UK Game Prices See 7% Increase in 2022

In the UK, the average cost of a video game rose to £36.47 last year, marking a 6.7% increase. According to GfK data from the Entertainment Retailer's Association Yearbook, this growth is based on physical retail sales. In contrast, full-game downloads had an average selling price of £15.19, representing a 7.3% year-over-year increase, as estimated by Omdia. This rise is slightly below the UK's inflation rate of over 10%. Since 2017, the average game price has increased by 12%, with major AAA titles now commonly priced at £70. Top-selling games like FIFA 23, Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2, God of War Ragnarok, and Horizon Forbidden West all carried this higher price tag. The games market saw a slight increase in physical store sales, reaching £150 million, but these stores only accounted for 3.2% of total sales. Online stores and digital platforms dominated the market, making up 96.8% of sales. Physical game sales on the High Street rose to £110 million, a significant increase from £84.1 million in 2021, but still below the pre-pandemic figure of £227.4 million in 2019. Supermarkets like Tesco, Asda, and Sainsbury's generated only £40 million from game sales, accounting for just 8.2% of physical game sales. Home delivery and online stores like Amazon made up the bulk of physical game revenue, with £338.7 million in sales, representing 69% of all physical game revenue. The ERA also revealed sales figures for the Top 20 games, providing insight into purchasing habits. Digital sales continue to rise, albeit slowly, with FIFA 23's digital share at 61.3% and Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2's at 65.3%. PS5 games tend to be more physical, with God of War Ragnarok's digital share at 33.8% and Horizon Forbidden West's at 22.8%, partly due to console bundling. In contrast, PC and Xbox platforms are more digital, with Elden Ring's digital share at 76.3%. The ERA reports that 50% of the Top 20 games were bought via physical outlets, while the other 50% were purchased through digital download stores.