Why diversification of portfolios is top of mind for gaming studios
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To drive user acquisition, all gaming companies are looking to go cross-platform and create new touchpoints for players across any type of console or game genre. To that end, we’re seeing a growing trend of consolidation among game firms. Larger studios, for example, that historically specialized in hardcore, first-person shooter games, are acquiring smaller studios to make mobile versions of those games. Portfolio diversification is quickly becoming the name of the game, and industry consolidation is something developers and advertisers should keep an eye on.
2020 brought a lot of uncertainty to the industry and the world at large, with many industries struggling with the lockdown. Fortunately, gaming did not and actually gained momentum among all demographics and helped us to keep connected to the rest of the world.
According to DDM market research, investments in the gaming industry reached a new high of $13.2 billion in 2020, up 77% from 2019, while M&A agreements increased to 220, up 33% year on year. 2021 is building to be an even higher record-breaking year. Some of the most notable M&A deals made this year are; EA paying $2.1 billion in enterprise value to purchase mobile game developer Glu Mobile; Microsoft’s $7.5 billion acquisition of ZeniMax Media, the parent firm of Bethesda Softworks, the creators of Doom and Fallout; Embracer Group paid $1.37 billion for Borderlands creator Gearbox Entertainment, $765 million for mobile developer Easybrain, and $450 million for porting expert Aspyr.
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