The latest data indicates that the global gaming market is going to be worth $189 Billion in 2024, while Newzoo has also released data that indicates that generative AI is not going to impact game production at scale this year.
In 2023, the gaming market generated an estimated $184 billion, which is a marginal increase of 0.6% from the year before. One of the main reasons behind this huge level of growth would be the launch of new hardware solutions along with the popularity of mobile gaming. Anticipated hits, along with live-service games and back-catalog sales, are also set to be driving a huge level of growth within the sector.
The Surge in Mobile Gaming
Mobile gaming is increasing at an exponential rate, with downloads increasing by over 30% year over year. A lot of this is due to the popularity of the casino sector. New Jersey is breaking records right now, with a reported $182.3 million in iGaming revenue in February 2024, compared to $142.6 million in the same period last year. Real money online casino NJ providers tend to be popular with users due to the wide range of games and general accessibility for mobile devices. With the surge in mobile gaming, it’s not surprising to see that this is having a huge impact on the gaming market as a whole.
Even though gaming companies are adopting risk-reduced strategies, such as avoiding new IPs and instead focusing on sequels, the market as a whole is bolstering. There’s a lot of hope being put into generative AI.
AI is Not Going to Influence the Market This Year
Although generative AI gives high hopes for the gaming market, it’s not influencing anything this year. Many studios are using AI tools to create games, and it will certainly ramp up efficiency over the coming years. That said, it’s not set to impact the gaming sector as a whole in 2024. AI is advancing at an unprecedented speed, but this year, use cases seem to be proven and selective.
Going forward, generative AI could help to create a new gaming frontier that will elevate content and make characters from virtual worlds more expansive and personalized. One example would be the partnership between Microsoft and InWorld AI. They aim to create a toolset that will generate dialogue, characters, and quests. This means that experiences will be more player-driven rather than limited to set interactions. The goal overall is to capitalize on current growth and increase gamer interest, which will have a huge impact on retention and revenue moving forward.
Even though the gaming sector is poised to adopt generative AI, it seems that this year, things are going steady. Developers are happy to focus on what’s working rather than taking risks with adopting new technology. With that in mind, the future is bright and it will be interesting to see new advancements within the gaming sector come to life. This is particularly the case with AI and the possibilities it could offer.
