The Brazilian games industry witnessed a 3.2% growth in the number of studios from 1,009 in 2021 to 1,042 in 2023, as revealed by the Second National Survey of the Game Industry conducted by the Brazil Games export program in collaboration with Abragames and ApexBrazil.
This comprehensive study encompassed 309 developers, 214 freelance professionals, and 80 digital game service and development support organizations.
Examining data spanning from 2022 to 2023, the survey disclosed that the revenue generated by Brazil’s games industry amounted to $251.6 million in 2022.
The sale of games through digital platforms surged from 54% in 2021 to 62% in 2022, while direct sales experienced a decline from 30% to 23% within the same timeframe. PC games dominated the revenue share at 44%, followed by mobile games at 23% and console games at 12%.
In terms of game development during this period, the study identified a production of 2,600 proprietary games between 2020 and 2022, with slightly over 1,000 released in 2022, marking a 12% increase compared to 2021. Additionally, the survey underscored that 93% of studios embarked on developing their own intellectual properties.
Despite notable layoffs witnessed during 2022 and 2023, the report estimates that approximately 800 individuals commenced careers in game development in Brazil in 2022, elevating the total number of workers from 12,441 in 2021 to 13,225 in 2022.
Rodrigo Terra, President of Abragames, remarked, “The insights gleaned from the second edition of the survey reaffirm Brazil’s stature as one of the most promising regions for providing external development services, as previously indicated in reports from the XDS Summit, a globally recognized authority in the field.”
He further added, “Brazilian endeavors have been meeting international demands with commendable quality, particularly excelling in artistic, engineering, and co-development endeavors. Consequently, we observe that half of Brazilian developers are active in foreign markets, with over 70% of their revenues originating from diverse international sources.”
