The UK market for video games reached a record £7 billion in 2020, an increase of +29.9% from 2019, beating 2018’s previous record by more than a billion pounds.

While 2020 was a difficult year for many, with impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic affecting nearly every aspect of daily life, homebound consumers turned to games for entertainment and as a way to virtually connect with friends and families.

Ukie’s annual games market valuation shows software revenue grew +18.% to £4.55 billion, with increases across both digital and physical sales. Game hardware saw a record year, with consumers kitting themselves up with new consoles, accessories and upgraded PC game components, driving hardware revenues up +60.8% year on year to reach £2.26 billion.

The game culture section of the valuation, measuring revenue from wider game-related revenues, saw a more mixed picture. While overall game culture revenues grew to £199 million thanks to sizeable increases in sales in areas such as toys and merchandising, for game-related events, COVID-19 impacts led to serious challenges. To read Ukie’s press release in full and for access to the data, click here.