You can’t deny that 2021 has been quite the year for the gaming industry. With big-time giants slowing down their game releases and indie game studios becoming extra active, the gaming industry has changed. The gaming industry has gained the title of being one of the most lucrative industries and is growing day by day. It has superseded all benchmarks commercially as well as technically.
Advancements like Extended reality (AR, VR, and MR) and people’s inclination toward gaming, and the pandemic are all major reasons behind the boom in 3rd games. Globally the gaming market is predicted to reach a whopping $256.97 billion by 2025. The trends in the gaming industry keep on changing but some are evergreen.
Let’s take a look at those which will rule 2022-
A hike in mobile gaming- When it comes to this industry a trend that has been gaining popularity over the last decade is mobile gaming. It’s expected that the mobile gaming industry will see a 14% CAGR by 2025. This is a direct outcome of the advancing technological developments in mobile hardware and the growing penetration of these devices as well as cheap data packs. Experts predict that mobile gaming will rise even more in 2022 because of free-to-play and play-to-earn business models. More AAA games will probably be released soon as gamers are looking for games with more social features constantly.
Cross-Platform Gaming- This trend will be the defining point in 2022 for the gaming industry. Developing games that can be played using multiple systems and consoles has been tough in the past. But in 2021 with sheer determination and lots of experimentation, gamers have made cross-platform gaming a reality. And 2022 is predicted to see a rise in this phenomenon.
Blockchain-based gaming- The potential for the blockchain- video game market in mind-boggling. This technology prevents hackers from modifying or destroying an online transaction by using advanced data encryption technology. As per Newzoo, the value of the Blockchain game market will go up to $218 billion. It will benefit the gaming industry by making in-game purchases safer and allowing greater control for players to move from play2win to the play2earn model.
Casual games will be the boss- In 2020 reports stated that hyper-casual games were dominant in the industry. After all, they are easy to play with and don’t tax your brain, so you have a few cells left for your other half! There will be an increase of 11.9 % in the casual games segment by 2026. These numbers hint at some promising rise in the segment.
Cloud Gaming will set the industry on the flame- Cloud gaming has the potential to change the face of the gaming industry. It will allow remote access to gaming content and eliminate the need to sell your kidneys for expensive hardware. The current players in the industry are Amazon Luna, Play Station Now, Xbox cloud gaming, etc. With Google promising to launch 100 new games on its cloud platform the future seems brighter.
The Metaverse- One of the biggest things coming your way is the Metaverse. Due to the steep rise in interest during the pandemic, the Metaverse may be worth freaking $800 billion by 2024. What exactly is Metaverse? It’s varied virtual experiences, environments, and digital assets. Epic Games and Roblox are at the top of the pyramid, increasing the traction Metaverse has in the gaming industry. An Epic game property Fortnite hosted a virtual concert that attracted 12 million people.
With so many trends to look forward to in 2022, gaming verse is surely going to be exciting. Tell us which trend you’re looking forward to.
