Central Europe

The number of games companies and employees in Germany continues to grow

Published

3 years ago

August 12, 2022

Reading Time: 3 minutes

The upswing in the German games industry continues: significant increases in the number of German games companies and employees in 2021 are being followed up by further growth in both figures. There are currently approximately 786 companies in Germany that are involved in the development and marketing of computer and video games or in one of these two areas. This is 5 per cent more than in 2021. These are the figures released today by game – the German Games Industry Association, based on data collected by gamesmap.de. A majority of these companies (392, down by 3 per cent) are active in both development and publishing. 358 games studios focus solely on the development of games for PCs, games consoles and mobile devices. The number of these companies exhibited particularly strong growth, rising by 14 per cent compared to the previous year. The number of companies who are active solely as publishers is significantly lower, with just 36 such companies in Germany (up 13 per cent).

The positive trend in the number of employees has also continued, as the previous year’s 8 per cent growth has been followed up by approximately 3 per cent growth in the core market. This brings the total number of people employed in the development and marketing of games in Germany to 11,242. Differences in the growth rates underscore the degree to which the establishment of numerous smaller companies is driving the current growth trend in the German games industry: whereas the number of games companies in the core market has increased by 26 per cent over the past two years, the rate of growth in the number of employees during this same time span has been lower, at just under 12 per cent. Following a decline in the previous year, the games industry’s extended labour market also recovered somewhat: the estimated number of people employed here increased by nearly 6 per cent to 17,048. This extended labour market includes people employed by service providers, retailers, educational establishments, the media and the public sector in connection with the games industry. In total, the German games industry currently therefore secures more than 28,000 jobs.

The upswing in the German games industry continues: the increase of 26 per cent in the number of companies in just two years shows that Germany is on the right track as it strives to improve its attractiveness as a games location. Many of the positive impacts of the relatively new federal support programme for the games industry have yet to show up in the statistics, because most games are the result of a multi-year development process. Even so, growth in the number of companies and in their employees already offers us evidence of the industry’s high level of confidence that this upswing is going to last, particularly if policymakers continue to take the decisions necessary to continue this course,’ said Felix Falk, Managing Director of game.

European Gaming Congress 2024 (Warsaw, Poland)

Another year of strong growth for the German games market

Sales revenue from computer and video games and associated hardware is currently experiencing even stronger growth than that enjoyed by numbers of companies and their employees: following a historic 2020 performance with a 32 per cent jump in sales, sales revenues in the German games market continued to rise significantly in 2021 with a total of approximately 9.8 billion euros in sales revenue generated by games, games hardware and fees for online gaming services – an increase of 17 per cent compared to the previous year. Sales revenue from computer and video games grew by 19 per cent to about 5.4 billion euros, due among other things to increases in in-game and in-app purchases. Sales revenue from games hardware has also grown, by 18 per cent overall to about 3.6 billion euros. Demand for games consoles and gaming PC accessories was particularly strong.

About the market data

The online directory gamesmap.de records developments in the German games industry on an ongoing basis. game continuously calculates the industry’s employment situation in Germany using detailed industry observations and research, together with appropriate projections and surveys of experts.

The market data is based on statistics compiled by the GfK Consumer Panel and data.ai. The methods used by GfK to collect data on Germany’s digital games market are unique in terms of both their quality and their global use. They include an ongoing survey of 25,000 consumers who are representative of the German population as a whole regarding their video game purchasing and usage habits, as well as a retail panel. The data collection methods provide a unique insight into the German market for computer and video games.

game – the German Games Industry Association

We are the association of the German games industry. Our members include developers, publishers and many other games industry actors such as esports event organisers, educational establishments and service providers. As a joint organiser of gamescom, we are responsible for the world’s biggest event for computer and video games. We are an expert partner for media and for political and social institutions, and answer questions relating to market development, games culture and media literacy. Our mission is to make Germany the best games location.

Central Europe

Scientific Games and Polish National Lottery Continue 20-Year Scratchcard Tradition as Sales Grow

Published

1 week ago

July 24, 2025

George Miller

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Reading Time: < 1 minute

Scientific Games will continue to bring exciting instant scratchcard games to Polish National Lottery players through a new agreement with Totalizator Sportowy. Celebrating the instant lottery’s 25th anniversary last year, Totalizator Sportowy is among the top five performing instant game lotteries in Europe (La Fleur’s 2025 World Lottery Almanac). The world’s largest lottery games company has provided scratchcards to Totalizator Sportowy for more than 20 years, with scratchcard game sales in Poland growing by 20% over the past three years (2022 to 2025).

“Our goal is to give our players entertaining scratchcard experiences while responsibly generating maximum proceeds for Polish sport and culture. We are delighted to continue working with Scientific Games to offer fun, modern scratch experiences,” said Katarzyna Woznica-Borkowska, Manager of Instant Products for Totalizator Sportowy.

Most recently, Scientific Games collaborated with Totalizator Sportowy to offer Polish players the PLN30 GIGA 7 game produced with the company’s advanced Dimension technology, which enhances the play experience with three-dimensional, reflection-at-different-angle refractions above and below the game graphics.

Currently, the company provides instant games to 110 government-regulated lotteries worldwide, including more than 50 European lotteries.

“Scientific Games is honored to continue our longtime relationship with Totalizator Sportowy that we have built across two decades,” said Paul Dures, Lottery Sales Director EMEA for Scientific Games. “We look forward to continuing our work to drive meaningful growth for the scratchcard games in Poland creating more innovative and attractive games for players.”

With products that generate more than 70% of global instant game retail sales, Scientific Games is the world’s largest instant games creator, producer and services provider, and the primary provider to nine of the Top 10 performing instant game lotteries in the world (La Fleur’s 2025 World Lottery Almanac).

The post Scientific Games and Polish National Lottery Continue 20-Year Scratchcard Tradition as Sales Grow appeared first on European Gaming Industry News.

Central Europe

Number of companies and employees in German games industry falls for first time in years

Published

1 week ago

July 23, 2025

George Miller

number-of-companies-and-employees-in-german-games-industry-falls-for-first-time-in-years

Reading Time: 3 minutes

After years of growth, the number of companies and employees in the German games industry declined in 2025. This was announced today by game – The German Games Industry Association on the basis of data from gamesmap.de in cooperation with Goldmedia. According to the data, the number of companies in Germany that develop and/or publish games has dropped by 4 per cent within the past year, to 910. The boom in start-ups in the games sector, which was set in motion by the introduction of the German Federal Games Funding Programme in 2020, has now completely subsided. Last year’s figures already indicated a clear slowdown. This decline was due in particular to the consolidation of the global games market and the unreliable availability of games funding to date in Germany.

Three times since 2020, there have been months-long suspensions placed on funding applications. Despite the newly registered drop, the number of companies has risen by 46 per cent overall since the initial start of the games funding programme in 2020. Of the 910 present companies, 454 work exclusively in game development and 52 exclusively as publishers. The remaining 404 companies are active in both the development and publishing of games.

‘Last year was another very difficult one for the German games industry,’ says Felix Falk, Managing Director of game. ‘Germany’s international competitiveness was further decreased by the ongoing flip-flopping of the games funding policy, which ran right into the consolidation wave that swept the global games sector. Fortunately, the new federal government has already taken the necessary steps to level the playing field for companies in this country. The future funding budget is to be increased and thus adjusted to actual needs, and applications can be submitted from August onwards. These are crucial growth impulses that are urgently needed. The additional funds will not only give companies more planning security, but also time to implement additional tax breaks for games, as set out in the coalition agreement between the CDU, CSU and SPD. The improved conditions will finally give games companies a boost, which will hopefully soon be reflected in more start-ups and the creation of new jobs.’

The number of employees at games companies in Germany has also declined over the last year. Whereas game developers and publishers employed 12,408 workers in 2024, the current figure stands at just 12,134 – a drop of 2 per cent. As with the number of companies, the employee numbers had previously shown strong growth since the introduction of the games funding programme at the federal level: a rise of 23 per cent from 2020 to 2024. The recent decline indicates that the current conditions for the games industry, which offer limited scope for planning due to the repeated funding application stoppages and significant current funding restrictions, are having an impact on the job market. A year ago, there were still more companies with ongoing projects that were internationally competitive thanks to funding at levels comparable to those in other countries – financing that had stabilised Germany’s game sector, despite the global consolidation wave and a lack of funding certainty for the industry here. The game industry secures a total of over 30,000 jobs in Germany. In addition to jobs in development and publishing, these include, for example, skilled professionals in educational institutions, the media and the public and commercial sectors.

About the data
The data is drawn from a survey carried out by Goldmedia on the basis of entries on gamesmap.de. It was conducted on behalf of game – The German Games Industry Association for the period ending on 12 May 2025.

The post Number of companies and employees in German games industry falls for first time in years appeared first on European Gaming Industry News.

Central Europe

Pro Selection – next generation casino multigame from Promatic Group

Published

1 week ago

July 22, 2025

George Miller

pro-selection-–-next-generation-casino-multigame-from-promatic-group

Reading Time: 3 minutes

Promatic Group, a Polish manufacturer of slot machines and system solutions for the gaming industry, is launching a new collection of slots dedicated to casino customers – the Pro Selection multigame. The first devices have already been certified in Poland and stood in casinos in Warsaw and Krakow.

One platform, up to 55 games

Pro Selection is software with a collection of as many as 55 different titles, covering the full functional and stylistic range of games from the Polish company’s portfolio. Players will find both classic “fruits” games – traditional and simple in form – and modern adventure games, based on an elaborate narrative and unique logics. Branded productions that stand out for their original creations and high graphic quality are also worthy of special attention.

“In Pro Selection, we wanted to include our best titles and those that have proven themselves in both the land-based and online slot segments. That’s why players will find classics such as Miss Joker, one of the most popular games at Poland’s only legal online casino, or 81 Show, a popular hat game. There are also online hits of recent months such as Pixel Fruits and Ale Cool Bober. On top of that, we have added titles that have so far only been available in land-based slot machines and have been great in them, namely Golden Train, Aladdin or Magic Ladybird Mega,” says Piotr Fedak, CEO of Promatic. – “As for branded productions, games with Mariusz Pudzianowski remain a hit, and not only in Poland”, he adds.

Variability and mathematics for every player

One of the important features of Multigame Pro Selection is the mathematical diversity of the games available in it. The collection offers games with varying levels of volatility – from low to very high (on a scale of 1 to 5 stars). As a result, the package meets the needs of both enthusiasts of long session play with frequent, smaller wins, and players looking for higher risk and high wins.

Also new to Pro Selection is a revamped user interface. An intuitive lobby, it provides quick access to all titles, convenient filtering and easy navigation – both from the touch screen and traditional buttons. This is part of software that meets the highest industry technical standards and has been certified by a Polish testing laboratory accredited by the Minister of Finance as authorized to test gaming machines.

“As a product dedicated to casinos, i.e. the most demanding B2B customers, Pro Selection is designed to be fully integrated with the SAS protocol, which is standard in this market, giving compatibility with various casino management systems and providing full operational and billing transparency. It’s a product that is ready for deployment in casino environments where reliability and control are key,” explains Piotr Fedak. – We strive to ensure that Pro Selection’s multigame always goes hand in hand with our proprietary Royal Sevens Jackpot progressive jackpot system, which in itself is a huge asset and player magnet, Fedak adds.

Ease of maintenance and energy efficiency

Pro Selection software is available exclusively on the latest casino-class slot machines from Promatic Group – that is, the Casino 27 and PRO VIP 27 and 32 cabinets These are top-quality terminals equipped with HD monitors, state-of-the-art sound systems and RGB lighting to enhance the gaming atmosphere.

“Thanks to their modular design and intuitive service menus, our multigames are virtually maintenance-free – that is, technical service friendly. Interestingly also, our energy efficiency studies have shown that compared to the competition, Promatic machines consume significantly less energy,” says Piotr Fedak. – At the moment Pro Selection is fully certified for the Polish market, and work is already underway to obtain licenses for the Czech Republic, Slovakia where our goal is to implement this 100% Polish product in those very markets, says Piotr Fedak.

About Promatic Group

Promatic Group is a Polish company with more than 28 years of experience in the gambling industry, specializing in the production of gaming machines and providing dedicated software for gaming rooms and casinos, both land-based and online. The company’s headquarters and factory are located in Warsaw and Jelenia Gora.

In Poland, Promatic’s devices can be found in Totalizator Sportowy’s legal gaming salons, casinos of the WinCasino chain and selected Casinos Poland locations. The company also operates in Latin American and African markets.

Promatic Group is certified to ISO 27001 for information security and ISO 9001 for slot machine manufacturing quality.

Since 2021, the company has also been developing its online gaming segment under the Promatic Games brand, offering online slots in regulated markets in Poland, the Czech Republic and Slovakia. It also holds B2B licenses issued by regulators in Romania (ONJN) and Malta (MGA) and plans to enter more than a dozen new markets in the next few months.

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