2019 Trends and Predictions in the Games Industry

The global video game industry went through some exciting developments.

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January 16th,  2019

To start the year, we wanted to go over some of the most major on-going trends, and provide predictions on how they will continue to impact the gaming landscape in 2019.

A Revolution in Game Streaming & Advertising

Just recently, Google unveiled “Project Stream” and soon afterwards began testing its potential with the help of Ubisoft’s “Assassin’s Creed: Odyssey”. What makes this solution so intriguing is the fact that it will try to enable streaming graphically-demanding games on any plain PC.

While not the first one to attempt this, Google certainly possesses the resources and the necessary partners, in order to make the concept work and bring it to the market relatively quickly.

The Rise of Non-Gaming Celebrity-Influencers

The second prediction has to do with the new direction in influencer marketing: hiring an increasing number of well-known people from other entertainment industries as ambassadors for gaming brands.

This practice has also existed for a while, but with recent, highly-successful campaigns to feature A-list actors like Ryan Reynolds (of “Deadpool” fame), it seems that Hollywood and the mainstream are embracing gaming as a popular entertainment medium.

China Back on Their Feet, One Step at a Time

While undoubtedly dangerous, the Chinese freeze on newly-introduced games will most likely be lifted by mid-2019. Nevertheless, with the substantial losses experienced by both local and foreign companies, the biggest gaming market in the world will continue to see a slower growth compared to earlier years like 2017.

The Growth of Mobile Gaming in the West

While mobile gaming may be huge in China at the moment, the rest of the world has slowly been making the same transition

For example, much to the surprise of its fans, Blizzard announced that after waiting for almost 7 years since Diablo III, the next installment they’d get a chance to play would be one on mobile devices.

So it seems logical that in 2019, we will likely witness several other giants within the gaming landscape announce similar plans. 

 

Increased In-Game Purchase Regulations

By the end of 2018, PEGI (Pan European Game Information) will have fully introduced a new rating icon on physical game copies to notify the buyer that they include in-game purchase possibilities. Moreover, the increased global efforts this year to ban loot boxes do not seem to be coming to an end any time soon.

When looking at these factors together, among others, the fifth in our predictions is that in 2019, companies who mostly rely on in-game micro-transactions will surely continue to experience monetization challenges. 

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