Surge in Italian Video Game Market: 2.3 Billion Euros and 13 Million Gamers in 2023

In 2023, the Italian video game market experienced a significant surge in growth, reaching 2.3 billion euros and increasing by 5% from the previous year, according to a report by IIDEA titled “Video games in Italy in 2023.” This places Italy among the top five European markets in the sector, with 13 million gamers across various devices, representing about one-third of the Italian population aged 6 to 64.

Italian video gamers are predominantly men, with 8 million (61%) and an average age of 30, while female gamers numbered 4.9 million (38%) with an average age of 31. There was also a new figure reported for the first time in 2023: individuals who identify as neither male nor female accounted for about half a million people.

Mobile devices remain the most popular gaming platforms in Italy, with over nine million users playing Brain/Puzzle (20%), Trivia (18%), and Role Playing/Strategy (16%) games. Consoles followed closely behind with over five million gamers focusing on Sports (29%), Racing (26%), and Shooter (22%) genres. PCs were used by almost five million gamers primarily for Strategy (19%), Shooter (16%), and Sports (14%) games. In terms of frequency, around seven out of ten players played at least one hour per week, averaging about six hours weekly – down from seven hours in the previous year but still above other European markets post-pandemic.

The hardware segment had a remarkable year in Italy due to new consoles available on the market. Hardware sales increased by an estimated value of approximately €487 million ($550m) or around €70m more than they did in the previous year – up around €70%. Accessories also saw growth in sales by about €178m ($195m) or around €46m more than they did last year – up around €46%. Despite this increase, software remains the largest segment within the Italian gaming market at €1.6 billion ($1750m) or approximately €70m less than it did last year – down from around €8 billion or about $875m ($950m). New game purchases increased slightly by around €777 million ($850k) or around €46% from last year’s total of €1689 million ($1845k). Physical sales accounted for nearly half of these purchases at approximately €389 million ($435k) while digital channels made up roughly half at approximately €394 million ($445k).