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[ArtHands]

Physical video game sales collapsed in the UK last year | VGC

UK digital game revenue also fell slightly in a tough year for the industry…

www.videogameschronicle.com

seems the biggest drops are coming from physical market and console digital sales.

Physical market in 2024 collapsed in the UK (35% drop compared to 2023)

Summary
Physical market drop by 35%
Digital market drop by 1%

Console digital sales drop by 15%
PC digital sales drop by 5%
Subscription increase 12%
Mobile/tablet increase 2.6%

This was driven mainly by a collapse in physical game revenue in the region, with just £324.4 million generated by sales of boxed games in the UK last year. That’s a drop of nearly 35% over 2023.

This data is courtesy of the Entertainment Retailers Association, and based on data from Nielsen/GfK, India and GSD.

The digital market fared better, with £4.29bn generated via console, PC, mobile, and tablet game sales. However, this was still a 1% drop over the year before.

According to the data, PC download sales were down 5%, console download sales were down 15%, mobile and tablet gaming rose 2.6%, and subscription revenue increased 12%. This means the video game market will sit behind film and video in the UK for the second consecutive year.

 

[ShadyAcshuns]

Are we seeing it made back up again in digital sales? Is this just lost revenue and a loss of interest in gaming?

 

[StereoVsn]

Isn’t UK economy kind of in a bad state for regular folks? But yeah, overall these are pretty iffy news.

 

[Unknown?]

Not good, giving the WEF room to squeeze in.

 

[jshackles]

Anecdotal, but a lot of the shops in my area stopped selling physical games (along with physical movies). That means physical games, for me at least, have already become something I have to order online and wait for. But, I'm also not in the UK.

 

[poppabk]

Are we seeing it made back up again in digital sales? Is this just lost revenue and a loss of interest in gaming?

Made up with subscriptions and mobile.
Where are your gods now?

 

[ProtoByte]

Because like 2 new games of consequence games came out last year.

Physical sales still make up the majority of single player titles from major publishers. So in a year teeming with remasters, multiplayer and terrible SP games like Outlaws or Veilguard, yeah, physical sales will be done.

The analysts want you to believe that physical games are dead. Long live physical games!

 

[ShadyAcshuns]

Made up with subscriptions and mobile.
Where are your gods now?

So... products for dumb fucks? Got it. You will own nothing, and you will like it?

 

[adamsapple]

Subscription increase 12%

havoc00 get in here boiiii !

 

[OuterLimits]

PS6 will definitely go the PS5 Pro route. Nintendo will eventually be alone in regards to physical software sales still being a significant percentage

 

[MayauMiao]

When your physical game is just a code..

 

[Three]

Made up with subscriptions and mobile.
Where are your gods now?

gamepass had a horrendous price hike in 2024 of 15%-25% depending on tier. If sub sales didn't go up that would have been surprising.

 

[DownLikeBCPowder]

Anecdotal, but a lot of the shops in my area stopped selling physical games (along with physical movies). That means physical games, for me at least, have already become something I have to order online and wait for. But, I'm also not in the UK.

This is a big part of it - availability/supply is literally being removed from the market. I don't discount general market movements toward digital, but of course if you stop selling Pepsi at the fuel station, Coca Cola sales will increase.

 

[Sebastian1295]

The day physical gaming dies is the day i stop gaming altogether. I love collecting games and i love having something to own and put on my shelf. Buying a digital license is the equivalent of buying nothing because you own nothing and can't sell anything. I also love ordering games online and getting a package in the mail just to open it up and see an unwrapped case waiting for me. It gets me excited honestly.

 

[Mortisfacio]

I'm sure this is a variety of issues such as shops closing, economies not doing as well, etc. but I expect overall sales to be down in 2024 compared to 2023 anyways. There's multiple 2023 titles I'm going to replay for years to come. There's not a single 2024 title I feel like I'll circle back to.

 

[havoc00]

havoc00 get in here boiiii !

 

[LectureMaster]

Thick Thighs Save Lives
My man, hold the line!

 

[ShadyAcshuns]

The day physical gaming dies is the day i stop gaming altogether. I love collecting games and i love having something to own and put on my shelf. Buying a digital license is the equivalent of buying nothing because you own nothing and can't sell anything. I also love ordering games online and getting a package in the mail just to open it up and see an unwrapped case waiting for me. It gets me excited honestly.

To each their own, but I won't stop gaming, I'll just continue to enjoy my collection of games while still buying digital titles at a deep discount. Not going to buy many digital games at full price. It'll be time to invest in other hobbies at that point.

 

[onnextflix5]

Well kids these days play the same game for years, no wonder sony trying to jump on live service bandwagon, things are definitely changing, feel like gaming is going down the mobile route of live service crap, oh well I will keep supporting the single player games, until they are no longer viable.

 

[Beechos]

Good luck to those who still try to hold onto physical. This upcoming gen will prob be the last for physical. On the bright side your physical collections worth will prob skyrocket.

 

[onQ123]

havoc00 get in here boiiii !

Portal FW Update putting in work

 

[StereoVsn]

Good luck to those who still try to hold onto physical. This upcoming gen will prob be the last for physical. On the bright side your physical collections worth will prob skyrocket.

I think there is a chance Nintendo will have physical for Switch 3 (or whatever next next gen will be), but that’s about it. We will also probably see many years of small print publishing from smaller publishing houses.

Thankfully I have decades of games in my library.

 

[Sebastian1295]

To each their own, but I won't stop gaming, I'll just continue to enjoy my collection of games while still buying digital titles at a deep discount. Not going to buy many digital games at full price. It'll be time to invest in other hobbies at that point.

Ya i'll just continue to play my older games. I got a wii so that i can continue to play my gamecube collection and i also got a ps2, n64, snes, nes to game on etc. If physical gaming goes i'll retro game forever.

 

[Beechos]

I think there is a chance Nintendo will have physical for Switch 3 (or whatever next next gen will be), but that’s about it. We will also probably see many years of small print publishing from smaller publishing houses.

Thankfully I have decades of games in my library.

Maybe we'll see an explosion of hackers cracking consoles going forward so people can backup digital games they bought and have a physical copy that way.

I guess I can also see a switch 3 being physical but that's mainly due to nintendo being so far behind with their online infrastructure where they prob couldn't support a digital only system.

 

[yogaflame]

Very sad this trend to digital, but as long there is still market for physical which includes me, I hope companies will not stop physical copies of games.

 

[StereoVsn]

Maybe we'll see an explosion of hackers cracking consoles going forward so people can backup digital games they bought and have a physical copy that way.

I guess I can also see a switch 3 being physical but that's mainly due to nintendo being so far behind with their online infrastructure where they prob couldn't support a digital only system.

And Japan still likes physical media alongside other countries in Asia.

 

[DownLikeBCPowder]

I think there is a chance Nintendo will have physical for Switch 3 (or whatever next next gen will be), but that’s about it. We will also probably see many years of small print publishing from smaller publishing houses.

Thankfully I have decades of games in my library.

I sure hope they do - physical market means majority of my active gaming dollars.

 

[Rawbutt Jellybean]

Probably not long until you have to pay a premium for physical. Surprised it hasn't happened already.

 

[V1LÆM]

can’t remember the last time I bought a physical game for PlayStation lol. 2013 maybe. actually might have been GTA V on PS3.

 

[DownLikeBCPowder]

Probably not long until you have to pay a premium for physical. Surprised it hasn't happened already.

Until then, it's literally the opposite. Physical inventory gets price slashed for economic reasons and more, digital just sits and sometimes will hold those high prices much longer.

 

[Punished Miku]

No one could have seen this coming.

 

[geary]

Keep up the physical sales in UK threads. Are highly relevant.

 

[Duchess]

I still buy most of my game physically; indie titles tend to be digital.

However, I have noticed that there seem to be fewer pressings of physical game. Either that, or they're selling out faster. When I try to get some titles on Amazon, they're always out of stock. Have to try Argos, Smyth's Toys, The Game Collection, and other places.

 

[Lambogenie]

When your physical game is just a code..

This should be illegal

 

[Team Andromeda]

It's the way of the world. It's getting harder and harder to find shops that allow you to play with Cash in the UK, never mind finding an actual bank.

 

[Randall365]

The most well known High Street physical game retailer, imaginatively titled ‘Game’ stopped taking used games in Feb ‘24 and rather than being on High Streets is now tucked away in the Sports Direct bargain sportswear shops with little signage. It is just the way it’s going - people have embraced buying digitally and the sales are great now.

 

[Lucifers Beard]

Economy over here in the UK is bad at the moment so I'm not surprised game sales are dropping. A lot of people can barely afford to heat their homes and buy food so it makes sense that some non essential luxury purchases have fallen.

 

[Londo]

Uhm... I'm no expert so my opinion counts as shit, but what gives talking about declining in physical sales if way less discs are being pressed?
Unless we're certain that the same amount have been produced in 2023 and 2024.

 

[ArtHands]

Uhm... I'm no expert so my opinion counts as shit, but what gives talking about declining in physical sales if way less discs are being pressed?
Unless we're certain that the same amount have been produced in 2023 and 2024.

They are printing less discs because there is lower demand.

 

[Zuzu]

Yeah I think I'm done with physical, at least for most of my purchases. I've been won over by digital's convenience, its speed of access, its ability to share a game across two profiles and multiple devices (e.g. Xbox Play Anywhere) and not having clutter caused by game discs and cases in the house. And unlike physical 4k blurays which have a quality improvement over 4k streamed movies, digital games are identical in quality to physical games, so there's no advantage to getting physical from that POV.

 

[Hookshot]

I can only thing of two retailers that stock games anymore. Plus what even came out compared to Hogwarts?

 

[DenchDeckard]

gamepass had a horrendous price hike in 2024 of 15%-25% depending on tier. If sub sales didn't go up that would have been surprising.

So what you are saying is people are retaining their subscriptions but it is maybe not growing at all and definitely isnt in line with the collapse of Physical and digital sales.

 

[MiguelItUp]

Can't think of many games that were released physical that were worth buying last year. Doesn't help some were available on Game Pass, so why would anyone buy physical? Lol.

I get digital's convenience, but I don't get that over physical when the price is exactly the same. Game Pass is the only thing I can understand because it's so affordable and convenient. I mean, the price of Game Pass vs a fully priced retail game is a no brainer IMO.

 

[artsi]

We know the end result

It's just when and who goes first after Xbox

 

[V1LÆM]

i mind buying games out of tesco/asda. if you're lucky you can buy a code for the latest "FIFA" or CoD game there now. they only seem to sell the most popular games. can't remember if i seen Hogwarts being sold.

GAME has gone to shit. Other than that.... C.E.X ? If not then it's Amazon/eBay.

I haven't missed physical games in the last decade and I never will. I laugh at the people who say they refuse to buy a game because it's not available physically or that they will abandon gaming if physical games stop being made! Might as well just quit today because that's the way things are going and you obviously don't care much about games enough.

 

[GinSama]

Isn’t UK economy kind of in a bad state for regular folks? But yeah, overall these are pretty iffy news.

Yes its not the best time around here, I'm in London and although I'm fine ( bought a house and pretty much can hold all my hobbies and never had the need to cut stuff in my life together with my partner) the economy is not great at the moment.

 

[GinSama]

i mind buying games out of tesco/asda. if you're lucky you can buy a code for the latest "FIFA" or CoD game there now. they only seem to sell the most popular games. can't remember if i seen Hogwarts being sold.

GAME has gone to shit. Other than that.... C.E.X ? If not then it's Amazon/eBay.

I haven't missed physical games in the last decade and I never will. I laugh at the people who say they refuse to buy a game because it's not available physically or that they will abandon gaming if physical games stop being made! Might as well just quit today because that's the way things are going and you obviously don't care much about games enough.

Game is getting less and less games here or is just my impression??

 

[Wildebeest]

A great year for games and gaming. Just the best ever. Inflation is a myth and the UK economy bounced back like never before thanks to the hard work of Sunak. And so on.

 

[IDKFA]

It's the way of the world. It's getting harder and harder to find shops that allow you to play with Cash in the UK, never mind finding an actual bank.

 

[Impotaku]

As others have said uk economy is currently shit greedy companies started price hiking everything during the pandemic as the excuse and then kept going meaning for the average person on the street less free cash to spend on luxuries. Gaming is not high up the list of essentials.