WASHINGTON: Video games have reportedly been seeing exceptional growth during the COVID-19 pandemic which has kept billions indoors.
Evidence of the gaming surge was seen in strong results this week from Activision Blizzard, which stated an average of 102 million people played its games such as Call of Duty online monthly the first quarter of this year.
The company reported growth in titles such as Overwatch, World of Warcraft, and the popular color-matching smartphone game “Candy Crush. Electronic Arts, meanwhile, saw players flock to online sports in hit franchises devoted to soccer, baseball, and American football.
“They are gaming so much they are wearing out their devices,” said analyst Ted Pollak of Jon Peddie Research. A report by Futuresource Consulting called gaming “The shooting star of the entertainment industry” which is expected to grow its share of the sector to 36 percent by 2023 from 31 percent last year.
“Following a record-breaking year in 2019, with gaming software generating $143 billion of consumer spend, the industry is now poised for further growth, with captive audiences worldwide acting as a catalyst,” the research added.
Last month, Facebook launched a standalone gaming app, allowing users to create and watch live streams of games in a challenge to the Amazon-owned Twitch platform.
The new app was available for Android devices, with a separate version for Apple’s iOS in the works.
The lockdown gaming craze appears to be luring people of all ages. Young children have turned to titles such as Roblox, which allows for creative, user-generated experiences.
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