The growth of mobile and the popularity of casual gaming are dictating the online strategies of many of the country's biggest brands.
According to a panel of experts who gathered at a round table held by hosting specialist UKFast, businesses are foolish to ignore the popularity of mobile gaming in a successful digital strategy as the impact of mobile gaming on the industry is expected to increase further over the next few years.
Discussing sales of Nintendo’s new game console, the 3DS, Stuart Howarth, co-founder and director of KOKO Digital, said: "Poor sales of the 3DS have been put down to the popularity of smartphones and the changing attitudes among consumers to buy cheap games."
While hard core gamers still value consoles, casual gamers are becoming a very valuable audience. The panel agreed that micro-purchasing, whereby users spend less on individual purchases but complete more transactions through impulse buying and add-ons, should be a focus for firms in the gaming industry.
Sales and marketing director for Wirebox and Flairsoft, Carl Brown, said consolidation was the key to successful digital development. "The iPad 2 can integrate with Apple TV now too, so it’s moving from just gaming on the iPad to gaming on TV, using the iPad as a controller. It’s all about consolidation and companies delivering more and more in one place."
