The UK games industry report provides an overview of the UK games market, companies, and policies. It finds that the UK is the third largest producer of video games, with over 2,000 game companies employing over 12,000 people. The report analyzes market trends such as the growth of mobile gaming and popularity of genres like online multiplayer and sports games. It also profiles major UK game companies, organizations that support the industry, and considers potential impacts of Brexit.
4. 1.1 Purpose
PURPOSE:
1. Provide a detailed overview of the UK games industry
2. Establish its strengths, weaknesses and interesting points
3. Analyze possible future opportunities
5. 1.2 UK Games Industry Overview
• Third largest producer of video games behind Japan and USA
• 2,175 active game companies (1,483 making mobile games) in the
UK, employing 12,100 full time employees
• Some of the world’s most recognizable IPs have been developed in
the UK
6. 46%
54%
1.2.1 UK Game Company Map
592 London
94 Manchester
68 Brighton
67 Guildford & Aldershot
63 Slough & Heathrow
36 Glasgow
51 Cambridge
49 Bristol
41 Sheffield
36 Liverpool
Top 10 Towns by Company
Count (September 2017)
7. 2. UK Game Market Environment
2.1 UK Game Market
2.2 UK Mobile Market
2.3 UK Gamer Profile
8. 2.1 UK Game Market
Top Countries by Game Revenues 2017 (Newzoo Estimate) Top Ranking in Europe
$4.38 Billion
$4.22 Billion
$2.97 Billion
$1.91 Billion
$1.88 Billion
$1.49 Billion
https://newzoo.com/insights/rankings/top-100-countries-by-game-revenues/
9. 2.1.1 UK Game Revenue Growth
3.43
3.53
3.83
4.22
3
3.2
3.4
3.6
3.8
4
4.2
4.4
2014 2015 2016 2017
Yearly UK Game Revenue ($Billions)
+2.9%
+8.2%
+9.7%
Newzoo Global Market Report
10. 2.1.2 UK VS Global Games Market
Console takes a much larger
share of UK revenue compared
to global revenue (52% vs 29%)
2016 UK GAMES MARKET 2017 GLOBAL GAMES MARKET
Consoles have a majority share of
the UK games market, making
nearly 2 times mobile revenue.
11. 2.1.3 UK Games Market Sectors
Mobile games have shown the largest growth
in consumer spend, while boxed software and
pre-owned software has declined.
https://ukie.org.uk/sites/default/files/UK%20Games%20Industry
%20Fact%20Sheet%20December%202017.pdf
Console and PC are the
preferred playing devices,
followed by portable devices.
12. 2.2 UK Mobile Market
https://newzoo.com/insights/rankings/top-50-countries-by-smartphone-penetration-and-users/
13. 2.2.1 UK Mobile Users
Mobile OS Market Share November 2017
50.86 46.45 1.08
iOS Android Windows Phone Blackberry OS
https://www.statista.com/statistics/387227/market-share-of-smartphone-
manufacturers-in-the-uk/
https://www.statista.com/statistics/262179/market-share-held-by-mobile-
operating-systems-in-the-united-kingdom/
14. 2.3 UK Gamer Profile
The largest age group of mobile
gamers is 21-35 for both genders
The US and UK have similar
demographics and game tastes
https://newzoo.com/insights/infographics/the-u-k-gamer-2017/
UK US
15. 2.3.1 UK Gamer Spending Habits
https://yellowheadinc.com/blog/global-mobile-game-market/
16. 2.3.2 UK Gamer preferences
Most popular genres: online multiplayer (x7), open-
world (x6), sports/racing (x3), FPS (x2)
http://www.gamesindustry.biz/articles/2017-01-11-how-well-did-uk-games-retail-perform-in-2016
2017
UK 2017 Top 10 Retail Chart (as of November 4 2017)
http://www.vgchartz.com/yearly/2017/UK/
17. 2.3.3 UK Mobile Game Preferences
Mobile Charts 2017.09.23
Play Store iOS
Casual games and sports (football)
games are especially popular in the
UK
18. 2.3.4 UK Preference Spotlight
• Founded in 1994, based in London
• Developed Championship Manager games until 2003, when it split from Eidos
Interactive and joined Sega
• Football Manager series is especially popular in UK
• Football Manager Mobile and Touch (tablet) are downsized versions of PC games
UK Italy South Korea
Football Manager Mobile iOS Rank History (17.11.9 – 17.12.19)
19. 3. UK Game Companies
3.1 UK Games Industry Timeline
3.2 Publishers with UK Studios
3.3 UK Mobile Developers
20. 3.1 UK Games Industry Timeline (1980-2000)
ZX Spectrum
1982
1987
1991
1994 1996
home
computer
Codemasters
Micro Machines
Psygnosis
Worms
co-founded by Peter
Molyneux
Bullfrog Productions
Rare)
Donkey Kong Country
1995
Team 17
Wipeout
Tomb Raider
Core Design
2000
1997
Grand Theft Auto
DMA
Timesplitters
Free Radical
21. Burnout
2001
2002
2006
2008 2010
Criterion Acquired by
Microsoft
Lionhead
Acquired by Microsoft
for $375M
Rare
Media Moleculedev)
LittleBigPlanet
2009
Arkham Asylum
Rocksteady
Forza Horizon
Playground
Games
2016
Chucklefish
Media Molecule
Eidos
Interactive
acquired by
Square Enix
Publishes
Stardew Valley
2017
Hellblade: Senua's
Sacrifice
Ninja Theory
3.1 UK Games Industry Timeline (2001-2017)
24. • Founded in 2004 in London
• Other studios in New York, Malmo and Sydney
• B2B services, startup fund/incubator
• Monument Valley has 30M downloads*
• Monument Valley 2 won Best Mobile Game at The Game
Awards 2017
*https://ustwo.com/work/monument-valley-2 (2017.12.19)
25. • Founded in 2001, based in Oxford
• Acquired by Zynga in January 2014 for $527M
• Multiple mobile F2P games, CSR Racing is the most popular series
• CSR Racing made $12M in its first month*
CSR Racing 2 US Revenue 2016.7.1 – 2017.12.18
*http://www.develop-online.net/news/naturalmotion-acquires-csr-racing-dev-boss-alien/0112762
26. • Founded in 2010, based in Manchester
• Acquired by TT Games in February 2017, now working on LEGO games
• Golf Clash released in January 2017 and has been its biggest hit
• Golf Clash generated sales of $1.1M in one day (July 4th 2017)
http://www.pocketgamer.biz/news/66206/golf-clash-strikes-
up-1-1-million-in-a-single-day/
http://www.pocketgamer.biz/news/65045/tt-games-acquires-
playdemic-to-make-lego-mobile-games/
Golf Clash US Revenue 2017.1.21 – 2017.12.18
27. • Founded in 2008 by 6 Criterion ex-members
• Based in Guildford
• The Room franchise passed 11.5M sales in 2016*
• Won Apple’s iPad Game of the Year 2012 award
http://www.gamesindustry.biz/articles/2016-10-24-the-room-franchise-has-passed-11-5-million-sales
The Room 3 US Revenue 2015.11.4 – 2017.12.18
28. 4. Organizations and Policies
4.1 UK Game Events
4.2 UK Game Award Ceremonies
4.3 Benefits for UK Developers
4.4 Brexit’s Impact on UK Games Industry
29. 4.1 UK Game Events
22-23 January
20-23 Sep13-15 April
10-12 July
30. 4.2 UK Game Award Ceremonies
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/British_Academy_Games_Award_for_British_Game
Batman: Arkham Knight
Overcooked
Monument Valley
GTA V
The Room Fireproof Games
Ustwo Games
Rocksteady Studios
Ghost Town Games
2012
2013
2014
2015
2016
Rockstar North
31. 4.3 Benefits for UK Developers
https://www.gov.uk/government/news/third-round-of-uk-games-fund-winners-announced
UK Games Fund
UK
Games
Fund
Video
Game
Tax
Relief
TIGA
32. Think it had a
negative impact
(11% opposite)
87% 57% 40% 29%
Hired from outside the
country
Employ staff
from EU
May relocate
4.4 Brexit’s Impact on UK Games Industry
http://www.pocketgamer.biz/news/65249/ukie-brexit-report/
UKIE 2017 Survey Results
33. 4.4.1 Post-Brexit Investment from China
http://www.gamesindustry.biz/articles/2017-07-28-tencent-buys-9-percent-of-frontier-developments
http://www.insider.co.uk/news/chinese-games-developer-skymoons-investment-9866537
• Tencent acquired a 9% stake in Frontier Developments for £17.7M on
July 28 2017.
• Skymoons Digital Entertainment opened a studio in Edinburgh on
February 9 2017, creating 21 jobs.
