Is PC gaming dying? Contrary to the popular myth that things are not going so well for PCs, 2016 has seen record sales for PC gaming hardware. According to a report from analyst firm “Jon Peddie Research” (JPR) the PC gaming hardware market broke $30 billion in worldwide sale, for the first time ever in 2016. Not only that, but it’s going to continue to grow, by as much as 6 percent, through 2019. JPR reports: Due of an entrenched PC gaming culture, large population, and a lack of significant console traction, the Asia Pacific Region leads the world in both growth and market size with a forecasted 7% CAGR to 2019 from a TAM of almost $11.3 billion in 2016. However, North America and Western Europe both individually lead Asia Pacific for High-End hardware, albeit at lower growth rates of 5.78% and 6.63% vs. 9.61% respectively. The western appetite for PC gaming systems costing thousands of dollars is strong. Ted Pollak, Senior Game Industry Analyst for JPR said: “Global consumers continue to embrace the PC platform for video games due to multiple factors. The desktop ergonomic is popular because the display distance offers increased detail when using HD and UHD monitors. Additionally there is superior control with mouse and keyboard control interfaces. This has been validated with eSports overwhelmingly being played on PCs. “Additionally, product designers have given PC gamers thousands of options for complete customization from a functionally and aesthetic perspective. Examples of this include dedicated driving and flight systems, multi-display setups, super-powerful graphics boards, and a wide selection of gaming notebooks ranging from desktop substitutes to innovative “thin and light” offerings. “Liquid cooling, lighting, solid state drives, genre specific gaming mice, mechanical keyboards, notebook graphics amplifiers, and Xbox accessory compatibility offer gamers more choices than they have ever had.” By Drunk Caesar, XPGameSaves / Resources: JPR
