Trends in the gaming industry and what to look out for next

As the newest format in the global entertainment industry, games are becoming more popular and interactive. Recent self-isolation has given it additional acceleration and motivation, in addition to the the annual rise in gaming industry trends. Today, modern online gambling solutions are no longer considered simply entertainment; they are becoming a new platform for communication, earnings, transforming business, the education system, and gradually blurring the boundaries between the virtual and the real.

In this post, we’ll focus on the top trends in the gaming industry in 2021. These will include the development of cloud gaming, new challenges for mobile developers, virtual events – and even a $1 deposit casino solution.

Global statistics of the industry

According to Statista forecasts, by the end of this year, the number of gamers will reach one-third of the world’s population. The growth driver of the gaming industry is cloud technology, which enables fast and uninterrupted data transfer between remote computers.

The technology allows users to run the most demanding games not on the user’s device but a remote server (cloud) with minimal latency. The server works according to the streaming model: it transmits audio and video streams to the gamer, who, in turn, controls the game right from the device. At the same time, there is no need to spend money on an expensive computer upgrade — one can start the game from any gadget, regardless of its capacity.

Cloud technology makes games more democratic and functional. Major market players, such as Google, Nvidia, Sony and others, are deploying resource-intensive applications without being tied to hardware capabilities. Their services Google Stadia, GeForce Now, PlayStation Now and so on promise users complete freedom of virtual gaming without any technical restrictions.

According to experts, the cloud gaming market is a priority trend in the industry. Newzoo expects that this year its turnover will exceed $1 billion for the first time. This is facilitated by the global introduction of 5G as a data transfer standard.

New opportunities for earning money

Gaming is one of the main hobbies of the new generation – over 2.5 billion people play video games. For many users, making money on withdrawal games has become a very real way to replenish the wallet. With a small investment, a powerful PC, a webcam and a headset, top streamers earn tens or even hundreds of thousands of dollars playing games. According to Statista, Felix xQc Lengjel earned the most in 2020, only on Twitch, raking in more than $1.5 million without donations. It’s worth adding that in addition to this there is scope for further income in advertising contracts, donations and earnings from YouTube.

Thanks to these gaming trends, people not only play video games but also watch as others play. Thus, 71% of millennial players have watched online streaming of games on various platforms, such as Twitch and YouTube.

Advertising in games with IAP

Most game developers with IAPs (those that monetise through in-app purchases with real money) are beginning to adapt to in-app ads. In a fiercely competitive environment, ad quality grows, with engaging and user-friendly formats such as Offerwalls or Rewarded used to increase effect. Thus, for many players, the Rewarded format is preferable to direct in-app costs.

And there is an explanation for the fact that monetisation will begin to grow due to advertising in particular: the cost of acquiring a user who will make purchases under the IAP is growing every year. For many marketers, it will be more profitable to monetise with ads rather than IAPs.

Top three mobile games right now

Analyst firm Sensor Tower shared statistics on the top-grossing mobile games worldwide for August 2021:

• The world’s most profitable mobile game in August 2021 was Tencent’s PUBG Mobile with approximately $270 million in player spending, up 4.7% from August 2020.

• The Honor of Kings from Tencent’s became the world’s second largest-grossing mobile game in August 2021 with gross revenues of $256.2 million, which is up about 3% from August 2020.

• Genshin Impact from miHoYo closed the top three top-grossing charts of mobile gaming trends.

The situation with gaming changes every day, but it will definitely develop and offer many new solutions.

The editorial unit