Brits spent £3bn on videogames in 2009

By Games Industry.biz Published 6 January, 2010

Last year was second strongest in history.

Despite a global recession, 2009 was the second strongest year on record for the UK games industry, as consumers spent a whopping £3.311 billion on videogames and related products.

Total software sales were £1.621 billion and dominated by Wii games, which shifted 18 million units. Nintendo's console was also bought the most times.

Microsoft's Xbox 360 was most valued player, however, generating £459m from games. That's up four per cent from 2008.

Unsurprisingly, Sony's PS3 gained significant ground thanks to strong exclusive titles like Uncharted 2, and shifted 11.9 million games, which is an improvement of 14 per cent. Sales of the console itself also rose two per cent.

Overall, the public bought 74.6 million games - more than one for every person in the UK - and 6.7 million consoles.

But 2008 remains the strongest year in UK history for videogames, after the public opened their wallets to the tune of £4.034 billion and racked-up software sales of £1.905 billion.

"We cannot forget that 2009 saw the UK economy in the grip of one of the most severe recessions of recent times, which has naturally impacted on the entertainment industry," said ELSPA's Michael Rawlinson. "It is not surprising that the UK videogames industry has weathered the economic storm so well as games represent great value for money.

"The UK videogames market is maturing - we are not seeing such explosive growth as in 2008, a sure sign that the market is coming of age. Consumers are shopping smarter and gaming is becoming more widespread across all demographics - this is demonstrated by the fact that a videogame (Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2) topped the Amazon best-sellers chart for the first time in 2009.

"Thanks to continued innovation from games publishers and developers, opening up new types of games and gaming methods, more and more consumers are becoming gamers and the industry is reaching new audiences."

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Comments (27) Latest comment 2 years ago

Comments threads automatically close after 30 days, but please feel free to continue chatting on the forum!

  • hulahoops #1 2 years ago

    Does this include subscriptions, virtual items, DLC too etc.? As things shift a little more in that direction money's going to move into those sectors too. I'm guessing it does include digital download.

  • Byblos1 #2 2 years ago

    I would be interested to see how the number of games bought per citizen compares with other counties, I reckon we're up there.

  • Quixz #3 2 years ago

    Good to see gaming is healthy in the UK.

  • the_sas_man #4 2 years ago

    Second strongest year on record, even though it was one of the worse financial years in living memory?

    It merely goes to prove how politicians and the media need to support the games industry far more than it does. The videogames sector is quickly become the supporting pillar of the entertainment sector. Without it, many retailers and supermarkets would not have seen strong sales.

    No arguements about it, £3bn is big money. To put that into perspective, Iceland owe the UK government around £1.5bn ifrom the Icesave fiasco, and that brought Iceland to it's knees!

  • wellzy4eva #5 2 years ago

    Problem is what do you class as a game? (Before I get hated, this is not an attack at the Wii specifically)

    I am referring to the shops stocking DS Sudoku, recipe kits, book collections and so on, like a family friendly PDA.

    For instance would you class the Opera Web Browser for the DS as a game?

  • optimusprym8 #6 2 years ago

    If UK beats other EU countries on Games Per Person Bought, cue the stories of it being linked to why UK also beats EU in being the fattest

  • JohnnyWashnGo #7 2 years ago

    It helps that internet bargain sites are becoming more common and that gamers are using them to score bargains.

    That being said, these special editions are quite tempting and usually mean a release day purchase.

  • Lachsgeruch #8 2 years ago

    If this statistic counts all sales done in the UK - even amazon.uk sales - there's a hefty lump coming from the euro-countries. As - due to the overall bad (UK) economy, the pound is at an all-time low, which translates to a fullprice game, costing €30,- incl. shipping from the UK to e.g. Germany. Which is ~60% lower than the EU-prices.

  • miiiguel #9 2 years ago

    I buy almost all my games in UK, and I'm portuguese.

  • Slipstream #10 2 years ago

    Probably not including Pre-owned, which probably earned double/triple that figure (4 for £20 deals etc) and clearly, is even greater value for money.

  • canIdoyabombsforya #11 2 years ago


    All toy and games sales are up. Interestingly the 'other toys and games' graph was rising higher than video games last time I checked. I don't think they're compared together anymore, worth looking up to put into context.



  • Dizzy #12 2 years ago

    I think these figures are a bit skewed since a lot of Europeans now buy games in the uk because of the low pound. I always do and it saves me at least 10 € per game.
    Edited by 1 at 06/01/10 @ 17:32

  • hiddenranbir #13 2 years ago

    But...but...the recession!

  • Hexagon #14 2 years ago

    @ Lachsgeruch

    True. Many informed German gamers, for example, import their games from the United Kingdom to avoid censorship, bans and high prices. Other European gamers import mostly just to circumvent the high prices that they would otherwise have to pay in their countries. There is indeed some truth in joking about the United Kingdom being like a third world shopping paradise for video games for the rest of Europe.

  • thesombrerokid #15 2 years ago

    take into acount the increasing shift towards digital distribution and subscription service revenue and i'd say 2009 easily beats 2008, before 2009 i had about 10 digitally distrobuted games, not all of which were bought in 2008, by the end of 2009 i had well over 70 and maybe 3 new boxed games.

  • spatss #16 2 years ago

    I thought the headline said 'Britney spent £3bn on videogames in 2009'.

    That would've meen much more interesting.

  • Hexagon #17 2 years ago

    @ miiiguel

    I recommend what you do to other Europeans as well. Helping them save €15 to €20 per game with shipping included makes me feel warm and fuzzy inside. Aiding competition within the European Union will force prices down in the long term, benefiting us consumers and support growth in the video games industry. Good stuff.

  • N.A.T.O #18 2 years ago

    I've just imported Rush Rush Rally Racing (Dreamcast homebrew) from Germany to the UK. I'm arse backwards as usual.

  • Hexagon #19 2 years ago

    @ Dizzy

    That may be true but it helps our video game market and aids our neighbours in saving money. The more people do this, the more competition within the European Union will be encouraged. It's a win/win situation really.

  • Jazzy_Geoff #20 2 years ago

    coming over here, taking our games

  • GamesConnoisseur #21 2 years ago

    ^^

    Profits from sales in UK goes toward UK, and increases the pressures on EU retailers to reduce prices.... Ergo win win and how's it's bad?!

    Stats are never 100 percent factual, as too much of other factors or considerations at play such as your dad is actually the Milk Man!

    Feels guilty that I may, or indeed majority of regulars at EG who accounts for a big chuck of the sales over the past year!

  • doomeh #22 2 years ago

    I went to see a band in Nottingham early in the year called No Age. The support was a band called the Lovvers. They were shit but the lead guy was completely obsessed with making us like them. 'Nottingham, your no fun, so boring and soooo boring' is what he kept saying. In the silence that followed some guy shouted 'BLAME THE CREDIT CRUNCH'. We all laughed. It felt apropriate to mention this now. Sorry, not games related.

    Niche markets will always profit. And despite the fact the gaming industry did 3 bill, its still a niche market and the fact that the dicks believe £30 is an acceptable price my bar will continually rise (ooer) and less games purchased.

    Alcohol was a cause for the above post.

  • WJF #23 2 years ago

    Interesting to note that this news has completely eluded the BBC's business section, and yet reports of shoplifting surging (duh!) in a recession does.

    No news like bad news.

  • chrisjm #24 2 years ago

    not win win when uk prices are raised to 'align' them with europe.

  • gjgjg #25 2 years ago

    mmm success

  • Hexagon #26 2 years ago

    @ chrisjm

    And what would cause prices in the United Kingdom to be aligned with those of the rest of the European Union?

  • trip919 #27 2 years ago

    Britain, I salute you!