A snapshot of the videogame market and production industry in Italy in 2022 taken by IIDEA (Italian Interactive & Digital Entertainment Association), the trade association of the videogame industry, was presented on Tuesday, April 18th at the Casa del Cinema in Rome.
Stable consumption and signs of growth for national production: the report certifies a turnover of 2.2 billion euros and 14.2 million gamers; on the made in Italy front, on the other hand, it registers a growth of +30% in turnover and an +50% of employees compared to the previous survey carried out in 2021.
Interestingly, in terms of geographical distribution of operators, the Emilia-Romagna Region ranks second after Lombardy and before Lazio among the Italian regions with the most development studios.
The event was attended by numerous institutional figures including Sen. Lucia Borgonzoni, Undersecretary of State at the Ministry of Culture, who during her opening remarks highlighted how the video game industry is “increasingly expanding, with strong potential yet to be expressed, capable of nurturing culture through an innovative language“. The undersecretary then continued his speech by emphasizing that “video games are culture” and “in addition to the entertainment part, video games are increasingly entering cultural spheres, such as museums“. He finally added an interesting insight on the front of the use of video games to support education by stating that “Gaming must find an increasing role within schools,” and “education, through video games, is much more simplified but not diminished, to bring children closer to certain topics to be studied in depth“. The undersecretary’s speech concluded with her big dream, namely, that “video games, as well as all audiovisuals, become a subject of study along with all others“.
During the panel discussion between industry and institutions titled “Italy’s video games in the national and international landscape” that took place after the Undersecretary’s speech, Alberto Pietrangelo, CEO of Orbital Games, a Modenese start-up that participated in the first edition of Bologna Game Farm, also brought his testimony.
More information on the trend of the video game industry in Italy in 2022 is available HERE.