PC Gaming Sees Explosive Growth in Japan, Tripling in Size Over 4 Years

Japan’s gaming scene is experiencing a major shift, with PC gaming rising as a dominant force in the industry. According to the Computer Entertainment Supplier’s Association (CESA), Japan’s PC games market has experienced an amazing surge. From 2019 to 2023, the market nearly tripled in size, skyrocketing from ¥82.2 billion ($560 million) to ¥236.4 billion ($1.61 billion). This represents a staggering 187.5% growth over just four years.

It’s important to note that these figures solely reflect software (video game) sales, excluding hardware and peripheral revenues. Kantan Games analyst Serkan Toto points out that while these numbers might seem modest in dollar terms, they should be viewed in the context of the weakened Japanese yen over recent years. (Thanks to Game World Observer)

In 2023, PC gaming made up 13% of Japan’s total video game revenue, which is a huge increase compared to just 5% in 2019. This highlights the rapid expansion of the PC gaming sector in the country that historically favored console gaming.

While PC gaming has seen explosive growth, other segments have shown more modest increases:

• Console gaming: Grew by 39% to ¥386 billion ($2.6 billion)
• Mobile gaming: Increased by 5.9% to ¥1.23 trillion ($8.4 billion)

Interestingly, both console and mobile segments have remained relatively stagnant since 2020, with console revenues actually declining by 2.1% after an initial pandemic-driven boost.

Valve’s recent business update aligns with the CESA data, indicating that Steam’s user base has expanded considerably across various Asian regions. According to Valve, Japan, in particular, has seen its number of new Steam users surge by over 150% since 2019.

Furthermore, Japan now ranks 10th among countries for Steam games with over 100,000 owners/developers (considering releases from 2021 to 2024), commanding a 1.97% share.

For more information, visit Game World Observer. And remember to subscribe to Gaming Foodle for more news!

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