The fast-moving Video games market

Trends in Gaming

The world of gaming has done nothing but grow and adapt – and seen a vast increase as the world was on lockdown. What are the most popular games, platforms and trends? Our features writer Ethan Oakley finds out…

The World Of Video Games

The world of video games - a whole other dimension. It doesn’t matter what type of person you are, there’s always a game for you. Billions have played, Billions have won, Billions have lost. But it all comes down to that one feeling, Excitement. and that’s what gaming is all about.

The Most Popular Video Games.

Video games are played all around the globe in different surrounding countries. Some of the most popular games are played by millions of people everyday. The world’s most popular video game as of December 2020 is League Of Legends (Newzoo, 2021) Which is a MOBA game (Multiplayer Online Battle Arena) The game requires the teamwork of 5 individual players who can choose their champion. The name of the game is to destroy the other team’s base. Gamers use different types of champions to work together with unbeatable strategies and secure the WIN! The top 0.01% of gamers are so good that they compete in Esports tournaments against the best players across the world. The games are streamed live for the whole world to see the skill of these players. In the UK the most popular game is the FIFA franchise. FIFA is a football simulation game which first arose to popularity in 1993.There was an extremely large amount of hype for FIFA International which was one of the first FIFA games to be released, and set the scene for the future of Fifa games.

Systems

Xbox has been a go-to console since its first release which was the original Xbox One in November 2001. When it first released the Xbox One would set you back £220 and sold out instantly. It was an instant success from Microsoft. Since then Xbox has been topping the game. Releasing new and powerful consoles that can even outmatch a pc! After the original Xbox One came the Xbox 360, Xbox One S and X and then the newest console

the Xbox One series X. The Xbox series X features 8 core processors, 16 GB’s of GDDR6 ram. And a 1tb NVMe hard drive. Oh, and Ialso forgot to mention the Custom rDNA 2 – 1.825 GHz Graphics card. All of this and it will only set you back £400. In my opinion that’s an absolute bargain! PlayStation is a viable console to play your games on. The first PlayStation was released on the 3rd of December 1993 and it has been entertaining gamers ever since. Did you know that Sony had a PS1 mascot which is a cat you have never heard of? The PlayStation is another console that outmatched itself in the gaming community and made a name for itself. Their latest console the ps5 features a 8core 16 thread processor at 3.5 GHz. a AMD Radeon rDNA 2-based graphics engine.16gbs of GDDR6 RAM and a Custom 825 GB SSD! One of the best options for gaming on the slightly more expensive side is a gaming computer system. If you really want to be the king or queen of gaming then a PC is the right choice for you. You have the option to either buy yourself a prebuilt PC, which I recommend for beginners, or build your own. The prices in PCs range from £500 to £10,000. You can watch guides to help you buy your own or build your own PC all over YouTube.

Gaming Over Lockdown

Gaming has become a lot more popular over the lockdown periods. In just one year the sales of video games in the U. S showed a 23% increase from

last year’s stats. Now that’s a lot of people. Covid-19 gave gaming an explosion of new gamers and games from all across the world as people really needed something to do!

Trends

The trends noticed in the last 12 months were that cross platform gaming is becoming a popular mode with game developers. If you were to say you could play with any of your friends on any system, whether that is Switch, Mobile, Xbox, PS or PC five years ago I wouldn’t have believed you but now it’s becoming a reality and uniting gamers everywhere. Experts are also saying that Virtual Reality Gaming is on the rise with a 10% increase of people buying VR headsets with the rise of Covid 19.

Into the Metaverse - Roblox

The Insights People has done extensive research int the ongoing trends in the marketplace. One of the biggest trends we are continue to see in our real-time data is the rise of gaming into education & the opportunities for licensing in the metaverse. Kids don’t see the distinguishing factors between industries when it comes to their spending money, rather it is: “I have X amount, what

Ethan Oakley

Tom Fabes, Gaming Manager of Erve Europe

will I spend it on?” In the US alone, kids spend $7.4b annually on gaming, compared to $6.2b on TV. Microtransactions have made in-game spending convenient and ‘affordable’ As a result of the increase in spending in the video game industry, the market for licensed products has become more lucrative. Demand has increased significantly for clothing related to gaming in the last twelve months. As gaming develops and becomes a key aspect of kids’ lives, they want to consume conspicuously in order to express this. The market for clothing related to video games has grown by 51% on average across all age brackets In Canada, Coronavirus remains the most prominent concern for school children aged 6-12 in Canada (55%). With many schools still closed and life returning to normal still feeling a few months away, students and teachers alike are both looking for intuitive ways to educate in a virtual and safe manner. Minecraft, kids’ 2nd favourite game on console offered 10 free educational adventure maps to teachers to promote a new way of learning. Minecraft Education also offers kids the opportunity to learn to code. Kids 6-9 who play Minecraft don’t report learning to code at school, indicating how their favourite game can bridge this gap and assist their learning. In September that Roblox (kids’ favourite game on PC) had released a similar concept to that of Minecraft. In the Roblox version, students take part in a digital safety scavenger hunt, teaching kids how to spot unreliable information and how to stay safe online. Kids who play Roblox over-index by +13% in being concerned about viewing inappropriate content, indicating the usefulness of this tool with school aged children. Looking forward, more gaming brands who have a kids-focused demographic could work towards fulfilling a similar role in edutainment. Furthermore other brands which don’t necessarily immediately feel educational can take note, publicizing where appropriate the additional values in engaging with a certain brand or product on enhancing a child’s skill set. Ryan’s World, the most popular favourite YouTuber with kids aged 6-9 (4.6%) has unveiled a new virtual world inside the Roblox Metaverse. Kids who rank Ryan as their favourite YouTuber overindex by 118% in favouring Roblox on console. Indicating the likely drive in his fanbase will provide to the already popular game. We can also see similar trends with Roblox in the UK for example. Ready Player One, a dystopian book series written by Ernest Cline, features a virtual reality metaverse where people live, and work called the ‘Oasis’. Despite being written over 9 years ago, the book remains a top 20 book in our data for teens, remaining relevant to this audience following the release of the Steven Speilberg film adaptation, but also because it draws huge similarities with the gaming platform Roblox; teens 2nd favourite PC game. Author Ernest Cline is also set to publish the sequel to Ready Player One in December – Ready Player Two. The dystopian book series features a virtual reality metaverse where people live, and work called the Oasis. Drawings similarities from that of Roblox, teens third favorite PC game (1.9%) in the US.

In-Game Concert Future Opportunities

Due to the pandemic artists haven’t been able to tour new music or attend physical festivals to increase their popularity as they usually would. To combat this, they have been utilizing in-game space to reach their usual audience. Gaming has provided an outlet for this, allowing artists the opportunity to perform their content while also utilizing new immersive platforms. 90% of kids aged 6-12 play video games, with listening to music ranking as the 18th favorite hobby with this demographic (6.3%). Roblox, kids’ favorite game on mobile (10%) and PC (4.8%) has taken steps to grow its music hosting potential through in-game concerts. In November, Lil’ Nas X hosted a live event to release his new single, this was a sure-fire success, being attended by over 33million players according to The Verge. In a post-covid world, concerts will resume, however, in-game concerts allow for more accessibility to a wider range of kids. Including kids who have audio sensitivities, physical disabilities alongside, safer spaces for younger kids to attend. This also extends to lower income households as these concerts are often free or cheaper than the average concert ticket. Brands and retailers can benefit with e-commerce through dynamic advertising and simple in-game purchasing to reduce traction and move customers through the purchase funnel.

Why it’s game on for gaming apparel in 2021

Tom Fabes, Gaming Manager of Erve Europe, talks about how the company deals with the ever-changing world of gaming. My dream job became a reality when I was named Gaming Manager at Erve Europe. As a keen gamer, I’d noticed a need for gaming apparel in the community. At the time working on Erve’s logistics team, I presented a plan to grow the company’s gaming portfolio and immediately got the freedom to focus on new opportunities. Today gaming licensing constitutes a fully-fledged third pillar alongside our character licensing and brands. Recent collaborations we’re excited about are with Sony PlayStation and Blizzard Entertainment.

Predicting popularity

COVID lockdowns might be intensifying demand, but gaming began evolving into a long-term experience prepandemic. Video games are no longer just a one-off commitment completed within a month. The challenge is keeping up with gaming trends. Given apparel’s need for lead times, predicting a license’s long-term success can be tricky. We constantly monitor Twitch, YouTube and Steam, and spend many hours trying to predict which games will be popular which season. As proactive communicators, we relay this to customers so they stay up-to-date on relevant licenses.

Game longevity and gender inclusivity

With PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X/S freshly released, I expect a lot of cool new games to long hold fans’ attention. I also expect greater gender inclusivity, as people finally realise that

gaming – and its apparel – has broad appeal. Erve Europe has plenty of projects in the pipeline. Everyone is waiting on the next big thing, and we are confident we already have this in hand. More to be shared soon!

Panini has announced a new Minecraft Adventure Trading Card Collection. Minecraft is an open-ended, blockbuilding sandbox game where fans can explore their own unique world and create almost anything they can imagine. With over 126 million people playing Minecraft every month and over 200 million copies sold worldwide, Minecraft is one of the bestselling video games in history.

E-sports are increasingly popular and Cyber Group Studios just had its series Alex Player listed in the top list of the projects that received the most interest at cartoon Forum. Cyber Group Studios describes Alex Player: “Imagine banks of screens, fingers pounding keyboards, wild cheers, heart-racing action rising to a fever pitch – as two teams face off in a packed stadium full of roaring fans … this is no football game or concert, this is Esports, where the gamers are the generation’s idols! This is Alex Player. An Esports series with nonstop thrills, fun, passion and laughs on and off the gaming screen. Between training,school, homework, competition, Alex and his friends have their work cut out for them.”

Epic Games is celebrating global football in Fortnite with more than 20 top clubs around the world via partnerships facilitated by IMG, Fortnite’s licensing representative. Starting 23 January, players can choose from 10 different variants of new “Kickoff Set” Outfits to represent their favorite club in-game. Each Outfit can be swapped to any of the 23 football clubs participating, including teams from A-League, Bundesliga, Campeonato Brasileiro Série A, J1 League, La Liga, MLS, Premier League, Primeira Liga, Scottish Premiership and Serie A. Anyone playing the game can visit the Creative Hub for an immersive football experience throughout the week and join select clubs around the world in hosted Fortnite tournaments. Additionally, players will be able to earn or purchase two new football-themed emotes to show off their favorite moves. “Football is consistently one of the top sports that our players tell us they want to see and experience in Fortnite”, said Nate Nanzer, Head of Global Partnerships at Epic Games, “We’re excited to partner with IMG to bring the sport to Fortnite fans around the world as they face off in competitive tournaments, experience new creative modes of gameplay, and celebrate global football.”

The 23 participating football clubs are: AC Milan, A.S. Roma FC, Atlanta United FC, Borussia Mönchengladbach, Celtic FC, Cerezo Osaka, Esporte Clube Bahia, FC Schalke 04, Inter Milan, Juventus FC, Los Angeles FC, Manchester City FC, Melbourne FC, Rangers FC, Santos FC, Seattle Sounders FC, Sevilla FC, Sporting CP, Sydney FC, West Ham United FC, VfL Wolfsburg FC, Western Sydney Wanderers FC and Wolverhampton Wanderers FC . In August, Electronic Arts Inc., and UFC launched EA SPORTS UFC 4 PlayStation 4 and Xbox One with UFC middleweight champion Israel “The Last Stylebender” Adesanya and UFC welterweight contender Jorge “Gamebred” Masvidal serving as the game’s official global cover athlete duo. Fans played more than 64 million simulated UFC fights during the EA SPORTS UFC 4 launch week, a 125 percent year-over-year increase compared with the previous edition, EA SPORTS UFC 3. EA SPORTS UFC 4 launch weekend timed alongside UFC 252: Miocic vs. Cormier 3, which enhanced the connection to a spike of almost 75 percent more players than EA SPORTS UFC 3’s. Featuring an all-new unified progression system, overhauled takedown and ground mechanics, more fluid clinch-to-strike combinations and the chance to experience the origins of combat sports in all-new environments, UFC 4 delivers the most polished mixed martial arts experience to date.

Assassin’s Creed, one of the bestselling series in video game history, has had a stellar 2020 year for its licensing program in Europe and Asia. Highlights include collaborations with

Reebok, Charli Cohen, Difuzed, Wootbox, Stratego, New Era and Gunnar, in deals brokered by IMG, across a broad range of product categories from apparel, home decor and accessories to toys, electronics, and more. Additionally, Assassin’s Creed Valhalla, the twenty-second release in the Assassin’s Creed series, launched at the end of 2020. The number of active players on launch day for Assassin’s Creed Valhalla doubled that of the previous game, Assassin’s Creed Odyssey, a trend that is expected to continue as sales of the new generation of consoles increase.

ZAG Games, the new games division launched in October 2020 by award-winning global independent animation studio ZAG, has announced a partnership with Israel-based start-up Toya to create its first game for the Roblox platform for the ZAG and ON kids & family (Mediawan Group) mega-hit, Miraculous – Tales of Ladybug & Cat Noir. The announcement was made by Julian Zag, Executive Vice President, Global Operations, ZAG, who spearheaded the new partnership together with Elinor Schops, the company’s newly installed VP of ZAG Games and Interactive Experiences. Scheduled for release in April 2021, the new Miraculous Ladybug & Cat Noir adventure quest game from ZAG and Toya, a Roblox studio, will be the first to bring a TV series to the Roblox metaverse – a shared online experience where fans interact in 3D simulated virtual environments. Fans can expect to meet new characters, enter new environments, and engage with new villains, together with many more surprises. Zag and Toya are planning to engage with fans during this historic project through an inclusive global game development process that integrates their feedback on ideas and concepts design artwork before the game is officially released to the public.

Team Heretics have announced the appointment of Caravanserai Partners in Spain to strategically grow and expand its licensing program across key territories. Team Heretics, founded in 2016 by content creator Jorge “Goorgo” together with Antonio Catena and Arnau Vidal, is the most followed spanish speaking Esports team in the world with a reach of more than 85 Milion users among all the social media platforms and thanks to the esports players, content creators, ambassadors and influencers within the team. Team Heretics is one the fastest growing and most promising esports club focusing on both competition and entertainment to reach a young target. Team Heretics has now agreed a deal with Caravanserai to capitalize on the immense engagement and love for the team and the brand by creating profitable licensing programs on major consumer products and brand promotion in the Spanish speaking territories.