40 percent rise in video game spending first half of 2018

Consumers have spent 40 percent more on video games during the first half of 2018 compared to the first half of 2017. GamesIndustry writes that the NPD Group reported consumers in the United States spend $19.5 billion dollars from January tot June 2018, with the biggest growth in hardware.

The Xbox One had the biggest impact on these hardware sales, which also were boosted by the NES Classic Edition and SNES Classic Edition from Nintendo. The NES Classic was also the best selling hardware in June 2018.

Most of the revenue can however still be found in software. Spending on games, including subscriptions and microtransactions, grew by 43 percent to $16.9 billion. Mobile games are the biggest part of this growth, with games like Fortnite, Candy Crush, PUBG and Roblox leading the pack, but console titles like God of War and Far Cry 5 played their part.