The global online gaming industry has witnessed a dramatic rise in recent years. In 2022, the global industry is expected to realize 23.56 billion U.S. dollars and $32.98 billion by 2027. In the U.S., the revenue is expected to reach $4.93 billion in 2022 and grow to $6.5 billion by 2027.
The 2020 Covid-19 pandemic forced people to stay indoors, devastatingly affecting most businesses. However, online gaming was among the few industries that thrived in this period, with 55% of the American population turning to video games for stress relief, relaxation, entertainment, and connection with the outside world. The uptake drove a 20% increase in global gaming sales, creating more than 20,000 job opportunities in 2020 alone. The trend did not slow down even after things went back to normal, and it’s not expected to happen any time soon.
The high mobile penetration allowing users to access games on the go is another factor fueling this dramatic growth. Game creators are now releasing games focusing on smartphone users to tap into this vast market. Almost every top brick-and-motor casino now has an online segment, enabling far players to win money from any location to play their favorite games.
Impact of iGaming on the U.S. Economy
The significant impact of the online gaming industry on the global economy has encouraged governments and policymakers to look for ways to regulate the industry and increase the revenue from gaming activities.
Before the legalization of online gaming in the U.S., many online gaming companies operated from locations such as Kahnawake, Antigua, and Alderney. This deprived the government of billions of dollars in revenues and led to cash outflow. Things had changed since 2017, when states started to legalize online casinos, making it easier for the authorities to regulate the industry and earn revenues.
In the U.S., the gaming industry has a massive effect on the economy, providing stable jobs to over two million Americans. In addition, the industry generates billions of dollars in taxes for the federal and state governments.
More states’ continued legalization of online gambling has added more jobs and revenues. Online gaming sites in P.A., like Caesars, contribute billions of dollars to the state of Pennsylvania. The P.A. gaming industry generated a record $5 billion between June 2021 and June 2022. The online wing of gaming recorded significant growth in this period.
Who have been the biggest beneficiaries?
The growing iGaming industry provides fantastic job opportunities to people with game design and development skills. There is an increase in employment openings in digital gaming platforms, with designing, animation, coding, and engineering roles leading the way.
People with art skills, especially in digital art tools like Adobe Photoshop and Autodesk Maya, are in very high demand as animators. An animator offers several services to a gaming studio or company, such as modeling characters, building immersive landscapes, and designing user interfaces and navigation elements.
Gamesmith, a digital gaming community, has more than 5,000 gaming-related jobs on its site at any time. According to the platform, the average salary of 30-year-old animators is $90,000 per year, with their male counterparts earning an average of $100,000. This shows a career is an exciting source of stable income.
If you have excellent writing and communication skills, then you can apply as a writer at a gaming studio. Writers are responsible for everything you hear in a video game, from the not-so-friendly words you hear in the background of the Grand Theft Auto Series to the long speeches in The Legend of Zelda’s Breadth of the Wild.
Gaming companies are always on the hunt for writers with mastery of crafting great stories and understanding characters. You don’t require to be a professional writer – you can combine your research and writing skills to create stories for gaming publishers.
Another fastest-growing segment of the online gaming sector is the design and development section, with the New England Institute of Technology estimating that there are around 287,000 video designers or creators in the U.S. Game designer’s job market is projected to grow by 9.3% between 2020 and 2026.
U.S. Cities or States Offering the Best Opportunities in Game Design
The following American cities have several promising and exciting game design studios that employ thousands of creatives in the United States.
Los Angeles: There are around 148 studios in L.A. offering job opportunities to thousands of game developers.
San Francisco: The city with the alluring bay view is home to fashionistas and techies. About 150 game studios are found in San Francisco.
Seattle: You can also start your career in game design at any of the 107 studios in Seattle.
Austin: The city, too, is a game design hub with 96 studios in here.
Most game design companies are found in California, the District of Columbia, and Texas. The table below shows employed video designers in each state.
| State | Employed Game Developers |
| California | 47,930 |
| Texas | 19,640 |
| District of Columbia | 17,020 |
| Georgia | 16,580 |
| Illinois | 16,050 |
| Colorado | 14,390 |
| Pennsylvania | 14,280 |
| Maryland | 13,840 |
| Virginia | 13,040 |
| Florida | 11,180 |
| Washington | 10,940 |
| Michigan | 9,780 |
| New Jersey | 9,470 |
| Massachusetts | 9,240 |
| Ohio | 7,900 |
| Arizona | 7,150 |
| Oregon | 6,740 |
| Missouri | 6,260 |
| Minnesota | 6,020 |
| Utah | 5,170 |
| Wisconsin | 3,750 |
| Tennessee | 3,620 |
| Louisiana | 3,340 |
| Indiana | 2,750 |
| Nevada | 2,710 |
| Kentucky | 2,590 |
| Nebraska | 2,430 |
| Oklahoma | 2,360 |
| Iowa | 2,180 |
Other states have less than two thousand studios.
The data was obtained from https://www.careerexplorer.com/careers/video-game-designer/job-market/.
Popular employers for Video game designers include Electronic Arts Inc., Ubisoft Entertainment Inc., Bungie Inc., NetEnt, Naughty Dog, and Blizzard Entertainment.
A computer science degree and programming fundamentals are the minimum requirements for video game development and design jobs.
Online Gaming Taxes Used by Government to Create Jobs
The federal and state governments earn significant revenues from the online gaming sector and utilize these funds to fund public programs and services and create job opportunities. In addition, there are thousands of Esports arenas in the United States where people go to have fun playing video games. The establishments create thousands of job opportunities for business owners and their staff.
Indirect job opportunities also emerge from these enterprises when suppliers supply goods and services to the businesses.
Final Words
The online gaming industry will continue recording high growth globally. In the U.S., the continued legalization of online gambling by more states will open more opportunities for operators creating more job opportunities for the citizens.