Video game prices keep on rising. While people across many countries have been facing rising costs of living, the fact is our beloved hobby is also getting more costly, as new figures show the average amount spent on a game has risen.
In the UK, the average amount of money spent on a single video game last year increased by 6.7 percent to £36.47 (around $43 USD). This is based on data for physical retail sales, according to GfK via the Entertainment Retailer’s Association Yearbook (viaGamesIndustry.biz). The increase for digital downloads was bigger, with the average selling price rising by 7.3 percent over last year, to £15.19 (nearly $18 USD). The latter data point comes via Omdia (viaEurogamer).
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In fact, the average selling price of games has risen by 12 percent since 2017. But last year saw price increases for major launch titles as current-gen prices have notably increased for many triple-A games compared to the previous gen. Some of the biggest selling games now sell for £70 at launch in the UK.
These include FIFA 23 (2.5m sales), Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 (1.68m sales), God of War Ragnarok (670,000 sales), and Horizon Forbidden West (530,000 sales). All figures are for the UK. In addition, consoles have gotten pricier with Sony raising the price for the PlayStation 5 by £30 last year. The Japanese company blamed inflation for the rising cost, with Europe getting a €50 increase. (The US did not see a price hike.)
However, the rise in the average amounts spent on video games was a little below the inflation rate in the UK, which was just over 10 percent last year. Perhaps that takes the edge off of things a little bit considering the general rise in cost of living over 2022.
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