Once the domain of a younger audience and considered a pastime for a younger generation, the video game industry in Australia has grown from strength to strength.
A boom in the consumption of the medium during the COVID years saw sales rise as people were forced to stay at home and keep themselves entertained indoors.
Curtin University Dean of Learning Futures Jonathan Pillai said there have been several key milestones in terms of how games have boomed.
“One of them was definitely the casualisation of games and the mobile era,” he said.
“Now all of us are on our phones, the amount of content that we consume on the phones is tremendous, and when games got casual enough to be played on the phone, I think that was a big change.
“Because back in the day we had to spend hours on games.
“Now, you can take your time and say, ‘Look, look, I’m going to invest 10 minutes today, maybe 20 tomorrow’.”
“That’s a big change because that means a game is for everyone, not just the kid in the room.”
A booming industry
Recent data has highlighted that consumer sales results for video games show Australians spent more than $4.2 billion across the category during the 2025 calendar year, a 12 per cent increase over the previous 12 months.
Digital sales of video games reached more than $1.4 billion, while mobile games continued to be the largest segment with sales in 2025 exceeding $1.7 billion.
Aussie developers make their mark
Recently, it has been the impact of Australian-made games that have caused market analysts to pay attention.
Adelaide-based developer Team Cherry had a hit in 2017 with the release of its indie platform game Hollow Knight, which went on to sell more than 15 million copies worldwide.
Just last year, the company’s follow up Silksong – a sequel to Hollow Knight – sold more than seven million copies in the space of just three months.
Melbourne-based developer House House recently broke the million copy barrier in the space of a week after releasing its title Big Walk in August.
Government assistance provides a boost
The chief executive of the nation’s Interactive Games and Entertainment Association Ron Curry said up until a few years ago, Australia was one of the only developed countries that didn’t have government support for the industry.
“That put us at a real disadvantage as far as cost goes,” he said.
“It instantly made us 30 to 40 per cent more dear than anywhere else in the world,
“What we saw a few years ago was the introduction of the digital games tax offset, which has been fantastic for Australia.
“What that did is it levelled the playing field for Australian developers in that we can now compete on price.
“We knew that the country was fantastic in its creative output. We had some really good developers here, but what it did was allow them to enter the world stage not 30 per cent behind the eight-ball.”
WA’s industry is building
Curry said one area where the industry had expanded was in Western Australia, but there were still hurdles for local developers.
“We look at WA, and we know that it’s a territory that’s really starting to expand,” he said.
“Although there’s some incredibly talented local people over there at the moment working on some great stuff, but those studios are competing for talent that go into industries like mining.
It’s hard as a small startup business to compete with the salaries that the mining industry is paying and using the skills that game developers are coming out of university with.”
Where can WA developers get help?
In April 2026, the WA government announced funding of $2 million over two years to support the local digital games industry, administered by Screenwest.
In 2024-25 through the Digital Games Production Fund, 22 projects were supported and were estimated to inject approximately $2.2 million into the WA economy.
Screenwest digital games manager Anthony Sweet said the organisation is committed to positioning the state as a place where games, and the people who make them thrive.
“Through our Digital Games Strategy 2026-29, we aim to accelerate the development of a vibrant, sustainable digital games sector that champions Western Australian stories, fosters bold talent and connects our creators with opportunities around the world,” he said.
Games WA has produced
Sweet said WA has a growing indie games sector, with several titles recently on show at Pixel Expo held at the Perth Exhibition Centre including Misc. A Tiny Tale, Lunars, Zodiac Mountain, Ghost Cam, and Don’t Stop, Girly Pop!.
“We are proud to have supported local developer Aaron Dark in early development of his game HYPERDROP and to take his project to Melbourne International Games Week, where his project was picked up by global indie game publisher Devolver and is soon to be released on PC,” Sweet said.
He added that the state has globally competitive talent making games in WA, but recognised there was strong competition from more established industries that incorporate the technology sector.
“The digital games sector fosters future-ready careers,” Sweet said.
“Game developers have transferable skills, often driving innovation in sectors including banking, mining, health care and UX design – and we continue to see indie developers transition from these industries into running their own studio as their digital games projects find success.
“Western Australia is well-placed to capitalise on the global growth of the digital games industry, we have world-class creative talent and a culture of collaboration and innovation across the sector that continues to level up.”
