Each year, UKIE, the UK’s games industry trade body, publishes a major analytical report that reveals robust data and insights into how the games industry is performing across the country. This has now been done with information gathered from 2025 data.
As reported by GamesIndustry.biz, the report states that the UK games sector is now valued at £8.7 billion, an increase from its 2024 valuation, despite employment challenges.
The sector’s growth is evident across the board, with software sales increasing by 7% to reach £6.03 billion, while digital console sales also saw a jump of 9.2% to £2.49 billion. Hardware also had a strong year, likely buoyed by the arrival of the Nintendo Switch 2, with a 3% increase leading to £2.17 billion. Mobile continues to thrive as well, with growth of 7.9% up to £2 billion, sales of ‘game-related film, TV shows, and soundtracks’ saw a crazy jump of 70% up to £159 million, with merchandise even growing by 43% up to £333 million. Finally, film adaptations brought in £77.9 million.
The data even adds that London is the third global hub for game developers, placed only behind Los Angeles and San Francisco, in that order. While all this news is positive, the UK games sector has experienced its “most severe employment downturn ever recorded,” representing a 4.5% year-on-year decrease in roles, equating to roughly 1,200 roles being cut during the data collection period.