2102 was a tough year for many sectors but social gaming investments were hit very hard. This nosedive in social gaming investments took the averages down for the entire gaming industry. Some segments managed to pull through however. This is according to to Digi-Capital, an investment firm that recently reported the news.
The good news is the overall withdrawal of money has not essentially affected other sectors within the industry. A few areas and some newer technologies were able to move ahead.
Even though the cold shoulder in social gaming brought about a 1 billion loss and was responsible for 94 percent of the industry’s overall investment drop for 2012, social gambling managed to stay ahead of the game and was able to attract a lot of investor money as well as attention.
The general market fundamentals between mobile games and the online games grew wider until the social gaming bubble reached its peak and popped. In some cases, gaming investors who had been hot simply stopped all their activities. If looked at from a purely technology point of view, the year 2012 witnessed gains in mobile platforms, with some surging ahead. It is becoming apparent that many modern portable devices are becoming a very acceptable way for players to test their casino skills online. New tech has now made it possible for gamers to actually play the casino games they love while on their mobile devices. This is a huge leap from a few years ago when these devices were basically limited to reading text or checking email as their most advanced feature. It appears those days of very limited functionality are now over.
Today, those who want to play online can choose from a variety of games such as slots, blackjack, roulette or many other casino games. And it appears players are coming in droves. Best of all, the overall pace for new development is surging ahead and there are now some offerings that are being marketed that are only for portable devices.
As for as value is concerned, the M&A transaction known as league table is being led by many multiplayer online games at 38 percent. Mobile is ranked in second place at 27 percent. As for social games, they are in third place with a disappointing 18 percent of the overall acquisition value. The rest of the field made negligible numbers.
In terms of activity level, the mobile segment led the pack and was in first place for transaction volume. It accounted for some 28 percent. Following the mobile segment was multiplayer segment which came in at 20 percent. In terms of investment, mobile did very well with 31 percent of investment funds going its way. This is impressive considering that gamification earned 35 percent of invested dollars.
It should not be a surprise to anyone who is paying attention that mobile devices as well as social gambling are heading up and expected to continue that trend. Investors may want to keep on these hot topics.