German PC Gaming Figures Drop to 13.1 Million, Showing a 20% Decline Since 2019

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So, I stumbled on some numbers from Germany recently, and they’re kinda grim if you’re all about that PC gaming life. Since, like, 2019, the scene’s shrunk by 20%. There’s this chart from Game.de, right—translating roughly, because my German’s rusty—that lays it all out. Meanwhile, if you’re into consoles, well, things are looking bright. Mobile and tablet gaming? Flatlined. Console gaming, though, is on the rise, according to YouGov data. It’s weird how trends flip, isn’t it?

Game.de, by the way, isn’t even focused on PCs. They’re more about the whole German games industry, kind of waving the flag for consoles. If consoles keep this up, they might just take over as the top gaming platform in Germany. Wild!

Check out this image they have—gaming platform trends since 2019. It kinda has this upward trajectory for consoles, like a bike on a steep hill. And no, I don’t usually think of video games and biking in the same breath, but there it is.

Why are consoles killing it? Game.de’s got some ideas. They mention innovations from the big guys like Microsoft, Sony, and Nintendo. Remember the PlayStation 5 Pro or the Nintendo Switch OLED? Yeah, those are part of it. Also, the Switch 2 is out now, and maybe it’ll shake things up more by 2025. Who knows?

There are 20.5 million console gamers in Germany now, closing in on the 22.9 million who game on smartphones. Smartphones got a boost back in 2019-2020 but then—meh—the curve flattened out.

Now, about PCs, it’s a bit downbeat. While there were still 13.1 million PC gamers in Germany by the end of 2024, it’s 400,000 fewer than before. Back in 2019, PC gamers outnumbered console gamers. Fast forward to now, and consoles are ahead by over 7 million. But here’s the thing: lots of folks don’t stick to just one platform. Like, 19 million gamers are hopping between two or more.

As for why this slump? Game.de doesn’t spill much about it. They mention the industry “taking a break from growth in 2024.” Game sales down 17%, hardware down 10%. Yet, online gaming services popped up by 12%. Maybe it’s due to the lack of shiny new components or affordable GPUs. Who knows, right?

Funny enough, couldn’t dig up similar charts for the U.S. or worldwide. Guess Game.de gets some special insider access.

And oh, if you want more updates or whatever, hopping onto Tom’s Hardware on Google News isn’t a bad idea. Just a thought.

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