The potential of the gaming industry

Korea’s perception towards the potential of the gaming industry remains unchanged. While the gaming industry is viewed globally as a new growth momentum, the predominant view in Korea is that it is gambling oriented and overindulgent. Despite such views, however, the global gaming industry grows at a tremendous pace.

At the CES 2023 held in Las Vegas this year, Steve Koenig, vice president of Market Research for the Consumer Electronics Association, mentioned gaming as a key tech trend for the year. According to market research company Omdia, consumers’ global spending for games by 2027 is projected to reach 215 billion dollars (around 274 trillion won) exceeding spending on movies or video content.

The destination to highly trending AI, virtual reality, or metaverse points to gaming as well. Excluding business tools, the deliverables of AI engineering will be mostly concentrated on the entertainment business. The competition to win leftover time because of reduced work being replaced by AI (whether voluntarily or forced) will grow more intense than ever. This also explains why the gaming business joins forces with autonomous driving.

Meanwhile, Korea’s gaming business does not look too optimistic for now. China, which had taken up 30% of Korea’s game exports, is expanding its foothold in the market by creating its games and capitalizing on its capital and resources. With the gaming industry losing its appeal, IT resources are leaving the industry, impacting the ecosystem of AI engineers. It is worrisome that we may lose the optimal timing to accept and support the gaming business as a key pillar of the industry.

Korean game companies also need to work harder to improve their image. They should improve their earning structure, which encouraged users to spend more and overindulge. Creating high-quality content is key to innovating negative public perceptions towards games. Areas that need to be addressed should be seriously looked at and acted on an industry-wide level. We must bear in mind that the gaming industry is a vital market for export and job creation.