Gamers in Russia spent billions on in-game items in July 2024

In July 2024, Russian gamers spent more than 20 billion rubles on in-game purchases. The most popular purchases were subscriptions, cosmetic items, new characters, game advantages, and loot boxes.

Photo: Openverse by nodstrum, CC BY 2.0

The average transaction size ranged from 500 to 1,000 rubles, with the most active players spending just over 2,500 rubles per purchase. The gaming industry is primarily monetized in two ways: through one-time purchases and the more profitable free-to-play model, which generates revenue through in-game transactions.

The free-to-play model is considered more sustainable for developers, providing a constant flow of funds. Experts note that microtransactions have become a significant source of income, sometimes even exceeding the cost of the game itself.

Overall, the gaming industry in Russia showed growth of 14% in the first half of 2024 compared to the same period last year, indicating stable development of the sector.

Clarifications

Gamer (gamer from English – “player”) – a person who plays video games, although at first gamers were called those who played only role-playing or war games. Gamers are considered a new subculture, and entered this list in 2013, after the recognition of eSports. Although the term includes people who do not consider themselves full-fledged players, they are often called those who spend a lot of time playing games or are interested in them. There are many gaming communities around the world, which can take the form of various web rings, forums, and other virtual communities. Stores specializing in games often serve as a gathering place for groups of players. Before the advent of the Internet, many played through regular mail in play-by-mail games, which are similar to online games of today.

Video game (English video game) – a game using images generated by electronic equipment. In other words, a video game is an electronic game that is based on the interaction of a person and a device through a visual and physical interface, such as a TV, computer monitor or telephone. Other definitions of the term: a computer game played on a TV screen using a game console. a video game device (the subject of which is a video game) is a household electronic device designed to display game information on the screen of a television receiver or household video monitor. However, at present, the terms computer game and video game can be used as synonyms and interchangeably.

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