Gaming trends in 2022: Insights on playability and monetization tactics

2021 was an epic year for gaming. With the PS5 and Xbox X/S, Nintendo Switch, and Steam leading the market, many games devs have enjoyed incredibly profitable years.

And while the pandemic lingers, the industry has gone from strength to strength. In 2021, the financial forecast is for revenue of $180.1 billion. That’s a 10.7% growth over recent years.

So, it’s an exciting time to be a games developer! But it’s also important to keep track of trends in gaming. And that’s where this feature post will help you.

The top 5 big gaming trends for 2022

With billions of people now gaming regularly, the industry is expected to hit $190 billion of revenue over the next 12 months.

Mainstream gaming is a major contributor to that success. In 2008, Apple’s App Store brought mobile gaming to the masses along with Sony, Microsoft, Valve, and Nintendo’s projects.

So, which are the future trends for the gaming industry? Let’s take a look!

1. More, more, more mobile gaming

Mobile games are becoming more advanced. And more popular. They’ve become such a hit, even Nintendo didn’t want to miss out on the craze.

The developer, for the first time ever, in 2018 published its games on a system other than its own hardware.

And mobile games go from strength to strength. With one click downloads at low costs, and gaming on-the-go options, will help to take gaming to even more people in 2022.

The trick there is make sure you monetize your game to take advantage!

2. Social gaming will make more marks

Gaming trends show social activity is more active ever before. In fact, entertainment and socialising are now blending together into a new type of entertainment.

Escapism and fun are big drivers for gamers and that, more and more, now includes the social elements of video games.

And this means the boundaries between social media and gaming are being blurred. So, social platforms that embrace that side could see major community growth.

Plus, developers who tap into that with more social options stand the chance of better promotion and online awareness of their game.

3. HTML5 creates new opportunities

One of the most unexpected trends in gaming, browser-based gaming experiences are becoming possible thanks to new technology. Specifically webGL-powered HTML5.

This can allow developers to offer games in a web browser! Or at least a demo. As Townscaper indie developer Oskar Stålberg from Sweden recently demonstrated.

For developers, this approach can reduce the cost of running cloud servers. And reduce game development requirements.

Browsers offer instant page loading, voice-driven tools, AI browsing, and a much less complicated way to go about gaming.

Well worth consideration for indie studios out there wanting to make their titles as accessible to as many people as possible.

4. Cloud gaming will rise

Games as a service (GaaS) could transform the industry forever. If gaming trends are anything to go by! h

Imagine a world where gamers don’t need to have a console at home. Instead, they’ll have games install onto remote hardware. And then they can access these games across the internet.

One of the big issues here is a player has to have a strong internet connection to avoid lag and frame rate problems.

In some countries and regions, internet connections are slow.But with 4G technology advancing, we can expect cloud gaming to become more popular over the next decade.

5. More global monetization

The likes of microtransactions and in-game advertising will continue to grow, along with new and varied opportunities to monetize your games.

We’re on a mission to make that possible and already have the following ways you can monetize your games:

• Mobile SDKs
• Virtual currency API
• Hosted payment pages
• TokiDoki API
• Checkout API
• In-game widgets

There’s also TokiDoki APIs for recurring billing, letting you step up your subscription game in 2022 to get more loyal customers.

Ultimately, your monetization tactics should offer players flexibility and create opportunities fro more enjoyment from their playing experience.

That’s one of the trends in gaming that needs more work. Make monetization less invasive!

Make the most of 2022’s gaming trends

Want to sell your game and make it a big hit? We’ll help monetize your game worldwide!

With our in-built features you can sell your game, in-game items, virtual currency, and expansion packs (DLC). And we can do this with Terminal3 Payments, a shop builder, and global marketplaces.

Plus, we’ll be your merchant of record to keep you compliant with global tax regulations. We also handle risk, fraud, disputes, and chargebacks—we win 80% of our cases.