When it comes to gaming trends in the West, it’s often the trends that emerge in North America which dominate statistics and findings. Sure, there’s no denying the influence that the United States has on global culture, let alone what’s in and what’s out north of the border, but Canada is a powerful cultural hub too.
In recent years, the Canadian gaming industry has experienced considerable development and innovation across a number of gaming markets. The iGaming market, for instance, has expanded substantially, with online poker Ontario now a possibility. Canada is also well regarded as an important hub for eSports in the Western market, being home to several teams and brands and three dedicated eSports arenas.
With Canada now making a significant contribution to the global advancement of gaming, let’s dive into some key statistics about the gaming trends most popular here.
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How Many Gamers Are There in Canada?
According to the latest industry research, over 23 million Canadians are now playing games, whether through traditional mediums like PCs and consoles or on their smartphones.
Back in 2014, an average of 54% of Canadians were playing video games, with 9.25 million having purchased them at least once during that year. In 2020, that percentage jumped to over 60%, meaning that more than half of all adults in Canada play video games or mobile gaming apps.
How Much Is the Candian Gaming Market Worth?
The global gaming industry is one of the world’s most lucrative and has even started to beat both movies and music streaming when it comes to global popularity. At the end of 2021, gaming was estimated to be worth $180.3 billion, having captured an audience of over 3 billion people.
While the exact revenue sums generated by the Canadian market in 2021 are still to be published, we can estimate that it’s now worth over $5.5 billion. According to reports released in winter 2021, the market has experienced a growth surge of 23% since 2019 to contribute $5.5 billion to the national GDP. With 11 months of gaming innovation between then and now, it’s safe to assume that this figure has increased yet again.
How Many Canadian Game Studios Are There?
You might well be surprised to learn that some of the world’s most successful video games are made here on Canadian shores (more on those later!). The Canadian gaming ecosystem comprises world-class development studios as well as indie game developers. In fact, there are now 937 game studios registered in Canada – 75% of which are Canadian-owned.
Quebec and Ontario are home to the highest concentration of game development studios, with over 230 combined. However, according to the Canadian Video Game Industry: 2021 report, British Columbia and the territories of Atlantic, Manitoba, and Saskatchewan experienced notable growth last year, welcoming 45 and 41 new companies, respectively.
Which Games are Made in Canada?
And finally, let’s take a look at which of the world’s most popular games are developed right here in Canada. Over the years, the Canadian gaming industry has made thousands of games, and you might just recognize one or two from this concise and by no means complete list:
- Assassin’s Creed Series (Ubisoft Montreal)
- Dragon Age Series (Bioware Edmonton)
- Far Cry Series (Ubisoft Montreal)
- FIFA series (Bioware Vancouver)
- Marvel’s Guardians of the Galaxy (Eidos Montreal)
- Mass Effect Series (Bioware Edmonton)
- Unreal Championship (Digital Extremes)
