Did the UK Gaming Industry Grow in 2024? – Guido Fawkes

According to the latest statistics from official sources, the gaming market in the United Kingdom witnessed a slight dip in volume throughout 2024. 

However, despite the slight decrease in this specific sector of the digital entertainment industry, the market across the United Kingdom grew slightly slower than in previous years. 

Here is a closer look at how the gaming market performed in the UK in 2024 and what the projections are for the remainder of 2025 and beyond.  

What are the UK’s biggest gaming hubs?

The UK is home to several major gaming hubs, and England’s capital city, London, leads the way in terms of workforce and the number of gaming companies that are based here. It’s currently home to over 700 companies that operate in the gaming space – the highest concentration in the UK. 

Some of the other major UK cities that are also now recognised as gaming hubs are Manchester, Edinburgh, Bristol, and Brighton. That’s not forgetting Liverpool, Leamington Spa, Slough, Leeds, Nottingham, Sheffield, Cambridge, and Guilford. 

Manchester’s gaming industry is showing strong signs of continued year-on-year growth, and Edinburgh has a strong gaming community and is a significant hub for game development in Scotland. 

The games industry in Liverpool puts a great deal of emphasis on attracting foreign investment to help grow the industry here. Bristol is recognised as one of the most creative hubs for gaming companies, and Brighton, which has over 70 game studios, is home to ‘Develop’ – one of the world’s biggest gaming conferences. 

The burgeoning iGaming industry in the United Kingdom, which is filled with over 100 fully licensed and regulated UK slots sites that anyone aged 18 or above can join, is also currently experiencing significant growth due to improved regulations, a commitment towards responsible gaming, better games, and more rewarding bonuses, promotional offers and loyalty programs. 

A closer look at the UK gaming market in numbers

Here is a slightly more detailed breakdown of the numbers and relevant facts relating to the UK gaming market throughout 2024:

• The overall gaming market in the United Kingdom actually decreased in 2025 by just under 4.5% to £4.62 billion
• Although the UK games development sector grew, records show that it was at a much slower rate in 2024 than in previous years
• The fastest growing UK hubs in terms of new staff were London (468), followed by the North East (280), and the North West (247)
• The mobile gaming sector, the UK’s largest gaming market, recorded a 2.6% growth to around £1.56 billion
• The number of subscription-based gaming services also grew by around 12%
• There was a noticeable shift in consumer behaviour regarding physical video games and digital content sales. For example, physical copy video games were reduced by an incredible 35%, whereas the sale of digital console dales was down by 15%, and PC download-to-own sales were down 5%

Despite the challenging times the industry faces, which saw many studios either shutting up shop for good or simply downsizing, it has still shown that the UK gaming industry remains resilient. 

Final thoughts 

Rising interest rates and various other economic pressures, such as inflation, have hampered the industry’s growth. However, many new opportunities were still created in this sector, and it wasn’t all negative. 

Experts predict that the industry will gradually bounce back and thrive once again over the coming years, thanks to better government support and initiatives, foreign investment, a well-matured gaming industry ecosystem, and emerging technologies. 

Some of the industry’s most iconic titles have been made in the UK, such as the original Grand Theft Auto game, Burnout, Tomb Raider, Championship/Football Manager, Goldeneye 007, and countless others. We will likely see even more breakthrough titles being developed here and making a splash among the wide gamer community moving forward if the gaming industry can survive all the challenges that are thrown its way.