Gamers ditch traditional consoles in favour of Pokemon Go and World of Warcraft
The games console market will find little to console itself with in the run up to Christmas this year after publication of new growth data for September showed the market contracting by 14 per cent as gamers migrate to mobile and massively multiplayer online (MMO) titles, principally via runaway hits such as Pokemon Go and World of Warcraft.
Pokemon Go proved to be the standout viral hit of the summer with big brands such as McDonald's scrambling to tie-up sponsorship deals with the games makers, Niantic.
For its part, World of Warcraft has helped fuel growth in eSports with hundreds of millions of people around the world tuning in to watch live streams of tournaments.
In a further blow to the industry the survey compiled by Superdata also found that double digit growth slipped back with the arrival of autumn, falling to five per cent and taking revenue down to $6.2bn over the month.
In contrast the mobile and MMO markets continued to bask in stellar growth; increasing by 11% and 12% respectively to bring in $3bn and $264.7m in revenues.
Commenting on the figures Superdata chief executive Joost van Dreunen said: “"The... worldwide console market is already a competitive battleground for major AAA publishers, but the growing number of legacy franchises with large bundles of additional content released between sequels will make the platform even more competitive and inhospitable for newcomers.
"Franchises like Destiny and Call of Duty can not only charge a premium upfront price, but continue to take the lion's share of console spending for months or even years."
Sony’s hopes of a Christmas rebound with the release of its PSVR headset were also scotched by van Dreunen, who warned that a lack of AAA software going into the holiday season would place a cap on growth.
Perhaps sensing these tectonic forces at play Sony has itself vowed to 'aggressively' gtarget the mobile market going forward.
Content created with:
Sony
Sony Corporation is one of the leading manufacturers of electronic products. Its business also includes gaming, entertainment, and financial services.
Find out more