U.S. Video Game Spending Increases 30% In Second Quarter to $11.6 Billion

Gamers in the United States spent a record $11.6 billion on gaming hardware and software in the second quarter of this year, a 30% year-over-year increase from Q2 2019.

Analyst outfit NPD Group released its regular quarterly survey of U.S. games consumers Aug. 10. NPD Group’s analysis found that the Q2 spending total was also up 7% compared to Q1 of this year.

Overall video game content sales increased 28% annually to $10.2 billion in the second quarter. Digital console, mobile, subscription spending and new physical games all recorded an increase in player spend.

NPD Group reported gaming hardware sales increased 57% annually to $848 million, driven by “strong growth across Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4 and Xbox One” consoles. Sales of gaming accessories including gamepads and headsets doubled year-over-year, totaling $584 million in Q2.

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“Today, we have more video game players playing for more hours, while spending more in the process; and what gamers old and new are discovering is an industry that has a wide array of experiences available to them regardless of device and budget,” NPD Group analyst Mat Piscatella said in a statement Monday. “During the pandemic, many have turned to video games not only to keep them preoccupied, but also to stay in touch with family and friends. This has resulted in an acceleration of what were already established trends towards heightened video game player engagement (and) don’t see any signs of this slowing down.”

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