but saw the steepest decline in 2022, due in part to the natural progression and adoption of ninth-generation consoles, which is set against the decline of the previous generation.
“Other factors included well-documented problems with supply chain components, higher costs of raw materials due to shortages, and shipping delays in warehouses and ports, which affected all hardware sectors, including video games.
“Much can still be attributed to Covid uncertainty, but the Russia-Ukraine war, recession, inflation, rising energy / food / living costs all play a role in dampening consumer confidence, with consumers delaying major purchasing decisions – including, of course, gaming hardware.”
As a result of this decline, the value of digital console sales fell by 4.7% to £ 1.98 billion. Boxed game sales also fell 4.3% to a value of £ 489 million. Despite this decline, 2022 is the first year in more than a decade that packaged video games have beaten digital copies in year-over-year performance.
Matt Bailey, Principal Analyst at Omdia, said: “The Digital segment of the UK console market was impacted by a further shift to pre-pandemic engagement levels, resulting in fewer downloads of older software titles and lower spending on console DLC.
“A lack of hardware delivery – particularly for PS5 – also prevented many potential ninth-generation console owners from shifting their spending to higher-value digital content.
“And while console subscription services remain a key area of growth, they are not yet generating the amount of spending needed to offset declines in other areas of digital console spending.
“Pc digital was relatively flat, propped up by the microtransactions segment. The healthy debut of Valve’s Steam Deck – which we estimate has sold 135k units in the UK in 2022-indicates that there is still a Appetite for spending in the pc market. “
