UK videogame sales reach all time high

By Ellie Gibson Published 7 January, 2009

Nearly 83 million sold last year.

A record-breaking 82.8 million games were sold in the UK last year, bringing the total amount spent on them to GBP 1.9 billion.

That's according to the Entertainment and Leisure Software Publishers Association (as reported by the BBC).

Game sales were up 23 per cent from 2007, and hardware sales accounted for GBP 1.422 billion. In other words, British shoppers spent GBP 4.3 billion on games in total.

ELSPA boss Michael Rawlinson said it's because so many people who wouldn't know a DualShock from a dustbin lid are buying Wiis, to paraphrase.

"Videogaming is increasingly bringing families together with the introduction of so many outstanding family-based console titles," he actually said.

"These have really opened up the market to those who may never have even considered playing a videogame before."

Picture of Ellie.

About Ellie Gibson

Since joining Eurogamer in the mid 2000s, Ellie has written about subjects as diverse as the fall of Gizmondo, the rise of Hollyoaks actresses in Red Alert games and the noise a bear makes under NSFW circumstances.

Read more articles from Ellie by visiting the Ellie Gibson archive page.

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Comments (28) Latest comment 3 years ago

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

  • itsfuzzy #1 3 years ago

    Holy shit.

    That must include pre owned sales?

  • bioreit #2 3 years ago

    1.9 billion plus 1.422 billion equals 4.3 billion?

    Where'd the extra billion come from? Or is there some shipped-versus-sold magic going on here?

    Edit: Also, t'would be interesting to see the breakdown between formats for both hardware and games sales, maybe with a month by month chart for hardware. Ya'know, as a way of finally pushing through the crap every company goes through about how their particular console or console 'family' is doing the best.
    Edited by 1 at 07/01/09 @ 09:18

  • BartonFink #3 3 years ago

    ELSPA boss Michael Rawlinson said it's because so many people who wouldn't know a DualShock from a dustbin lid are buying Wiis, to paraphrase.

    Oh so true.
    Edited by 1 at 07/01/09 @ 09:18

  • X #4 3 years ago

    Piracy....? What piracy ;)

  • Dan234 #5 3 years ago

    That must include pre owned sales?

    No, because the shops refuse to release the info.

  • Steroyd #6 3 years ago

    Not surprising seeing how you could buy most newly launched games for half price late November - December. :)

    *sits in his stack of games*

  • IronCladChicken #7 3 years ago

    @BartonFink
    Though not necessarily a bad thing

  • MrChuckles #8 3 years ago

    Can someone, anyone find out pre-owned vs new sales... I'd love to know.

  • Rev.StuartCampbell #9 3 years ago

    "Piracy....? What piracy ;)"

    SHUT UP! PIRACY IS THEFT! PIRATES ARE THIEVING SCUM AND ARE DESTROYING THE GAMES INDUSTRY!

    [link url=http://www.mcvuk.com/news/32840/UK-games-market -worth-4bn-in-2008
    ]http://ww w.mcvuk.com/news/32840/UK-games...[/link]

    I see that wildly rampant piracy on the format has also killed the DS, with software unit sales up a mere 30% or so on 2007, and the value of DS software sales only increasing from £314m to £481m.

    [link url=http://www.mcvuk.com/news/328 41/Software-for-Nintendo-formats-sold-over-40m-in-2008 ]http://ww w.mcvuk.com/news/32841/Software...[/link]

    "That must include pre owned sales?"

    Nope.

  • Frumper #10 3 years ago

    "ELSPA boss Michael Rawlinson said it's because so many people who wouldn't know a DualShock from a dustbin lid are buying Wiis, to paraphrase."

    Classic!

  • wellzy4eva #11 3 years ago

    It's not just the Wii, I know lots of people who are buying the whole Guitar Hero: World Tour pack who aren't real gamers, and that sells for £150 a pop.

  • Ste105 #12 3 years ago

    "SHUT UP! PIRACY IS THEFT! PIRATES ARE THIEVING SCUM AND ARE DESTROYING THE GAMES INDUSTRY!"

    Theft is when you steal the original. Copying is not stealing or theft. Is renting Theft in that case, or recording form the radio on to tapes back in the 80's early 90's?

    I personal buy the games i continue to play after i try them.. Most of them i wouldn't every buy for any price, there is a lot of crap out there

    like fallout 3 / Pro evo 9 / far cry 2 all downloaded and tried then i bought the originals

  • X #13 3 years ago

    I detected sarcasm :)

    In 2008 I bought the most games I ever have - 17 360 games, 4 PC games and 6 PS3 games. Call me crazy!

  • Rev.StuartCampbell #14 3 years ago

    1.9 billion plus 1.422 billion equals 4.3 billion?

    Where'd the extra billion come from? Or is there some shipped-versus-sold magic going on here?

    The actual figure given in MCV is £4.03bn, made up of:

    Software £1.91bn
    Hardware £1.42bn
    Peripherals £0.55bn

    Which (more or less) adds up to 4bn.

  • bioreit #15 3 years ago

    "The actual figure given in MCV is £4.03bn, made up of:

    Software £1.91bn
    Hardware £1.42bn
    Peripherals £0.55bn

    Which (more or less) adds up to 4bn.    "

    Less. Much less. That only totals 3.88 billion. So there's still a £150 million discrepancy!

    Ok, not quite a billion, but seeing as Ubisoft was reportedly going to be badly hit because Woolworth's had £1.5 million quid's worth of debt owing, it's still significant!

  • Rev.StuartCampbell #16 3 years ago

    One presumes that there are other elements (XBLA/PSN/VC downloads, perhaps) which are included but weren't detailed in the story. But it's a much smaller discrepancy.

  • quantumsheep #17 3 years ago

    Pre-owned? What pre-owned?


    etc etc.

  • sh0cked #18 3 years ago

    Im not surprised there was a massive increase in games sales! Did none of you see the deals in Gamestation and Game? £19.99 for Fable or Fallout 3 or GOW2!

    Charging realistic prices for games just means people will buy them! I know I bought all 3 of the above instead of the usual 1 game a month!

  • electrolite #19 3 years ago

    NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!

    This means that people who weren't into games are playing games!

    RUN FOR THE HILLS! THE CASUALS ARE COMING! THE END IS NIGH!!1!! etc. et tedious cetera

  • callum9999 #20 3 years ago

    I agree with sh0ck, there were also huge online reductions with many, including new release, games at only £17.99. Because of that I've bought a lot more games than I usually would of.

  • TheWretched #21 3 years ago

    Well yeah... I would love to know how much of these sales were done by real EUROpeans, who imported games, because the Pound wasn't worth anything anymore...

    I alone got 3 games for less than 100€ from the island, for which I would've paid 210€ in Germany. (MS2, Fallout 3 (Uncut... German version has NO desmemberment and NO blood!) and Resistance 2).

    EDIT: And to add to that, how did the rest of Europe fair... I guess they didn't get rise by that much for sure!
    Edited by 1 at 07/01/09 @ 19:17

  • jglover4 #22 3 years ago

    "Theft is when you steal the original. Copying is not stealing or theft."

    Try and justify it however you want fella, you're still a thief and you're still breaking the law.

  • stoopidgreg #23 3 years ago

    23% is crazy awesome

  • electrolite #24 3 years ago

    @ TheWretched. I'd imagine that would be interesting if it made any difference to anything

  • mattius30 #25 3 years ago

    "Theft is when you steal the original. Copying is not stealing or theft."

    Game, movie and music pirating can only ever be popular when its limited to a small number of people. If everyone was doing it - then someone needs to explain to me where the money will come from to actually make all these products? Game companies aren't heavenly angels that hand craft these games just to see the faces of joy on all the little boys and girls that play them.

    If pirating continues to grow, the money will dry up, shareholders will eventually pack up, move onto something else and the games industry will crumble like it did in the early 80s. Because if people are just stealing the games how the hell can a company finance a project? It seems to me that piracy can only work because for now, the majority is happy to be honest and law-abiding and actually buy these games (which in turn finances the company that made the game to continue making games) while leaving the door wide open for the pirate-scum just to nick themselves the goods "because copying isn't stealing." There is a much bigger picture to piracy than just 'copying games' for free - eventually something is going to give way and it will be honest gamers that will suffer.

    For now at least its the domain of the sleazy and the poor who justify their theft by moaning about extortionate prices. Yeah games can be expensive - but if a person can't afford a game - they can't buy it. What's the alternative? Steal it for free???

    Pirates - however you dress it up - you are taking something that doesn't belong to you as you haven't PAID for it. But of course, it doesn't feel like that because all you are doing is clicking a button rather than shoving a box into your coat pocket. The action may be different but the process is the same.

    Though I have just had a thought - I may take up the gentle hobby of identity theft - because all I am doing is copying peoples personal details aren't I?

  • mattius30 #26 3 years ago

    "Is renting Theft in that case, or recording form the radio on to tapes back in the 80's early 90's?"

    Just need to check - when you rent a game, do you just walk into the shop, take the game off the shelf and walk out again? Or do you pay a certain fee to allow you to take it home for a set number of days? And if you don't return it, are you allowed to keep it or are you fined?

    Recording your own personal copy of a radio broadcast is legal - check the literature that comes with your TV and Radio licence - if you have one. Making many many copies of that personal recording and handing out to any stranger that may ask for it - or for that matter selling those tapes at some dodgy car boot sale is not legal.

    Sorry for the Watchdog ranting - but pirates make me MAD!!!!!

  • Ste105 #27 3 years ago

    "Just need to check - when you rent a game, do you just walk into the shop, take the game off the shelf and walk out again? Or do you pay a certain fee to allow you to take it home for a set number of days? And if you don't return it, are you allowed to keep it or are you fined?"

    Ok what if i buy a DVD of a movie then lend it to a few friends for a few months for free. the company that made the dvd is only getting paid once. Is that Piracy? There's not much of a difference from me downloading a movie on Divx, watching it then deleting it.

  • jglover4 #28 3 years ago

    "Ok what if i buy a DVD of a movie then lend it to a few friends for a few months for free. the company that made the dvd is only getting paid once. Is that Piracy?"
    No it's not piracy, it is, however, still illegal (pick up any DVD and read the small print). It's virtually impossible to defend against this happening on a small scale though. If you set up a website (for example) where you offered to lend out your DVD's (having not set yourself up as legally being able to do this) then you might have made yourself visible enough to get caught and charged.

    "There's not much of a difference from me downloading a movie on Divx, watching it then deleting it."
    A) yes there is, and B) as they're both illegal that argument doesn't carry any weight.