Video Game Sales Could Rise Above $225 Billion In Just A Few Years

There's no question that the video game industry is making mad money right now, fueled by terrific AAA and indie releases alike, along with new hardware that truly innovates. And a new report suggests that it's just getting started when it comes to raking in the money

Digi-Capital's Games Report Q1 2018 suggests that, between video game hardware and software sales, the industry could very well make anywhere between $230 to $235 billion by the year 2022. Out of that, software sales are expected to be approximately 75 percent of that revenue, with physical and digital sales, as well as Microtransactions and add-on content.

The report also notes that PC and mobile will continue to be a healthy portion of the market, with mobile software alone expected to deliver up to $60 billion in revenue by the end of this year, and up to $95 billion by 2022.

As for PC, that market, while not as big, will still make a killing with $35 billion in revenue by the end of this year, and up to $45 billion by the time 2022 rolls around. Games are also expected to play a big part in that, up to $25 billion this year, and reaching $30 billion in four years.

Console revenues will still be big, but are expected ti take up just one-sixth of the overall market. The report also noted that both virtual and augmented reality will grow, but won't quite be on the same level as PC and mobile. It estimates that it will just take up less than one percent of the overall industry.

As for how the industry will end up overall this year, Digi-Capital believes that revenues will reach $165 to $170 billion by the end of this year, with mobile and PC leading the charge, and consoles like the Nintendo Switch and Xbox One X making an impact. And investments will continue to rise in small start-up companies in the industry, as $2 billion alone was put into creating them. Will this number continue to rise as well? Possibly.

So, yeah, things are definitely looking up for the industry. Video games aren't going anywhere anytime soon.

(Thanks to GamesIndustry International for the scoop!)