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The game development software market is estimated to grow at a CAGR of 5.38% between 2022 and 2027. The size of the market is forecast to increase by USD 59.31 million. The growth of the market depends on several factors, including the rising demand for PC gaming and gaming consoles, the increase in demand for mobile gaming, and the growing popularity of eSports tournaments.
This report extensively covers market segmentation by component (game engine and audio engine), end-user (enterprises and individuals), and geography (North America, APAC, Europe, South America, and Middle East and Africa). It also includes an in-depth analysis of drivers, trends, and challenges. Furthermore, the report includes historic market data from 2017 to 2021.
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The reports categorize the global game development software market as a part of the global application software market within the global IT software market. The overall global IT software market covers companies that are engaged in developing and producing application and system software. It also includes companies offering database management software. Our research report has extensively covered external factors influencing the parent market growth during the forecast period.
The rising demand for PC gaming and gaming consoles is notably driving market growth, although factors such as the growing popularity of open-source game development software may impede the market growth. Our researchers analyzed the data with 2022 as the base year, along with the key drivers, trends, and challenges. A holistic analysis of drivers will help companies refine their marketing strategies to gain a competitive advantage.
Key Game Development Software Market Driver
The rising demand for PC gaming and gaming consoles is notably driving market growth. Several companies that offer PCs have improved their device configurations to support gaming. The introduction and popularity of gaming consoles such as Xbox and PlayStation have led to the development of the modern video game industry. PC and console games contributed more than 50% to the global video game market in 2022.
Most vendors in the PC gaming industry are delivering games as downloadable content. Hence, customers do not have to purchase physical media such as CDs or DVDs. The games are available on digital distribution platforms such as Steam by Valve Corp. The demand for the digital distribution of PC games is also growing. The rise in demand for PC games and gaming consoles will encourage developers to develop new games. This will lead to an increase in demand for game development software during the forecast period.
Significant Game Development Software Market Trend
The adoption of AR/VR devices is the key trend in the market. With the rising awareness about AR gaming, the adoption of AR/VR devices is likely to increase during the forecast period. Therefore, game developers prefer AR/VR devices to traditional gaming devices. This is encouraging various enterprises to launch AR/VR devices to cater to the growing demand.
Various enterprises are launching AR/VR games and adopting business strategies for VR games. In June 2021, Facebook, Inc. acquired virtual reality (VR) firm BigBox VR, the company behind the multiplayer VR game. These developments will increase the adoption of AR/VR games. This will encourage developers to launch such games and, in turn, increase the demand for game development software during the forecast period. These developments will increase the adoption of AR/VR games. This will encourage developers to launch such games and, in turn, increase the demand for game development software during the forecast period.
Major Game Development Software Market Challenge
Open-source game development software poses a significant threat to the market. This type of software is becoming popular in developing economies such as India and China, as it can be downloaded and run on all platforms. The use of open-source game development software involves low upfront costs for enterprises and provides them with high flexibility. Thus, SMEs and individual developers prefer to use open-source game development software to expand their businesses at a low cost. Various enterprises are offering this software to cater to the growing demand.
For instance, Xiamen Yaji Software Co. Ltd. offers Cocos2d-x, an open-source, cross-platform game development framework that supports 2D and 3D game creation. The solution provides features such as GUI, graphics rendering, network, audio, physics, and user input. It is widely used in interactive application construction and game development. The increase in demand for open-source game development software will hinder the market during the forecast period.
Key Game Development Software Market Customer Landscape
The report includes the adoption lifecycle of the market, covering from the innovator’s stage to the laggard’s stage. It focuses on adoption rates in different regions based on penetration. Furthermore, the report also includes key purchase criteria and drivers of price sensitivity to help companies evaluate and develop their growth strategies.
Global Game Development Software Market Customer Landscape
Vendors are implementing various strategies, such as strategic alliances, partnerships, mergers and acquisitions, geographical expansion, and product/service launches, to enhance their presence in the market.
Unity Software Inc. - The company offers game development software that includes all Unity Plus features offering complete solutions for professionals to create and operate. The company offers a wide range of products such as Unity Pro, Unity Enterprise, Unity Mars, and many more.
The report also includes detailed analyses of the competitive landscape of the market and information about 15 market vendors, including:
Qualitative and quantitative analysis of vendors has been conducted to help clients understand the wider business environment as well as the strengths and weaknesses of key market players. Data is qualitatively analyzed to categorize vendors as pure play, category-focused, industry-focused, and diversified; it is quantitatively analyzed to categorize vendors as dominant, leading, strong, tentative, and weak.
The market share growth of the game engine segment will be significant during the forecast period. A game engine is a software framework that is used to create and build video games. Developers use this platform to incorporate features such as animation and artificial intelligence in their games. Game engines are responsible for applications such as memory management and rendering graphics. Developers do not have to develop games from scratch, as game engines consist of many preset libraries, modules, tools, and effects. The increasing adoption of mobile devices and high Internet penetration will drive the demand for new mobile games. The increase in demand for mobile games will encourage new game developers and enterprises to opt for game engines.
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The game engine segment was valued at USD 129.36 million in 2017 and continue to grow by 2021. Vendors are offering solutions to capitalize on the growing demand for game engines and gain market share. For instance, Unity Technologies Inc. (Unity Technologies) offers the Unity engine with a simple interface to develop games. This game engine helps in developing games for multiple platforms. Using the Unity engine, developers can create games for iOS, Android, and other phone operating systems. These factors will increase the demand for game engines and, in turn, drive the growth of the market during the forecast period.
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APAC is estimated to contribute 41% to the growth of the global market during the forecast period. Another region offering significant growth opportunities to vendors is North America. Technavio’s analysts have elaborately explained the regional trends and drivers that shape the market during the forecast period.
The market in North America is expected to grow due to the increase in demand for console games. Game developers and game publishing enterprises are launching new games or upgrading existing ones to cater to the growing demand for console games. Though online and personal computer (PC) games contribute a significant share of revenue to the market in North America, the revenue generated from the sales of console games is growing quickly. Hence, console games are the primary area of focus for game developers and game publishing enterprises in North America. As a result, the demand for game development software is expected to increase in the region during the forecast period.
The COVID-19 outbreak leveraged the regional gaming industry as the lockdown created the need for recreational activities, such as gaming. Also, the adoption of business strategies by key players in the gaming industry and the addition of new games in their portfolios will increase the demand for game development software and, thus, positively impact the market during the forecast period.
The report forecasts market growth by revenue at global, regional & country levels and provides an analysis of the latest trends and growth opportunities from 2017 to 2027. The market has been segmented by Component (Game engine and Audio engine), End-user (Enterprises and Individuals), and Geography (North America, APAC, Europe, South America, and Middle East and Africa).
Game Development Software Market Scope |
|
Report Coverage |
Details |
Page number |
162 |
Base year |
2022 |
Historic period |
2017-2021 |
Forecast period |
2023-2027 |
Growth momentum & CAGR |
Accelerate at a CAGR of 5.38% |
Market growth 2023-2027 |
USD 59.31 million |
Market structure |
Fragmented |
YoY growth 2022-2023(%) |
5.02 |
Regional analysis |
North America, APAC, Europe, South America, and Middle East and Africa |
Performing market contribution |
APAC at 41% |
Key countries |
US, Japan, China, UK, and Germany |
Competitive landscape |
Leading Vendors, Market Positioning of Vendors, Competitive Strategies, and Industry Risks |
Key companies profiled |
Adobe Inc., Amazon.com Inc., Apricot Investments Ltd., Audiokinetic Inc., Autodesk Inc., Bandicam Co., Degica Co. Ltd., Electronic Arts Inc., Epic Games Inc., Firelight Technologies Pty Ltd., GameSalad Inc., Microsoft Corp., NVIDIA Corp., Perforce Software Inc., Playtech Plc, Scirra Ltd., Silicon Studio Corp., The Game Creators Ltd., Unity Software Inc., and ZeniMax Media Inc. |
Market dynamics |
Parent market analysis, Market growth inducers and obstacles, Fast-growing and slow-growing segment analysis, COVID-19 impact and recovery analysis and future consumer dynamics, and Market condition analysis for the forecast period. |
Customization purview |
If our report has not included the data that you are looking for, you can reach out to our analysts and get segments customized. |
We can help! Our analysts can customize this report to meet your requirements. Get in touch
1 Executive Summary
2 Market Landscape
3 Market Sizing
4 Historic Market Size
5 Five Forces Analysis
6 Market Segmentation by Component
7 Market Segmentation by End-user
8 Customer Landscape
9 Geographic Landscape
10 Drivers, Challenges, and Trends
11 Vendor Landscape
12 Vendor Analysis
13 Appendix
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