The 'made in Italy' video game industry grows by 3%. Almost 2.4 billion euros will be spent in 2024

The anniversary was an important one, and IIDEA, the Association representing the video game industry in Italy, rightly took the opportunity to present in Rome, at the Ministry of Culture, the report on the state of the art of the video game sector updated to 2024. On National Made in Italy Day, the new portal www.gamesinItaly.it was also launched, a project that provides an interactive map of the realities operating in the production of titles in our country. Thalita Malagò, Director General of IIDEA, also made a heartfelt appeal to the institutions. "Looking to the future," said the manager, "our sector is asking Italian political decision-makers to recognise the videogame as a sector with specific needs and characteristics, a recognition that we believe is crucial for releasing the still unexpressed growth potential, contributing decisively to the country's digital and technological transition. And the response, signed by Lucia Borgonzoni, Undersecretary of State at the Ministry of Culture, arrived precisely on the occasion of the event in Rome, in the form of the 12 million euros of tax credit already recognised to the videogame sector as set out in the decree allocating the Cinema Fund for 2025.

In line with the positive trend of recent years, in 2024 the sector recorded a 3% increase to almost EUR 2.4 billion. Looking more specifically at the final figures, we also discover that it is the software segment that has produced the best performance, with a jump in value of 11% to EUR 1.8 billion, representing 77% of the overall turnover. The app and digital categories also grew significantly, credited respectively with a turnover of 903 and 715 million euro and positive year-on-year balances of 16% and 20%. Negative, on the other hand, is the trend in sales of video games in physical format, down 24% compared to 2023: although the difference with the expenditure incurred for digital titles (which came to 362 million euro) is important, the 201 million euro invested in packaged games is still a significant figure regarding the preferences of Italian fans. Finally, the hardware segment is also down by 18% year-on-year, to EUR 548 million: the last year, reads the note accompanying the report, was a year of transition for the console ecosystem and should be interpreted in the light of a very atypical 2023, characterised by an exceptional software line-up and a boom in device sales after a year of supply difficulties. Projections for 2025, in any case, are optimistic, by virtue of highly anticipated title releases, the launch of more than 80 new video games within the next 24 months (62 of which represent new Italian intellectual properties) and the arrival of new consoles on the market.

A total of 14 million Italians, with an average age of around 31 years, are helping to give breath to the video game industry. By the end of 2024, consumer growth was around 8% and thanks to this small step forward, the gamer community is 33% of the population between 6 and 64 years old. Decisive for this result is the contribution made by female gamers, who reached 5.7 million and are 14% more than the previous year, while their male 'colleagues' are over 8.2 million but up only 2.5% year-on-year. The public of the Peninsula's gamers is confirmed to be mostly adult and has a greater incidence in the 15-24 and 45-64 age brackets, with 80% of the total aged over 18. As for the time dedicated to leisure in front of the monitor, however, 9.6 million Italians dedicate at least one hour a week to this passion, 2.4 million play less frequently and 2.1 million at least once a year. The average weekly gaming time shows a slight recovery after the drop in recent years: in 2024 it stands at 7.49 hours, up from 6.53 hours in 2023. Smartphones and tablets, as far as the devices used for gaming are concerned, are confirmed as the favourite tools of the gaming public, reaching a total of 10.4 million (up 12% compared to 2023), while consoles account for slightly more than half (6.2 million, up 11.5%) and personal computers even less (4.8 million, up 5%).