The German games market decreased by 6% year-on-year to €9.4 billion in 2024, with sales of premium games dropping 17% to €921 million compared to revenues of €1.1 billion the previous year.

This is according to market figures from the German Games Industry Association (Game), based on data compiled by YouGov Shopper, Nielsen IQ, and Data.ai.

Overall, games sales (including premium games, in-game and in-app purchases) was down 6% to €5.5 million.

In-game and in-app purchases saw a slight decrease of 3% to €4.6 million, with Game noting that this market segment is an “important source of revenue” for games companies as it helps “offset the economic risk” in response to increased development costs.

Looking at hardware, revenues decreased 10% to €2.9 million in 2024. But it was consoles that saw the steepest drop, with a YoY decrease of 26% to €807 million last year.

However, Game highlighted that 2023 was an outlier in terms of console sales as models that “weren’t consistently available” to consumers in years prior resulted in a “catch-up effect”. It noted that revenues in 2024 were still above those recorded in 2022.

As for online gaming services, this segment increased by 12% to €965 million in 2024 compared to €860 million the previous year.

“After years of frequent strong growth, the German games market took a breather in 2024,” said Game managing director Felix Falk. “This was due in part to the fact there were fewer game hits last year and that the demand for game consoles has normalised again.”

“The greatest growth is seen in online game services like cloud gaming – which underscores the perpetual dynamics and innovative strength of the games industry. In combination with new game consoles and blockbuster titles that have already been announced, this promises renewed overall growth in the near future.”