[Financial News] Last year, both the usage time and spending on Korean games increased in the global market, with particularly notable growth observed in emerging markets such as Turkey and the United Arab Emirates (UAE).
According to the ‘2024 Overseas Market Korean Game User Survey’ report by the Korea Creative Content Agency released on the 8th, more than half of the surveyed countries worldwide reported an increase in both average usage time and monthly spending on Korean games compared to the previous year.
This report examines the status of Korean game usage in overseas markets. Each year, the agency selects and surveys both major countries in the global gaming market and emerging countries. This year, they comprehensively analyzed the usage and behavior of 9,700 game users aged 15 and older across 19 countries, including Turkey, the UAE, and Thailand.
Countries like Brazil, India, and Turkey showed strong performance. Globally, the average Korean game usage time was recorded as 3 hours and 37 minutes on PC, 3 hours and 12 minutes on mobile, and 3 hours and 24 minutes on console. Usage times for all three platforms saw a slight increase compared to the previous year. Notably, while weekend usage times remained consistent with the previous year, weekday game usage times increased by an average of 10 minutes.
For PC games, Brazil had the longest usage time with 4 hours and 16 minutes, followed by Saudi Arabia (4 hours) and Turkey (3 hours and 55 minutes). In mobile gaming, India was the highest with an average of 3 hours and 51 minutes, with Brazil (3 hours and 40 minutes) and Saudi Arabia (3 hours and 39 minutes) trailing. For console games, Turkey led with an average of 4 hours and 5 minutes, followed by the United States (4 hours and 4 minutes) and Canada (3 hours and 54 minutes).
The most preferred game genre in most countries was ‘Battle Royale’. Regionally, in Asia, Indonesia (53.2%) favored this genre; in the Americas, Brazil (32.3%); in Europe, Turkey (37.3%); and in the Middle East/Africa, the UAE (35.9%). Other popular genres included shooting, RPG/MMORPG, adventure, and sports, which were particularly favored in China, Japan, Taiwan, and South Africa, respectively.
For mobile games, the ‘Battle Royale’ genre was primarily favored in Asia, while puzzle games were more popular in the Americas/Oceania and Europe. On consoles, popularity remained high for ‘Battle Royale’ games, with strong preferences in Indonesia (51.8%) in Asia, the United States (27.4%) in the Americas/Oceania, Turkey (35.1%) in Europe, and the UAE (36.7%) in the Middle East/Africa.
China’s purchasing power remains strong, but the UAE is an emerging market. The monthly average expenditure for Korean game users was $48.3 for PC games, $49.9 for mobile, and $43.4 for console games. While China maintained high spending in PC games with a monthly average of $77.5, the UAE displayed strong spending power in mobile and console games, with averages of $79.4 and $69.1 respectively. This suggests the growing potential of the Middle East as an emerging global market, according to the Korea Creative Content Agency.
In more detail, for PC games, China led in Asia with $111, Australia topped the Americas/Oceania with $116.8, Germany led in Europe with $97.4, and the UAE dominated the Middle East/Africa with $141.3. In mobile gaming, China again led Asia with $107.8, followed by Australia (100.5) in the Americas/Oceania, Germany ($77.5) in Europe, and the UAE ($141.3) in the Middle East/Africa.
When asked how they discovered Korean games, ‘online video content’ was the leading source at 51%. In 2023, the order was ‘SNS’, ‘recommendations from acquaintances’, and ‘YouTube advertisements’, but last year saw an increased influence from ‘online video content’.
‘PUBG’ dominates globally, while ‘Nikke’ leads in Japan. The most played Korean game was Krafton’s ‘Battlegrounds’, which was overwhelmingly popular, topping the PC game charts in most countries. In Asia, Indonesia had the highest popularity at 63.7%, followed by Brazil (26.4%) in the Americas/Oceania, Turkey (54.9%) in Europe, and the UAE (46.6%) in the Middle East/Africa. However, in Taiwan, Gravity’s ‘Ragnarok Online’ (27.5%) and Nexon’s ‘KartRider: Drift’ (27.3%) outperformed ‘Battlegrounds’.
On mobile, ‘Battle Royale Online’ was a favorite in most countries, but in Japan, Shift Up’s ‘Goddess of Victory: Nikke’ surpassed it in popularity. On consoles, ‘Battlegrounds’ also showed overwhelming preference. However, the survey pointed out areas for improvement in Korean games universally across game types: ‘large game sizes’, ‘long loading times’, and ‘frequent connection delays’.