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The state of the gaming industry
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The video game industry made $108.9 billion in 2017, more than six times the profit turned by the music industry. In fact, in the UK, the BBC reports that gaming is “worth more than video and music combined” –despite the fact that it is the youngest of the three mediums.
The UK is not alone. Around the world revenue is being driven, profits are being turned and billions of dollars are being made – predominantly by the sale of video games.
The top 10 gaming markets, as of October 2018, are as follows:
1. China – $34.4 billion
2. USA – $31.5 billion
3. Japan – $17.7 billion
4. South Korea – $5.7 billion
5. Germany – 4.9 billion
6. United Kingdom – $4.7 billion
7. France – $3.3 billion
8. Canada – 2.4 billion
9. Spain – $2.2 billion
10. Italy – $2.1 billion
Figures are courtesy of Newzoo.com’s top 100 report, with VGsales.wikia consulted as well.
Digital is the way forward
Say goodbye to the big cardboard boxes of old. Digital is the new revenue driver for games.
Statista notes that US digital sales were up to 79% in 2017 versus 20% in 2009. In the UK, the trend is similar: a Eurogamer report notes that 80% of all sales are now digital.
In fact, investment management firm Piper Jaffray predicts that physical copies of games will disappear by 2022.
What do the 50 best-selling games of all time have in common?
The insights that follow are based on an analysis of the 50 best-selling video games of all time, as of 16 January 2019.
1. 62% of the games are preoccupied with action/violence in one form or another
2. 0% of the games feature a female-only protagonist
3. 38% of the games feature male-only leads
4. Only 9% of the games on the list feature a Hollywood A-lister
Diversity in gaming: Not a single game in the top 50 features a female-only protagonist
- 0% of the games focus on a female-only story
- By contrast, 38% of the games feature male leads
48% of the games allow you to choose your sex/gender - 1 game on the list (2%) has an “unknown” protagonist (Need for Speed: Most Wanted) and 6 games (12%) don’t feature a human protagonist at all.
Games with female leads, like Horizon Zero Dawn, fall short of the top 50 despite outstanding results. In February 2018, Horizon was confirmed to have sold more than 7.6 million copies. The best-selling Tomb Raider game – 2013’s reboot – is closer to the top 50 still, netting 11 million sales in its lifetime so far.
Still, the lack of diversity is disappointing, and the results mirror a trend propagated by movies. Of the 50 biggest box office hits, only Frozen (Kristen Bell, Idina Menzel) and Beauty and the Beast (Emma Watson) afford a woman top billing.
But the situation is improving…
…The new Star Wars films heavily focus on the story of Rey (Daisy Ridley) and from a video game standpoint, developers are trying to redress the imbalance.
In terms of upcoming releases:
- The Last of Us Part II will focus entirely on Ellie (she was a playable character in the 2013 original).
- Gears 5 from the popular Gears of War franchise will put you in the shoes of Kait, bucking the trend of male leads in Gears games past.
- Control, the next title from Alan Wake and Max Payne developer Remedy, will also have a female protagonist.
Violence remains a key selling point
62% of the games on the list are based around the central conceit of action, or violence.
The most popular genres all deal with it in one capacity or another:
- Action-adventure – 30% (15 out of 50)
- Shooters – 18% (9 out of 50)
- Role-playing– 14% (7 out of 50)
“Action-adventure” encompasses a mix of open world titles like Grand Theft Auto and more tightly-constructed fare like The Last of Us – both styles are preoccupied with violence.
Shooters emphasise violence even more – this a genre in which you’re literally looking down the sights of a gun.
Finally, role-playing blurs the line, but conflict is at the heart of the Pokemon games (albeit in cartoon form) and Skyrim sees players battling otherworldly creatures with swords, bows and magic.
Need for Speed might be a big-name franchise, but only one game from the series makes the top 50
Five racing games make the top 50, but four of them are Mario titles.
The one that isn’t – 2005’s Need for Speed: Most Wanted – followed on the heels off the chintzy and celebrity-heavy Need for Speed Underground games and emerged at a time when sentiment towards the franchise was at an all-time high.
Most Wanted also arrived in a year populated with an unusual number of platforms. The game was released for the Nintendo DS, Game Boy Advance, GameCube, PC, PlayStation 2, PlayStation Portable, Xbox, Xbox 360. This would have helped its sales performance.
The five lowest-ranking genres in the top 50 are:
- Arcade – 1 / 2%
- Puzzle – 2 / 4%
- Simulation, Virtual life – 2 / 4%
- Miscellaneous – 4 / 8%
- Driving, Racing – 5 / 10%
Hollywood lite: games don’t need well-known actors and actresses to sell well
In additional research on the top 50 best-selling games, we looked at how many involved a high-profile cast and whether this is a key selling point. It turns out, that while movies rely on big-name actors to make a splash, games are less dependent on star power to drive their wheels.
Only 15% of the 50 on the list feature a well-known gaming voice actor (a Nolan North or Troy Baker, for instance). This number drops to 9% when you tighten the net to Hollywood A-listers, who include:
- Cara Pifko (Kinect Adventures!, 2010)
- Ricky Gervais (Grand Theft Auto IV, 2008)
- Keith David (Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2, 2009)
- Samuel L. Jackson, Ice-T, James Woods, Danny Dyer, William Fichtner, (Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas, 2004)
- Michael Madsen, Michael Rapaport, Kyle MacLachlan (Grand Theft Auto III, 2001)
Rockstar’s recent titles, like Grand Theft Auto V and Red Dead Redemption 2, have purposefully steered clear of Hollywood talent.
“[W]e don’t bring in name actors anymore,” Dan Houser, Rockstar co-founder, revealed to Vulture, “because of their egos and, most important of all, because we believe we get a better sense of immersion using talented actors whose voices you don’t recognize.”
Both Grand Theft Auto V and Red Dead Redemption 2 rely on relatively unknown actors, and given their incredible sales success, it hasn’t hurt them.
6 games could potentially ship 10 million copies or more in 2019 and 2020
The top 50 Smash Hit Success list demonstrates one thing loud and clear: franchise names sell well. And with the PlayStation 5 and the next Xbox likely around the corner, game-makers will have yet more platforms to make money on.
In theory, something like FIFA 20 could appear on the PlayStation 3, PlayStation 4 and PlayStation 5; the Xbox 360, Xbox One and the next Xbox.
Expect 2019 and 2020 to be bumper years for this fast-growing industry.
Likely best-selling games on the horizon:
- Super Smash Bros. Ultimate (based on the success of Nintendo first-party releases)
- 2019’s Call of Duty (based on prior Call of Duty success)
- FIFA 20 (based on the success of FIFA 18)
- The Last of Us 2 (based on the success of The Last of Us)
- Cyberpunk 2020 (based on the success of RPG fantasy games like Skyrim)
- Metroid Prime 4 (based on the success of Nintendo first-party releases)
Source: Latest News on European Gaming Media Network
This is a Syndicated News piece. Photo credits or photo sources can be found on the source article: The state of the gaming industry
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LambdaTest Unveils the World’s First Platform to Test AI Agents: Introducing Agent-to-Agent Testing
AI-native Multi-Agent System Delivers Smarter, Faster, and More Comprehensive Software Testing
LambdaTest, the leading AI-native testing platform, has launched the private beta release of its Agent-to-Agent Testing, the world’s first platform designed to validate and assess AI agents. With the rise of AI agents in developer workflows, the platform is set to revolutionize the way organizations test and validate their AI agents across conversation flows, intent recognition, tone consistency, complex reasoning, and beyond.
As enterprises increasingly rely on AI agents to power customer experiences, a critical challenge has emerged: no standard way of testing various AI Agents. These agents interact with users and systems in ways that are dynamic and unpredictable, making it hard to ensure their reliability and performance. Traditional testing methods fall short when the system under test is inherently unpredictable.
Organizations need a new, smarter way to test AI applications at scale, which is where Agent-to-Agent Testing comes in. LambdaTest’s Agent-to-Agent Testing platform is the first of its kind. The platform uses a suite of specialized AI testing agents to rigorously validate chat and voice AI agents..
Teams can upload existing requirement documents in various formats, such as text, images, audio, and video, and the system automatically handles multi-modal analysis to generate relevant test scenarios, simulating real-world challenges that could break the AI agent under test. Each scenario includes precise validation criteria and expected responses, evaluated within HyperExecute, LambdaTest’s next-gen test orchestration cloud, delivering up to 70% faster test execution than standard automation grids.
The platform highlights different key metrics like Bias, Completeness, Hallucinations, etc., to help teams analyse the quality of their AI agent
By integrating agentic AI and GenAI technologies, it generates real-world scenarios such as tone of personality agents, data privacy considerations, and executes test cases with unparalleled accuracy. This ensures much broader and more diverse test coverage compared to traditional testing tools. Unlike single-agent systems, LambdaTest’s Agent-to-Agent Testing leverages multiple large language models (LLMs), which the agents use for reasoning and test generation. This multi-agent approach results in a much more comprehensive and detailed test suite, enabling deeper, more robust testing of AI applications.
“Every AI agent you deploy is unique, and that’s both its greatest strength and its biggest risk! As AI applications become more complex, traditional testing approaches simply can’t keep up with the dynamic nature of AI agents,” said Asad Khan, CEO and Co-Founder at LambdaTest. ” Our Agent-to-Agent Testing platform thinks like a real user, generating smart, context-aware test scenarios that mimic real-world situations your AI might struggle with. Each test comes with clear validation checkpoints and the responses we’d expect to see.”
Enterprises using Agent-to-Agent Testing will experience faster test creation, evaluation of Agents, reduced testing cycles, and significant improvements in test coverage. The multi-agent system can generate a 5 to 10-fold increase in test coverage, providing a more comprehensive view of AI agent performance.
Furthermore, the integration with HyperExecute means teams receive rapid feedback, reducing the time between testing and iteration. By automating much of the testing process, companies also reduce their reliance on manual QA efforts, resulting in significant cost savings. With 15 purpose-built AI testing agents ranging from security researchers to compliance validators, LambdaTest Agent-to-Agent testing ensures every deployment is as robust, safe, and reliable as possible. Helping teams ship their AI agents with confidence.
Learn more about Agent-to-Agent Testing by LambdaTest here: lambdatest.com/agent-to-agent-testing
To watch the live unveiling of the platform, join the Testμ Conference 2025 on 20th August, 2025: lambdatest.com/testmuconf-2025
The post LambdaTest Unveils the World’s First Platform to Test AI Agents: Introducing Agent-to-Agent Testing appeared first on European Gaming Industry News.
The Arizona Department of Gaming (“the Department”) is proud to announce the launch of its first-ever statewide Public Education Campaign focused on protecting consumers, promoting public awareness, and reducing the harms associated with unregulated gambling. This is a significant milestone in the Department’s ongoing efforts to protect consumers and ensure a safe and responsible gaming environment.
Arizona offers a variety of legal, regulated gaming options throughout the state, including tribal casinos, event wagering, fantasy sports, and parimutuel wagering. For 30 years, ADG has safeguarded the integrity of Arizona’s gaming industry through rigorous oversight, licensing, and enforcement in accordance with the Tribal-State Gaming Compacts. This new campaign expands on that mission by educating Arizonans on how to avoid illegal gambling and access support services when needed.
The campaign is designed to inform and empower the public by emphasizing the risks of engaging with unlicensed operators and providing them with tools to identify legal, regulated options. It aims to reduce consumer vulnerability, prevent exploitation, and help individuals make informed decisions if they choose to participate in gaming activities.
The campaign kicks off with a series of Public Service Announcements (PSAs), developed in collaboration with the Arizona Media Association, which will be aired across TV, radio, print, and digital platforms. Available in both English and Spanish, the PSAs will:
- Educate the public on how to identify legal, regulated gaming operators in Arizona
- Emphasize consumer protection and the safeguards provided by regulated gaming environments
- Highlight the role regulated gaming plays in supporting Arizona communities and essential services
- Promote the 1-800-NEXT STEP helpline, which connects individuals to confidential, 24/7 support for problem gambling
To complement the PSAs, ADG has launched the Check Your Bet webpage, which serves as a centralized resource to verify regulated gaming and access consumer protection tools. The webpage includes:
- A searchable list and interactive map of authorized Tribal Casinos in Arizona
- A searchable list and interactive map of licensed Event Wagering and Fantasy Sports Operators and their retail locations
- Information on Advanced Deposit Wagering Providers (ADWPs), Off-Track Betting (OTB) locations, and permitted horse racing tracks in Arizona
- How to access the Division of Problem Gambling’s Helpline, a confidential Problem Gambling Self-Screening Quiz, and additional supportive resources
- How to request Self-Exclusion, a voluntary program to prohibit oneself from Tribal Casinos and Event Wagering and Fantasy Sports Contests
- Guidance on submitting tips about suspected illegal gambling to the Department and filing consumer complaints with the Arizona Attorney General’s Office
For more information, visit the Check Your Bet webpage at gaming.az.gov/checkyourbet.
“We are proud to celebrate 30 years of providing world-class gaming regulation and consumer protection,” said Jackie Johnson, Director of the Arizona Department of Gaming. “This campaign is about empowering Arizonans who choose to participate in gaming with the knowledge to make informed, responsible decisions. As illegal and unregulated options on the market increase, the Check Your Bet webpage serves as a key resource for the public to verify licensed operators and access support. By directing viewers from our PSAs to this tool, we’re helping ensure people not only play safely, but also know where to turn if they or a loved one are struggling with problem gambling.”
Since its founding in 1995, the Department has worked tirelessly to ensure that Arizona’s gaming industry operates with transparency, integrity, and responsibility. The campaign will run through the end of March 2026 and reflects ADG’s commitment to a safe, transparent, and well-regulated gaming landscape in Arizona.
The post ADG Launches First-Ever Statewide Campaign to Empower and Protect Consumers appeared first on European Gaming Industry News.
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Arizona Department of Gaming Continues Enforcement Against Unlicensed and Unregulated Gaming Operators
The Arizona Department of Gaming (“ADG”) has issued cease-and-desist orders to four additional unlicensed and unregulated gambling operators targeting Arizona residents. The identified operators are reportedly offering access to illegal online gambling platforms, including “sweepstakes” casino-style models and event wagering sportsbook betting options. Unlicensed operators operating outside the law and without regulatory safeguards pose serious risks to consumer protection and financial security across the state, undermining the integrity of Arizona’s regulated gaming industry.
This latest action underscores the Department’s commitment to protecting the public and upholding Arizona’s gaming laws. ADG continues to actively monitor, investigate, and take enforcement action against entities attempting to exploit Arizona residents through unauthorized gambling activities, including possible enforcement actions in partnership with the Arizona Attorney General’s Office.
The following entities are not licensed by the State of Arizona. Therefore, cease-and-desist orders have been issued to:
- Event Wagering Sportsbook:
- Fliff Online Gambling
- Thrillzz Mobile Gambling
- Sweepstakes:
- BettySweeps Casino
- Pulsz Casino
The active operations of these companies and online websites in Arizona are alleged to be felony criminal enterprises, and each operator has been directed to desist from any future illegal gambling operations or activities of any type in Arizona. Due to the unregulated and illegal online gaming offerings on these sites, operators are claimed to be in violation of Arizona gaming laws, including
- Promotion of Gambling (Felony) — A.R.S. § 13-3303.
- Illegal Control of an Enterprise (Felony) — A.R.S. § 13-2312.
- Money Laundering (Felony) — A.R.S. § 13-2317.
Each aforementioned operator has been directed to immediately cease all online (or other) gambling operations and activities in Arizona and take the necessary steps to immediately prevent and exclude Arizona residents and visitors from gambling on their websites.
Consumer Protection Advisory:
As illegal online gaming activity continues to rise, the ADG urges all residents and visitors to be cautious when participating in gaming, whether online or in person. Regulated gaming offers important consumer protections, helping ensure fair play, data security, accountability, and a safer overall experience.
Many online platforms currently accessible in Arizona are neither licensed nor regulated, exposing users to significant risks, including fraud, identity theft, and financial loss. Because these operations fall outside the state’s regulatory authority, ADG cannot assist with complaints or disputes involving unregulated or illegal gaming activities, often leaving victims with no recourse for recovering lost funds. It is important to remember: just because you can download the app, access the website, and play the games does not mean the platform is legal or safe.
Individuals are encouraged to verify the legitimacy of any gaming platform before placing bets or engaging in gameplay. To protect yourself, always use legally authorized and state-regulated operators. A complete list of authorized casinos, event wagering operators, fantasy sports operators, and off-track betting and advanced deposit wagering providers for horse racing is available on ADG’s official website: gaming.az.gov/checkyourbet.
How to Report Suspicious Gaming Activity, Fraud, or Identity Theft:
- If you encounter what appears to be an illegal gaming website, app, or an operation impersonating an authorized Arizona casino or licensed operator, take the following steps:
- Document the website URL, app, business name, and any promotional materials associated with the platform or operator.
- Report it to ADG at [email protected] and the Arizona Attorney General’s Office Consumer Information and Complaints Unit at (602) 542-5763 or by visiting azag.gov/consumer.
- Cease activity on the platform and monitor financial accounts for unauthorized transactions.
- If you suspect identity theft, report it to the Federal Trade Commission (“FTC”): for help in English, go to IdentityTheft.gov, and for help in Spanish, go to RobodeIdentidad.gov.
ADG takes complaints about all illegal gambling seriously. To report any form of suspected illegal gambling, visit gaming.az.gov/about/contact-us, call ADG at (602) 255-3886, or email [email protected]. Reports can be made anonymously.
The post Arizona Department of Gaming Continues Enforcement Against Unlicensed and Unregulated Gaming Operators appeared first on European Gaming Industry News.
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