Economy

This essay examines the formal and informal economies of video games and attends to the economies within video games. The first part introduces key approaches in the early 2000s when games were primarily sold as a product through retail shops. We then move to the post-2012 phase as games became a service that was downloaded or streamed across multiple platforms. This era ushered in a period of rapid innovation in production logics, business models, and company types. It brought with it a range of creative opportunities and challenges. New platform and performance logics emerged, while free-to-play became the dominant revenue model. Two key processes emerge as important – datafication and platformization. During this period, the industry struggled to retain workers as many companies failed to address project management and diversity issues. Independent, or indie, companies multiplied by choice and necessity. The essay concludes with some reflections on e-sports, gamblification and increasing regulatory pressure