Quarantine triggers spike in video game sales

Video game sales exploded last month, with March experiencing record highs not seen since 2008

Video game spending has experienced a spike as Covid-19 fears and government-imposed quarantines force millions of home-bound people worldwide to seek an end to boredom.

   

New trends in spending on video games have resulted in March figures reaching in record highs, with revenue pouring in at rates not seen for over a decade. The spending on video game hardware, software and accessories, jumped 35% this March from last year’s $1.6 billion — reversing a seven-month streak of declines. Last month’s sales produced the highest figures for March since 2008, according to industry-tracking firm NPD Group. 

The spike was fuelled by the Nintendo Switch sales that have more than doubled. Shares of Nintendo are up more than 20% since the new game Animal Crossing: New Horizon was released on March 20. The game quickly moved to the top of the list of best-selling games last month edging out second in rank, Call of Duty: Modern Warfare.

Back in March of 2008 it was the mega hits “Super Smash Bros. Brawl” for Nintendo Wii that was leading the list. Wedbush analyst Michael Pachter said that much of the sales spike could be attributed to customers being stuck indoors, estimating that video gaming is up by 20%, compared to where it was before the pandemic. He further added: “Nintendo released a big game and they had parents who are locked in with their kids feeling guilty. But the numbers shocked me.” 

   

As video game sales grow, people are also starting to gamble more on eSports. Players use apps like Play One Up to gamble on games such as NBA 2K, Fortnite and FIFA. Last month the app  saw 10,000 one-on-one matches, a figure the app’s developer and CEO, Brandon Pitts said is double its usual traffic. 

As we reported in the beginning of this week The Global Consumer Research Agency 2CV, and the Market Researcher ProdegeMR, estimate eSports 2020 gambling revenue to grow to a massive $14 billion; double 2019’s figure of $7 billion. 

 

Get more: SiGMA TV

Looking to increase your knowledge of current trends in the global gaming industry? Get the latest iGaming news from SiGMA news. If you didn’t have time to keep up with our daily headlines, we’ve got you covered! Get your weekly rundown news fix on all the latest updates around the globe on , hosted by Jess Walker and Yanni Collins and enjoy intriguing interviews with industry leaders such as Alex Dreyfus of Chiliz.com, Socios.com & Albert Climent of Bluesea Gaming!