How to strengthen the gaming industry?
For countries like Canada or Poland, the gaming industry is a strong industry. Germany could still learn a lot. The Import Ideas podcast looks for ideas and possible role models abroad.
From the point of view of many, computer games are a central part of everyday life, and gamers are no longer just bores in the basement. Most of society around the world is now playing on console, PC or mobile.
According to a 2021 industry survey, there are about 2.7 billion gamers in the world. Uptrend. More than half of them are said to be women. The gaming industry should now be worth over US0 billion.
The number of German development studios has increased
Germany would also like to have a piece of this pie. The grand coalition has already launched the first nationwide funding program in 2019. At that time, 50 million euros per year were planned. And the traffic light government's coalition agreement also says, "We want to strengthen the games venue and stabilize funding."
Funding is showing early results: According to the German Gaming Association, the number of developer studios in Germany has grown by 26 percent in two years. And yet, it will probably be some time before Germany can keep up with the world market.
Cultural mediation through games in Poland
Other countries have been strengthening their gaming industry for decades. In Poland, public funding began shortly after the collapse of the Soviet Union. Meanwhile, development studios have settled in the neighboring country, releasing world blockbusters. First of all, CD Project, which has enjoyed great success in recent years with games like the fantasy game The Witcher and the dystopian game Cyberpunk 2077.
The Polish government and society value and promote their gaming industry. In addition to purely economic support, there is also money from the culture bank for games that represent Polish culture and lifestyle. As well as The Witcher, based on a series of Polish books. Other Polish computer games have even entered the educational canon. For example, the military critical game "This is my war."
Translation of the article: www.tagesschau.de