Germany

The German games industry demonstrated remarkable resilience throughout 2022, maintaining a stable market valuation of 9.87 billion euros despite global economic headwinds, inflationary pressures, and hardware supply constraints. This performance represents a 1% growth rate, bucking international trends of market decline. The sector’s expansion is further evidenced by a 15.5% increase in the number of companies and a 7% rise in the workforce over the past year. Mobile gaming continues to dominate revenue streams, while digital distribution has solidified its position as the primary purchasing method for PC users and younger demographics.

Despite this growth, the industry faces structural challenges that threaten its long-term international competitiveness. A critical shortage of skilled labor in programming, technical art, and production persists, exacerbated by bureaucratic hurdles that impede the recruitment of international talent. Furthermore, the intermittent availability of federal funding has created an environment of instability, hindering strategic planning. To address these issues, the industry is advocating for a transition toward tax-based incentives, improved educational standards, and the establishment of specialized academic institutions to foster domestic expertise.

Beyond economic metrics, the sector is increasingly focused on professionalizing its ecosystem and enhancing its global footprint. Events such as Gamescom and the devcom Developer Conference have reinforced Germany’s status as a central hub for digital innovation, attracting significant international attention and political engagement. Simultaneously, the industry is prioritizing sustainability through climate-neutral initiatives and strengthening youth protection frameworks to ensure a safe gaming environment. By aligning advocacy efforts with a commitment to diversity and educational outreach, the German games sector aims to secure its position as a leading global player in the digital economy.

The German games industry reached a total revenue of 9.97 billion euros in 2023, marking a 6 percent increase driven largely by hardware sales, mobile gaming, and in-game purchases. Despite this financial expansion and a 52 percent growth in the number of development and publishing companies since 2020, the sector faces a period of cooling optimism. A challenging international economic climate, coupled with the unpredictability of federal funding, has slowed the pace of new company formations and employment growth. While Germany maintains its position as the largest games market in Europe, domestic developers are increasingly disadvantaged by a reliance on fixed-budget funding models that lack the stability of the tax credit systems utilized by international competitors.

To secure long-term competitiveness, the industry is advocating for a transition to a hybrid, tax-based funding model. Strategic priorities for 2024 include the cultivation of a specialized workforce, the integration of gaming into educational frameworks, and the expansion of digital infrastructure. These efforts are complemented by a strong commitment to social and environmental responsibility. A significant majority of companies have adopted sustainability measures, such as transitioning to green energy, while industry-led initiatives continue to promote diversity, combat toxicity, and provide professional support for esports athletes through structured talent development programs.

The industry’s cultural and economic influence remains anchored by the global success of gamescom, which continues to expand its international footprint through satellite events in Singapore and Brazil. Furthermore, the sector is prioritizing rigorous youth protection standards and the promotion of games as essential cultural and educational tools. By balancing these community-focused initiatives with a push for more consistent federal policy, the German games industry aims to solidify its status as a premier global hub for development, innovation, and esports, ensuring both economic resilience and social sustainability in an evolving digital landscape.

This PDF document contains all information on accountability (“Management & facts”) from Deutsche Telekom’s 2020 CR Report. Version: 20.01.2022 The themed pages “Green future”, “Digital life”, “New ways of working”, and “Good stewardship” may be downloaded individually using the “Print this page” function or as one document using the “Info basket” function.

The German games industry navigated a period of significant contraction in 2024, with total market revenue falling 6% to €9.4 billion. This downturn, driven by a decline in mobile revenue and console hardware sales, resulted in the first recorded reduction in the number of active companies and industry employees in recent years. Despite these headwinds, Germany maintains its status as the largest games market in Europe and the fifth largest globally. The domestic player base remains robust and increasingly diverse, encompassing 37.5 million individuals with an average age of 39.5 years, reflecting the deep integration of gaming into the national cultural fabric.

Strategic instability during this period stemmed largely from restrictive federal funding guidelines and project application freezes, which disproportionately impacted smaller studios. However, the outlook for 2025 is increasingly positive, anchored by a new coalition agreement that pledges to increase federal funding to €125 million annually by 2026 and introduce competitive tax incentives. These policy shifts aim to bolster Germany’s international standing, which industry leaders currently view as suboptimal despite the nation’s strong infrastructure, academic training programs, and successful startup initiatives like the "Press Start" grant.

To secure long-term growth, the industry is prioritizing a hybrid funding model, the establishment of a dedicated "Games University," and the expansion of digital cultural heritage projects, such as the AI-driven archiving of over 40,000 titles. Professionalization efforts continue through the game association, which represents over 500 members and manages critical networking platforms like gamescom. By integrating esports development, sustainability commitments, and structured career pathways, the German ecosystem is positioning itself to transition from a period of market correction toward a more resilient and internationally competitive future.

Mobile games: state of the market & playtime Joint report of Apptica & Gamelight The purpose of this study is to analyse the state of gaming category in Q3 2023. All data presented in this report has been collected from Apptica and Gamelight platforms. "Games" category is defined by a store's tag. The basis of this analysis is made up of data from the Apptica's Store, Ad and Market Intelligence sections and Gamelight's playtime and app usage data.

01 Players in Germany 8 02 German market for computer 14 03 The games industry in Germany 26 .1 Employment figures and companies .3 The ten demands of the games industry 04 Esports 40 05 esports player foundation 42 06 gamescom and devcom 44 07 German Computer Games Awards 48 08 Entertainment Software 50 09 Foundation for Digital Games 52 10 About game –...

Germany represents a significant pillar of the global gaming industry, ranking as the largest games market in the European Union and the fifth largest worldwide by revenue. As of 2022, the German gaming landscape is characterized by a high level of engagement, with 71% of the online population aged 10 to 65 identifying as game enthusiasts. This engagement extends beyond active play to include viewing gaming video content, social interaction, and community participation.

The demographic profile of German players is nearly balanced by gender, consisting of 52% males and 48% females. While gaming is popular across all age groups, the 21-35 age bracket represents the largest segment at 31%. Motivation for play is primarily driven by the desire to relax and unwind, followed by the pursuit of achievement and social connection. Among the various gamer personas, Time Fillers and Mainstream Gamers are the most prevalent, reflecting a mix of casual mobile play and more dedicated multi-platform engagement.

Platform preferences show that mobile gaming has the highest reach, utilized by 43% of the online population, followed by console and PC at 34% each. Despite the higher reach of mobile, PC and console players demonstrate higher average weekly play times, exceeding five hours. Popular titles in the market include Minecraft, Roblox, and Grand Theft Auto V, with Adventure and Action genres leading in popularity.

Monetization remains strong, with 63% of players spending money on games. The primary driver for spending is the availability of sales or special offers, though a significant portion of consumers also pays to unlock exclusive content or to personalize their in-game experience. These findings are based on a 2022 survey of 2,057 online consumers in Germany, forming part of a broader global research initiative covering 36 markets.

The German mobile market experienced a period of rapid acceleration in 2021, characterized by a 72% increase in consumer spending over two years to reach $4.0 billion. Daily engagement rose to 3.4 hours per user, with social and video applications capturing 60% of that time. While gaming remains the primary economic driver, accounting for over 70% of total app spend and $2.8 billion in revenue, the broader ecosystem saw significant diversification into finance, retail, and health sectors. High-performance titles like Genshin Impact and Coin Master led the gaming sector, while neobanks and cryptocurrency platforms gained substantial traction among younger demographics.

The retail and service sectors underwent a digital transformation, evidenced by record-breaking engagement in shopping apps and a 37% surge in food and drink sessions. This growth was fueled by the rise of rapid delivery services and international publishers capturing larger shares of the German market. Simultaneously, the health sector remained robust, with local utility apps like CovPass and Corona-Warn-App dominating download charts due to pandemic-related requirements. This period also marked a significant rebound for travel and sports engagement, which grew by 25% and 45% respectively as restrictions eased and major international events returned.

Social and entertainment categories continue to anchor the mobile experience in Germany. WhatsApp maintains its position as the leading app by time spent, while TikTok saw a 75% year-over-year increase in engagement. Consumer spending in non-gaming categories is increasingly driven by dating and streaming services, with dating app revenue surging 115% since 2018. Overall, the German mobile landscape is defined by a sophisticated mix of high-spending gaming audiences, a rapidly maturing mobile commerce sector, and a strong reliance on mobile utilities for daily life and public health.

01 Players in Germany 8 02 German market for computer 14 03 The games industry in Germany 24 .1 Employment figures and companies .4 The ten demands of the games industry 04 gamescom 38 05 About game – the German 42 .1 Diversity initiative Hier spielt Vielfalt .2 Environmental and climate protection in the .3 Foundation for Digital Games Culture .5 Entertainment Software Self-Regulation Body 06 D...

Germany stands as Europe’s largest video‑game market and the world’s fifth‑largest, a position reinforced by a robust developer community, flagship events and a policy framework that actively subsidises production. Federal funding of €50 million per year, allocated as non‑repayable grants covering a quarter to half of project costs, is complemented by regional programmes and a business climate that benefits from a sizable domestic audience and a highly skilled workforce.

The market generated a record €4.4 billion in 2018, expanding 9 percent year‑on‑year, while the sector’s organisational base grew to roughly 524 game‑related firms that year. These include 368 development studios, 38 pure publishers and a further 118 hybrid entities, employing about 11 000 staff directly in development and nearly 28 000 when ancillary roles are counted. More than 50 higher‑education institutions now deliver dedicated curricula in game design, computer science, art and virtual reality, concentrating talent pipelines in Berlin and Hamburg.

Mid‑size studios such as Deep Silver, Kolibri Games and Mimimi have produced internationally recognised titles, and the annual gamescom exhibition in Cologne underscores the industry’s global reach. In 2023 the event attracted 31 300 trade professionals, delivered over 500 000 concurrent viewers for its Opening Night Live broadcast and amassed more than 100 million video hits, prompting the launch of a gamescom Asia edition in Singapore to capture growth in the Asia‑Pacific region.

A dense network of over 200 development and publishing firms and more than 150 specialist service providers—spanning localisation, cloud infrastructure, legal counsel, marketing and middleware—covers virtually every German city. This comprehensive, SME‑driven ecosystem, supported by mature ancillary services, positions Germany for sustained expansion and reinforces its role as a central hub for both domestic creation and international distribution of video‑games.

01 Gamer in Deutschland 6 02 Markt für Computer- und 12 03 Games-Branche in Deutschland 22 .1 Beschäftigtenzahlen und Unternehmen .4 Die 10 Forderungen der Games-Branche 04 eSports 36 05 gamescom 40 06 Deutscher Computerspielpreis 42 07 Unterhaltungssoftware 44 08 Stiftung Digitale Spielekultur 46 09 Über den game – Verband 48 Herausgeber ...

14 und kreative Köpfe, 14 folgende Frage höre und lese ich immer wieder: „Wie werde ich Spiele-Entwickler/in und was muss ich dafür mitbringen?“ Das ist auf die Schnelle gar nicht so leicht zu beantworten. Das Arbeiten in der Games-Branche ist unglaublich vielfältig und genauso zahl- reich sind auch die Wege, die dahinführen.