The 2024
Economic
Impact
Report
VIDEO GAMES
IN THE ST
CENTURY
Prepared for: The Entertainment Software Association
Prepared by: TEConomy Partners, LLC.
Report Authors: Martin Grueber and Dylan Yetter
Contents
4 Executive Summary
6 Introduction
7 Defining and Measuring the Size of the U.S. Video Game Industry
14 Economic Impact of the U.S. Video Game Industry
20 Conclusion
21 Appendix A
33 Appendix B
37 Appendix C
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Figure ES-2: Economic Contributions of the U.S. Video Game Industry to the U.S. Economy, 2023.
Source: TEConomy IMPLAN analysis of U.S. Video Game Industry, 2023
The labor income impacts (total compensation including salaries, wages and benefits) leads to an
average industry compensation of $168,600, ranging from $67,500 in the video game retail sector to
$197,800 in the video game software sector.
These economic impacts are generated and supported across all 50 states, Washington, D.C. and Puerto
Rico. The top five states for both employment impacts and output impacts are shown in Table ES-1.
Table ES-1: Top 5 States in Video Game Industry Employment and Economic Impact, 2023
Source: TEConomy IMPLAN analysis of U.S. Video Game Industry, 2023
State
Employment Impacts Output Impacts ($ Millions)
Intrastate -
Direct Effect
Intrastate –
Total Impacts
Interstate -
Total Impacts
Intrastate -
Direct Effect
Intrastate -
Total Impacts
Interstate –
Total Impacts
California 44,205 126,657 172,150 $26,097.1 $44,891.6 $55,678.0
Washington 10,870 28,424 38,249 $7,191.6 $11,436.6 $13,907.5
Texas 9,437 22,445 29,517 $2,556.0 $5,118.6 $6,578.1
New York 5,730 13,291 17,360 $2,339.3 $4,071.2 $5,035.5
Florida 4,306 10,388 13,669 $1,105.6 $2,238.4 $2,881.6
The substantial employment in the U.S. video game industry, as well as the economic expenditures
driven by the industry, are multiplied many times over. The expenditures of industry suppliers, as well
as the spending of personal incomes by workers related to and supporting the industry, perpetuate this
ripple effect through the economies of the nation and its individual states. This analysis estimates that
the total economic impact generated by the U.S. video game industry is over $101 billion dollars, and
the business activity generated by the industry supports more than 350,000 jobs across the U.S. On
average, every job within the U.S. video game industry supports at least 2.36 additional jobs in the
national economy.
Executive Summary
In 2023, the Entertainment Software Association (ESA) contracted with TEConomy Partners, LLC
(TEConomy) to update and perform a detailed economic impact analysis of the U.S. video game indus-
try. This current analysis defines the U.S. video game industry into five sectors capturing more than
104,000 U.S. employees, as shown in ES-1. The industry is driven by the development of video game
software, which accounts for more than 75,000 of these employees.
Figure ES-1: U.S. Video Game Industry Employment, by Sector, 2023.
Source: TEConomy analysis of 2023 U.S. Video Game Industry Database
The overall industry, while having a presence in all 50 states, Washington D.C. and Puerto Rico, is highly
concentrated in a handful of states. More than 42% (over 44,000 jobs) are located across the state
of California. Washington, Texas, New York and Florida round out the top five states, with these five
states accounting for approximately 72% of the industry’s employment. An increasingly important
factor reflected by the U.S. video game industry is the increased use of hybrid (those workers with a spe-
cific office location that can work one or more days a week at home) and remote workers (those workers
working from home or elsewhere without a defined corporate office). In 2023, these remote workers
accounted for 18,000 jobs or 17% of total U.S. industry employment.
The U.S. video game industry has an outsized economic impact—the industry created and supported
more than 350,000 total jobs across the U.S. economy while generating and supporting more than
$101 billion in total economic impacts. Within these economic impacts, the U.S. video game industry
contributed nearly $66 billion to U.S. GDP in 2023.
Software (Developers, Studios, Publishers)
Consoles, Hardware and Peripherals
(including Game PCs)
Support (Video Game Related
Development Services)
Retail (Video Game Specific Stores)
Other (Industry Specific Associations, Media,
Education, and Other Organizations
Industry Employment
0 20,000 40,000 60,000 80,000
Output
Value-Added
Labor Income
Federal Tax Revenue
State Tax Revenue
Employment
Establishments
(Records)
Local & County Tax Revenue
$101,377
$65,671
$35,20 3
$9,504
$3,229
$0 $30,000 $60,000
$Millions
$90,000 $120,000
0% 20% 40% 60% 80% 100%
$1,631
Direct Indirect & Induced
Output
Value-Added
Labor Income
Federal Tax Revenue
State Tax Revenue
Local & County Tax Revenue
$101,377
$65,671
$35,20 3
$9,504
$3,229
$0 $30,000 $60,000
$Millions
$90,000 $120,000
$1,631
Direct
Indirect & Induced
75,353
20,270
2,756 2,715
Software Hardware Support Retail Other
Software (Developers, Studios, Publishers)
Consoles, Hardware and Peripherals
(including Game PCs)
Support (Video Game Related
Development Services)
Retail (Video Game Specific Stores)
Other (Industry Specific Associations, Media,
Education, and Other Organizations
Industry Employment
0 20,000 40,000 60,000 80,000
Output
Value-Added
Labor Income
Federal Tax Revenue
State Tax Revenue
Employment
Establishments
(Records)
Local & County Tax Revenue
$101,377
$65,671
$35,20 3
$9,504
$3,229
$0 $30,000 $60,000
$Millions
$90,000 $120,000
0% 20% 40% 60% 80% 100%
$1,631
Direct Indirect & Induced
Output
Value-Added
Labor Income
Federal Tax Revenue
State Tax Revenue
Local & County Tax Revenue
$101,377
$65,671
$35,20 3
$9,504
$3,229
$0 $30,000 $60,000
$Millions
$90,000 $120,000
$1,631
Direct
Indirect & Induced
75,353
20,270
2,756 2,715
Software Hardware Support Retail Other
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Introduction
In 2020, the Entertainment Software Association (ESA) contracted with TEConomy Partners, LLC
(TEConomy) to perform a detailed economic and functional impact analysis of the U.S. video game
industry.
1
With the changes in the U.S. and global economy stemming from the pandemic, and curious
to understand how these changes may have impacted the industry, ESA once again contracted with
TEConomy for an update to the economic analysis. Where the previous public study was focused and
built around data from 2019, this current effort examines the state of the industry in 2023, with most
company employment data collected between July and October of 2023.
The challenge of this updated study is that over the span of a few years, very little has changed in
some respects, while in others, massive changes have occurred. From a broad market perspective, the
pandemic lockdown drove a significant increase in video game involvement that continued into 2023.
From a business environment perspective, the forced changes in operations due to local, state and
national lockdowns had dire effects on many small video game retail and arcade businesses. Delving
deeper into this dichotomy drives the interest in this analytical update. This is the starting point for
updating the U.S. video game industry database used for this effort.
TEConomy’s experience performing the previous analysis also allowed for and required some changes to
the methodology for this updated effort. In general, these changes generated more conservative values
from the analytical effort. This updated study also brings more focus to the core industry most reflected
in the ESA’s membership. These changes are detailed in Appendix B. It is important to recognize that
measuring economic impact relies on models to generate and estimate the economic activities reflective
of the employment numbers captured in the industry database. Changes in the employment levels
included and captured in the 2023 database will shape the resulting economic impact values.
The net result is an analysis that should be of interest to industry members, policymakers, economic
development professionals, the media and other parties who seek to understand and communicate the
size, economic impacts and workforce characteristics of this dynamic U.S. industry.
2
1
To explore the functional impacts of the U.S. video game industry, Chapter IV of the 2020 study is still highly relevant in high-
lighting the innovation advancements, wealth generation and application spillover effects of the U.S. video game industry. See:
https://www.theesa.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/02/Video-Games-in-the-21st-Century-2020-Economic-Impact-Report-Final.pdf.
2
It should be noted that this effort is designed to capture and estimate the economic impacts of the U.S. video game industry –
its game designers, console and hardware manufacturers and the organizations that collaborate with and support the industry.
It is not designed to measure or include the economic value or impact of in-game purchases and sales.
Dening and Measuring the Size
of the U.S. Video Game Industry
At the heart of this analysis is the task of developing an estimate of the size and scale of the U.S. video
game industry. The industry structure continually evolves through on-going merger and acquisition
activities and through entrepreneurs who start new ventures, often via strong teams departing former
studios or the emergence of developers to fill a new niche. While major corporations dominate the con-
sole and software space, the industry is open to individuals focusing their talents on a personal project
that use industry specific e-commerce sites to bring their project to the market.
Definition of the Video Game Industry
For this study, the video game industry is defined to include the following sectors:
• Video game software firms (includes developers, studios, developer/publishers and publishers
that release games for use with console systems, personal computing devices, tablets and mobile
phones, as well as software accessed online).
3
The distribution of physical software (e.g., game
cartridges or disks) are also included in this sector.
• Video game consoles, hardware and peripherals firms (includes consoles, gaming-specific PCs,
core processor technologies and gaming-specific peripherals such as game controllers, joysticks,
headphones, gaming keyboards, etc.). Console, hardware and peripheral distribution activities are
also included in this sector.
4
• Video game-related support services and activities including artistic, graphic and audio support
firms, firms specializing in in-game marketing and monetization technologies and associated
interactive media and streaming platforms such as Twitch and PlayVS.
• Video game specific retail outlets focused on selling video games, consoles, hardware and
peripherals. Notable physical examples include GameStop, RazerStore and the Nintendo Store in
New York City. This sector also includes the e-Commerce activities of Steam (Valve Corporation)
and similar platforms.
• Other distinct, but video game specific, activities (e.g., marketing or PR firms focused on the video
game industry; specialized education providers related to the development of video games; trade
and business associations).
3
Typically, developers are responsible for a creating video game and publishers are responsible for the marketing, sales and PR
of the game. Developers may be internal to the publishing company or an external/independent company.
4
It is often difficult to discern specific U.S.-based console/hardware employment from the major combined console and
software firms. Corporate databases often classify these establishments under software industry codes since much of their
revenue comes from software (video game other non-video game software) sales, likely limiting the console, hardware and
peripherals employment.
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Building the Industry Records Database
Similar to the previous TEConomy study, the underlying data for the analysis was developed by compiling
a database of companies and locations from multiple data resources, building upon the previous efforts
but once again accessing game industry databases, websites, e-commerce sites and other publicly
accessible industry data resources, as well as proprietary data resources and market research reports.
Drawing from the experience of previous studies and through discussion with ESA staff, some changes were
made to the methodology and approach used to create the 2023 industry database. These changes include:
1. Removal of firms with no visible active or updated presence on websites or social media since the
previous data development efforts.
2. Removal of establishments primarily involved in video gambling.
3. Removal of establishments operating video game arcades.
4. Eliminated efforts to capture employment shares of broad department stores or other large
multiline “big box” retail establishments.
5. Elimination of entities primarily involved in branding and marketing “gamification” services.
6. Focusing efforts to develop site specific employment estimates and to capture the extended
remote workforce for many U.S. video game industry firms.
7. Reduced reliance on corporate data providers for very small firms.
8. Improved approach to estimating the video game-related employment for diversified companies
and electronic component suppliers in the Consoles, Hardware and Peripherals sector.
Per this last point, the task of assembling this industry database is complicated by the fact that many
companies with a major influence in the video game industry have diversified business models that
extend well into non-game industries. Companies such as Microsoft, Sony and NVIDIA, for example,
are central players in the video game industry, yet have extensive business activities unrelated to video
games. The development of the video game industry database has taken this into account and focuses
on identification of the portion of these diversified businesses that are video game related. The primary
resources used in developing the database are listed in Appendix B.
Size of the U.S. Video Game Industry
Table 1 and Figure 1 provide summaries of the records and employment data captured within the 2023
U.S. video game industry database, showing the overall industry to be a significant U.S. employer
with 104,080 direct jobs.
5
Nearly 5,700 U.S. video game industry records (consisting of both address-
specific records and state-specific records capturing remote workers) were identified.
The largest sector of the U.S. video game industry is game-related software, accounting for more than
75,300 U.S. employees and more than 72% of the total industry employment. This employment includes
5
While every effort was made, within the resources available for this project, to identify establishments and their employment
involved in the U.S. video game industry, the data most assuredly has not identified and captured all players in the industry
due to the incomplete nature or vagaries in the source data. In this regard, the economic impacts derived from the data
included in the U.S. video game industry database are seen as conservative in nature.
nearly 36,000 employees working within studios, independent developer teams or home offices across
the country. An additional 32,000 workers are part of developer/publisher operations, including captive
studio operations and significant publishing and marketing functions.
Distinct publishing operations, including Activision Publishing and NetEase among others, account for
an additional 3,700 industry jobs. Key tools, such as standalone video game engine companies and
graphics software companies, make up the development tools subsector and account for more than
2,400 jobs within the U.S. video game industry. Lastly, the more than 900 employees in the “software
– other” subsector consists of various entities supporting the overall software sector including specific
video game distribution activities.
Table 1: Establishments and Employment for the U.S. Video Game Industry
and its Principal Sectors, 2023.
Source: TEConomy analysis of 2023 U.S. Video Game Industry Database
Video Game Industry Sectors
and Key Subsectors
Number of
Records Employment
Share of Total U.S.
Video Game Industry
Total Video Game Industry 5,684 104,080 100.0%
Software 2,756 75,353 72.4%
Developer
2,042 35,954 34.5%
Developer/Publisher 422 32,282 31.0%
Publisher 181 3,755 3.6%
Development Tools 67 2,439 2.3%
Other 44 923 0.9%
Consoles, Hardware and Peripherals 77 4,661 4.5%
Support (Video Game Related Development Services) 113 3,431 3.3%
Retail (Video Game Specific Stores) 2,715 20,270 19.5%
Other (Industry Specific Associations, Media,
Education, and Other Organizations)
23 365 0.4%
Figure 1: Employment Distribution in the U.S. Video Game Industry and its Principal Sectors
Source: TEConomy analysis of 2023 U.S. Video Game Industry Database
Software (Developers, Studios, Publishers)
Consoles, Hardware and Peripherals
(including Game PCs)
Support (Video Game Related
Development Services)
Retail (Video Game Specific Stores)
Other (Industry Specific Associations, Media,
Education, and Other Organizations
Industry Employment
0 20,000 40,000 60,000 80,000
Output
Value-Added
Labor Income
Federal Tax Revenue
State Tax Revenue
Employment
Establishments
(Records)
Local & County Tax Revenue
$101,377
$65,671
$35,20 3
$9,504
$3,229
$0 $30,000 $60,000
$Millions
$90,000 $120,000
0% 20% 40% 60% 80% 100%
$1,631
Direct Indirect & Induced
Output
Value-Added
Labor Income
Federal Tax Revenue
State Tax Revenue
Local & County Tax Revenue
$101,377
$65,671
$35,20 3
$9,504
$3,229
$0 $30,000 $60,000
$Millions
$90,000 $120,000
$1,631
Direct
Indirect & Induced
75,353
20,270
2,756 2,715
Software Hardware Support Retail Other
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The consoles, hardware and peripherals sector is conservatively estimated to employ nearly 4,700 U.S.
workers, or approximately 4% of the U.S. video game industry workforce. While significant manufactur-
ing of consoles, components and peripherals occurs overseas, key engineering, design, marketing and
distribution capacities are located in the U.S.
6
The support sector includes firms that provide creative and development assistance to the industry,
often on a contract basis, in the form of graphic or animation artists, audio and sound effects engineers,
motion-capture firms and ancillary software programming services. Additionally, new support firms are
stepping into the remote workspace to help both developers and creatives market themselves to remote
teams and to assist firms in developing virtual teams. Altogether, these support sector firms provide
unique services used in the development of video games and account for more than 3,400 U.S. workers,
or more than 3% of the industry’s workforce.
In addition to the methodological changes cited in the list above,
changes were made regarding the inclusion of retail establishments.
Most U.S. cities have one or more locally owned “video game stores”
that often serve dedicated customers with both new and classic/
retro/vintage or otherwise used video games and equipment. How-
ever, these stores often employ only the owner and perhaps one or
two other individuals and are extremely difficult to capture via third-
party corporate record datasets. These stores were also hit hard by
the COVID-19 pandemic with many going out of business during the
2020-2021 period. It is challenging for third-party corporate datasets
to capture these changes. To this end, the inclusion of retail establish-
ments in the 2023 video game industry database is now focused on operations with a marked corporate
presence for ease of inclusion, which yields a more conservative estimate of the total retail context of
the video game industry. Together it is estimated that these included retail outlets employ nearly 20,300
workers across the U.S. and account for more than 19% of the defined U.S. industry.
Finally, to capture key organizations that promote, support and provide other unique services to the
video game industry, an all “other” sector is also included. Together, these firms add an additional 365
jobs to the U.S. video game industry and include organizations such as the Entertainment Software
Association, DigiPen, the Academy of Interactive Arts & Sciences and the National Videogame Museum.
Specifying the Geographic Location of Video Game Industry Employment
The 2020 analysis performed by TEConomy made principal use of third-party corporate providers for the
establishment level employment data for records within the video game industry database. With ESA’s
combined interest in establishing more specific locations for this employment, and the need to recog-
nize the “remote worker” element of industry employment, better options to determine location-specific
employment values were explored. TEConomy worked with LinkedIn to obtain access to the LinkedIn
Talent Insights (LTI) tool, which uses the locational information within each professional user’s LinkedIn
profile to define an employee’s work location more precisely.
6
Actual manufacturing employment related to various video game consoles, computers, other hardware and peripherals, often
based in various parts of Southeast Asia, is not included in these employment values.
Figure 2: Geographic Distribution of Video Game Industry 2023 Employment
in the United States.
Source: TEConomy analysis of 2023 Video Game Industry Database
ESA Members Highlight
Current ESA members account
for more than 45,000 of the U.S.
video game industry’s 104,000
employees or 43% and nearly
60% of the U.S. video game
industry’s software sector.
40,000+ Jobs
5,000 – 15,000 Jobs
1,000 – 4,999 Jobs
500 – 999 Jobs
100 – 499 Jobs
1 – 99 Jobs
The use of this tool led to some specific findings different from the previous analysis. Other third-party
data sources often report data values that are significantly different from those found using LTI. In some
instances, the numbers from LTI are larger – typically representing a more up-to-date data source. How-
ever, there were also a substantial number of records where total employment levels, though similar to
previous analysis, were now split into a number of geographies around the country, if not the world. This
variation reflects a truly remote workforce and, importantly for this effort, more geographically distrib-
uted economic impacts. For these instances, if TEConomy could identify a physical address reflecting
an LTI-specified location, that location was used and the LTI employment for that geography was applied
to that address. If TEConomy could not find a closely corresponding physical address, those workers
are treated as part of the substantial and growing element of remote workers, and their employment is
captured in the state specified in the LTI profile.
Geographic Distribution of Video Game Industry Employment
A key characteristic of the video game industry is that it is an entrepreneurial industry, open to new
business innovations and business entrants. Additionally, the industry, especially the developers and
studios, maintain a strong “reseeding” component as studio leadership from one studio often leave to
start a new studio.
This constant evolution of the U.S. video game industry combined with a growing remote workforce
increases the opportunity for wider geographic distribution of industry company operations. This is
certainly seen in the data, with every state in the U.S. having establishments and employment in the
industry (Figure 2).
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As most readers familiar with the U.S. video game industry would
expect, California hosts the largest number of video game industry
firms and workers, accounting for 774 specific establishments
(address- specific locations) and more than 44,000 jobs. Three
other states each account for more than 200 establishments—
Texas with 409, Florida with 227 and Washington with 216. From a
total employment perspective, four additional states exceed 4,000
video game industry jobs each—Washington with 10,870, Texas
with 9,437, New York with 5,730 and Florida with 4,306.
The Remote Workforce of the U.S. Video Game Industry
The use of remote workers potentially has significant implications for capturing and measuring the
economic impacts of the industry and will continue to change the employment landscape.
The video game industry, like other aspects of the software industry and other industries with significant
marketing and sales infrastructures, has utilized an extended and external workforce approach for both
competitive and efficiency reasons, even prior to the pandemic. However, pandemic-related changes
increased, expanded and, in many instances, enhanced corporate comfort level in the use of remote
workers. This is especially true within the software sector, with many studios continuing to use a remote
or “digital-first” staffing approach.
While many firms have returned to the office, others have retained a hybrid model (workers reporting
to an address specific location, but some amount of time is spent working from home) or a fully remote
model (an actual employee of the company, versus a hired contractor, works almost exclusively from a
home-based office often many miles or states away from their company’s headquarters or studio). In
fact, through the development of the U.S. video game industry database, a number of smaller “virtual”
firms have been identified that are 100% remote where no physical, company facility exists.
The development of the industry database captured the most extensive aspect of the truly remote worker
geographic distribution. The database identifies more than 18,000 workers, or 17% of the industry’s
employment, as truly remote workers. These numbers do not capture the many thousands of industry
employees now working in a hybrid fashion, spending work time away from their company office.
While a remote worker approach will likely, in time, spread the geographic distribution of the industry
further, there are specific challenges to operating with fully remote workers that might slow this spread.
For example, many firms specify particular states where remote work is permitted due to existing or
favorable business operating conditions (e.g., limiting the number of states in which the company must
handle tax payments and file returns). Hence, these conditions might in many ways reinforce the leading
employment states, but perhaps ultimately lead to movement of employment outside a state’s major
cities. Additionally, workers located in one of the leading states may now find new remote opportunities
for which they are not required to move allowing them to remain in their current location. Indeed,
California, Texas, Washington, New York and Florida lead U.S. states in the number of remote video
game industry workers.
Perspectives on Other Recent Changes to the U.S. Video Game Industry
Beyond the remote worker aspect discussed above, the development of the industry database revealed
additional findings and perspectives about changes to the U.S. video game industry since the 2020
report. Among these industry developments are:
• Many small firms (five or fewer employees) across all five sectors of the U.S. video game industry
struled to stay in business through the COVID-19 pandemic.
• Merger and acquisition activities have changed - and continue to change - the structure and land-
scape of the U.S. video game industry.
• The historical model of studios linked to publishers, while still maintaining a significant presence
in the industry, continues to blur as technologies and platforms provide indie developers improved
market access and hosting capabilities.
• Several companies captured in the previous analysis have morphed or become focused on areas
that are now more tangential to the video game industry as defined for this study. Some firms have
moved into broader advertising and marketing uses of major game engines (e.g., Unity, Unreal
Engine). Still others have moved into the blockchain and NFT (non-fungible tokens) space. While
these firms’ work often has the creative edge of the video game industry, their end product(s) fall
outside of the games for enjoyment space.
• Though some development is seen in the AR/VR space, it remains a relatively small component of
the overall U.S. video game industry.
Key Findings
• The U.S. video game industry employed 104,080 workers in 2023, with the
industry generating employment in every state.
• The software sector dominates the industry accounting for 74% of industry
employment.
• California captures a significant share of industry employment, accounting for
over 42% of the industry’s workforce. Washington, Texas, New York and Florida
round out the top five states, with these five states accounting for approximately
72% of the industry’s employment.
• Remote workers (those workers working from home or elsewhere without a defined
corporate office) account for 18,000 workers, or 17% of industry employment.
ESA Members Highlight
Leading states for ESA member
employment include California,
Washington, Texas, New York
and North Carolina.
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Economic Impact of the
U.S. Video Game Industry
Input-Output analysis (see below) is a well-established methodology for measuring the total economic
impacts of an industry. The direct employment levels captured within the industry database, shown in
Table 1, are used to drive and ultimately estimate and quantify the full economic impacts of the U.S.
video game industry on both national and individual state economies.
Overview of Input-Output Analysis
Input-Output (I-O) analysis models the interrelationships and financial transactions between economic
sectors. I-O multipliers are based on the flow of commodities between industries, consumers and insti-
tutions in a state or regional economy. The analysis uses U.S. and state specific I-O models developed
by IMPLAN. The IMPLAN model used by TEConomy is the most widely deployed model in the nation
and is based on the U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA) national accounts data, supplemented with
state level employment data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) and other economic data
from the U.S. Bureau of the Census. As used for this effort, the impact models are driven by the U.S. and
state-level employment numbers stemming from the video game industry establishment database. The
resulting analysis calculates three types of impacts:
• Direct Impacts – the specific impacts of the direct employment and expenditures of video game
industry companies.
• Indirect Impacts – the impacts of in-state or national suppliers to these companies.
• Induced Impacts – the additional economic impacts resulting from the spending of industry and
supplier employees.
• Total Impact – the sum of the three impact types.
The I-O analysis models multiplier effects (also known as “ripple effects”) that originate from video
game company employment and estimated expenditures in the U.S. and individual state economies.
The IMPLAN I-O model is used to derive estimates for five impact metrics:
• Employment is the total number of jobs created, including the direct industry employment.
• Labor Income is the total amount of income, including salaries, wages and the value of benefits,
received by employees, owners and others in the related supply-chain. Often called total
compensation.
• Value-Added represents the difference between Output and the cost of intermediate inputs (e.g.,
purchases from suppliers) and represents the specified industry’s contribution to Gross Domestic
Product (GDP).
• Output (also known as production, sales or business volume) is the total value of the goods and
services produced in the economy due to the video game industry. Total output impacts are
traditionally described as the “total economic impacts”.
• Government Revenues includes estimates of revenues generated for local/county, state and
federal governments through taxes on the economic activity measured.
National Economic Impact of the U.S. Video Game Industry
The U.S. video game industry, with 104,080 direct jobs (from Table 1), each allocated to the relevant IMPLAN
model industry sector, drives a large-scale economic impact for the United States. Table 3 contains the results
of the input-output analysis, showing an industry that produced the following estimated impacts for 2023:
7
• Created and supported 350,015 total jobs across the U.S. economy.
• Generated $101.4 billion in total economic impact.
• Contributed $65.7 billion to U.S. GDP.
• Generated total income (salaries, wages and benefits) for
U.S. employees of $35.2 billion across all sectors of the
economy, including $17.6 billion in direct labor income to
U.S. video game industry workers (equivalent to an average
total compensation value of $168,627 per industry worker).
• Generated $14.4 billion in taxes, comprising $9.5 billion in taxes generated for the federal
government, $3.2 billion generated for state governments and $1.6 billion generated for local and
county governments.
Table 3: The Economic Impact of the U.S. Video Game Industry on the U.S. Economy, 2023
Source: TEConomy IMPLAN analysis of U.S. Video Game Industry, 2023
Impact Type Employment
Values in $ Millions
Labor
Income
Value-
Added Output
Local &
County Tax
Revenue
State Tax
Revenue
Federal Tax
Revenue
Direct 104,080 $17,550.7 $35,160.7 $46,728.1 $543.7 $1,632.5 $5,093.9
Indirect 80,963 $6,865.9 $10,855.9 $19,797.0 $254.5 $455.3 $1,685.4
Induced 164,972 $10,786.0 $19,654.3 $34,851.7 $832.8 $1,141.0 $2,724.1
Total Impact 350,015 $35,202.6 $65,670.8 $101,376.7 $1,631.0 $3,228.8 $9,503.5
Multiplier 3.36 2.01 1.87 2.17
7
Appendix C includes an economic impact table specific to the employment of ESA member firms.
ESA Members Highlight
ESA members, accounting for 43% of
U.S. video game industry employment,
directly generate nearly $19 billion of
U.S. GDP and support an additional
$14 billion contribution to GDP.
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The direct employment impact of 104,080 jobs had a strong multiplier
effect on additional job creation in the U.S. economy. The national
employment multiplier of 3.36 indicates that for each individual
direct job in the U.S. video game industry, an additional 2.36
jobs are supported within the broader U.S. economy. In terms of
economic output, the multiplier of 2.17 indicates that for every $1.00 in
direct output generated by U.S. the video game industry, an additional
$1.17 is generated across the U.S. economy.
While the average compensation for a U.S. video game industry
employee exceeds $168,600, there are substantial variations among the industry sectors (Table 4).
Excluding retail employment, the average compensation for the remainder of the U.S. video game
industry reaches nearly $192,500.
Table 4: Average U.S. Video Game Worker Compensation, by Industry Sector, 2023
Source: TEConomy IMPLAN analysis of U.S. Video Game Industry, 2023
U.S. Video Game Industry Sector
Average Industry Worker Compensation
(including Benefits)
Software $197,800
Hardware $127,100
Support $176,100
Retail $67,500
Other $89,000
Industry Average $168,600
The software sector’s employees are estimated to receive $197,800 in total compensation including the
costs and value of all benefits. The support sector accounts for the second largest average compensa-
tion of $176,100, indicative of the value and importance placed on these external support services. As
would be expected, the retail sector constitutes the lowest average total compensation among the five
sectors, averaging $67,500.
The economic impacts of the broader video game industry are felt widely across the U.S. economy. Table
5 shows 12 key industry supplier segments within the national economy that benefit from the presence
and operations of the U.S. video game industry and the demand it generates. In terms of the sales of
U.S.-based suppliers to the U.S. video game industry (indirect output), these 12 segments account for
$16.3 billion of the total $19.8 billion in supplier (indirect) output (83%). Similarly, these 12 segments
account for nearly 65,700 jobs, or fully 81% of indirect supplier employment.
Table 5: Key Industry Supplier Segments to the U.S. Video Game Industry, 2023 ($ in millions)
Source: TEConomy IMPLAN analysis of U.S. Video Game Industry, 2023
Industry Supplier Segment Indirect U.S. Output Indirect U.S. Employment
Total, All Segments $19,793.7 80,963
Software and IT Services $3,245.9 6,770
Professional and Technical Services $2,397.3 9,890
Financial, Insurance and Real Estate Services $2,169.2 8,071
Employment Services $1,870.0 15,479
Business Management and Administration $1,454.7 7,496
Broadcasting, Programming and Telecommunication Carriers $1,373.0 1,394
Wholesale Professional Equipment, Machinery and Supplies $999.0 2,409
Electronic Components and Parts Manufacturing $950.4 1,696
Transportation, Delivery and Warehousing Services
$707.1 5,369
Business and Facility Support Services $691.8 6,227
Utilities $375.7 250
Printing $124.3 644
Total 12 Key Industry Suppliers $16,358.5 65,694
Note: Columns do not sum to values in Total, All Segments row.
State Economic Impact of the Video Game Industry
As Figure 2 shows, the distribution of video game employment is spread across the U.S., but with
key states capturing a significant share of the total employment. The level and type (i.e., sector) of
employment plays a significant role in determining the ultimate economic impacts within a state or
region. Figure 3 shows the distribution of employment multipliers across the 50 states, the District
of Columbia, and Puerto Rico. Three geographies yielded employment multipliers of 3.50 or greater:
Washington (3.52), California (3.89) and Puerto Rico (4.61).
Figure 3: Geographic Distribution of Video Game Industry Interstate
Employment Multipliers in the United States, 2023
Source: TEConomy IMPLAN analysis
of U.S. Video Game Industry, 2023
ESA Members Highlight
The 28 ESA members accounted
for nearly $48.5 billion in
economic impact in 2023 or 48%
of the entire U.S. video game
industry’s economic impacts.
4.00+ Multiplier
3.50–3.99 Multiplier
3.00–3.49 Multiplier
2.50–2.99 Multiplier
2.00–2.49 Multiplier
1.50–1.99 Multiplier
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This multi-state economic impact effort generates, at the state level, an estimate of each state’s impact
stemming from its direct industry employment, or its – intrastate impacts (e.g., firms in each state
captured within the U.S. Video Game Industry database). Additionally, the impact effort estimates
each state’s interstate impacts, or impacts captured within a state from the sales of its firms (from
any sector) to the video game firms in the other states. Table 6 lists the Top 15 states by direct video
game industry employment (direct video game state-level
employment is also displayed in Figure 2), and Table 7 lists
the Top 15 states by total economic impacts (interstate
impacts). The outsized importance of California to the
U.S. video game industry is shown in both tables, with the
tables also showing that Washington, Texas, New York,
Florida, North Carolina and Illinois are key states both in
terms of direct U.S. video game industry employment and
as drivers of total economic impacts. Combined, these
seven states account for more than 76% of U.S. video
game industry employment and more than 86% of the
industry’s $101.3 billion in total economic impacts.
Table 6: Top 15 States Ranked by Direct Video Game Industry Employment, 2023
Source: TEConomy IMPLAN analysis of U.S. Video Game Industry, 2023
Employment Impacts
State Intrastate - Direct Effect Intrastate – Total Impacts Interstate - Total Impacts
California 44,205 126,657 172,150
Washington 10,870 28,424 38,249
Texas 9,437 22,445 29,517
New York 5,730 13,291 17,360
Florida 4,306 10,388 13,669
North Carolina 2,849 6,854 9,023
Illinois 2,169 4,994 6,540
Georgia 1,802 4,289 5,632
Massachusetts 1,731 4,096 5,408
Pennsylvania 1,727 3,678 4,741
Oregon 1,560 3,433 4,441
Maryland 1,418 2,893 3,687
Ohio 1,280 2,545 3,220
Colorado 1,150 2,584 3,370
Nevada 1,031 2,280 2,940
Beyond the seven leading states, the remaining Top 15 shift in order, with Ohio included in the direct
video game industry employment list (Table 6), replaced by Minnesota in the U.S. video game industry
economic output table (Table 7).
Table 7: Top 15 States Ranked by Total Video Game Industry Economic Output, 2023
Source: TEConomy IMPLAN analysis of U.S. Video Game Industry, 2023
It is interesting to note that while state-level concentrations exist, each of the major geographic regions
of the U.S. have at least one state included in each of these two tables.
Key Findings
• The U.S. Video Game industry created and supported more than 350,000 total
jobs across the U.S. economy while generating and supporting more than $101
billion in total economic impacts.
• A high value-added industry, the U.S. video game industry contributed nearly $66
billion to U.S. GDP.
• The national employment multiplier is 3.36, with estimated state-level interstate
multipliers ranging from 1.58 to 4.61.
• Average industry compensation stands at $168,000 but ranges across the video game
industry sectors from $67,500 in the retail sector to $197,000 in the software sector.
• Economic impacts are generated and supported across all 50 states, Washington,
D.C. and Puerto Rico.
ESA Members Highlight
ESA members account for 50% or more
of seven states’ video game industry
employment. The share ranges from 61% in
North Carolina to 50% in both California and
Utah. Additional states include Washington,
Maryland, Minnesota and Wisconsin.
Output Impacts ($ Millions)
State
Intrastate - Direct Effect Intrastate - Total Impacts Interstate – Total Impacts
California $26,097.1 $44,891.6 $55,678.0
Washington $7,191.6 $11,436.6 $13,907.5
Texas $2,556.0 $5,118.6 $6,578.1
New York $2,339.3 $4,071.2 $5,035.5
Florida $1,105.6 $2,238.4 $2,881.6
North Carolina $901.5 $1,660.3 $2,089.8
Illinois $588.3 $1,163.3 $1,492.4
Massachusetts $642.9 $1,170.0 $1,473.1
Georgia $455.7 $934.8 $1,205.0
Oregon $579.8 $965.0 $1,178.4
Maryland $549.7 $841.4 $1,004.5
Pennsylvania $410.2 $786.4 $1,000.1
Colorado $338.4 $635.2 $805.1
Nevada $279.2 $514.6 $645.3
Minnesota $247.7 $491.15 $628.92
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Appendix A.
State Economic Impacts of the U.S. Video Game Industry
The video game industry has a physical business presence in every state, with industry
establishments located in all 50 U.S. states, the District of Columbia, and Puerto Rico. The research
results (presented as Tables A-1 through A-7 on the subsequent pages) provide two distinct sets of
measures of impacts being generated by the video game industry at a state level:
1. The first set of metrics measures the impacts generated in each state by video game industry
establishments that are physically located in each state. Thus, the impacts and metrics in
columns 2-6 are the states’ “in-state” (intrastate) video game industry impacts, with the sum of
states’ intrastate metrices included at the bottom.
8
2. The second set of measures (columns 7 and 8) are the total impacts within each state that are
generated by the effects of the nationwide video game industry (including the intra-state industry
impacts shown in column 5 and additional inter-state impacts). This is, by definition, a larger
number because it includes the impact in each state of the expenditures of both in-state and out-
of-state video game industries and the expenditures of associated parties. In effect, this second
measure represents the “share” of the total U.S. video game industry impacts that are captured in
each state.
For example: in the case of Alabama on Table A-1, column 5 shows the total intrastate impact on
employment, and column 6 is the intrastate multiplier (i.e., Alabama’s domestic video game industry
impact on Alabama is 540 jobs). The impact of the whole U.S. video game industry in Alabama (including
the impacts from the industry in other states spending money within Alabama) provided in column 7 is
648 jobs.
State impact tables are provided for employment (Table A-1), total employment compensation (Table
A-2), value added (Table A-3), economic output (Table A-4, local/county taxes (Table A-5), state taxes
(Table A-6) and federal taxes (Table A-7).
8
It should be noted that the sum of individual state in-state impacts will not equal the total national impacts shown in Table 3.
Conclusion
The substantial employment in the U.S. video game industry, as well as the economic
expenditures driven by the industry, are multiplied many times over. The expenditures
of industry suppliers, as well as the spending of personal incomes by workers related to
and supporting the industry, perpetuate this ripple effect through the economies of the
nation and its individual states. Input-Output analysis estimates that the total economic
impact generated by the U.S. video game industry is over $101 billion dollars, and
the business activity generated by the industry supports more than 350,000 jobs
across the U.S. On average, every job within the U.S. video game industry supports
at least 2.36 additional jobs in the national economy.
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Table A-1: State Employment Impacts of U.S. Video Game Industry, 2023
Source: TEConomy IMPLAN analysis of 2023 U.S. Video Game Industry Database
Intrastate Impact of In-State Video Game Industry (Columns 2-6) and Interstate Impact of U.S. Industry
Overall (Columns 7-8).
Intrastate Impacts Total Interstate Impacts
State Direct Effect Indirect Effect Induced Effect Total Impacts Multiplier Total Impacts Multiplier
Alabama 335 97 108 540 1.61 648 1.94
Alaska 44 6 11 60 1.37 69 1.58
Arizona 880 435 655 1,970 2.24 2,560 2.91
Arkansas 200 55 57 312 1.56 371 1.85
California 44,205 27,582 54,870 126,657 2.87 172,150 3.89
Colorado 1,150 504 930 2,584 2.25 3,370 2.93
Connecticut 287 88 126 501 1.75 617 2.15
Delaware 76 25 22 123 1.62 147 1.94
District of Columbia 138 46 33 217 1.57 258 1.87
Florida 4,306 2,490 3,592 10,388 2.41 13,669 3.17
Georgia 1,802 1,012 1,475 4,289 2.38 5,632 3.13
Hawaii 112 28 50 190 1.69 232 2.08
Idaho 260 95 103 458 1.76 562 2.16
Illinois 2,169 1,028 1,797 4,994 2.30 6,540 3.02
Indiana 622 179 256 1,057 1.70 1,291 2.08
Iowa 204 48 64 316 1.55 376 1.84
Kansas 382 140 190 712 1.86 889 2.33
Kentucky 523 178 203 903 1.73 1,105 2.11
Louisiana 732 275 313 1,320 1.80 1,632 2.23
Maine 66 22 31 120 1.82 149 2.25
Maryland 1,418 620 856 2,893 2.04 3,687 2.60
Massachusetts 1,731 749 1,616 4,096 2.37 5,408 3.12
Michigan 890 345 529 1,763 1.98 2,237 2.51
Minnesota 944 476 732 2,152 2.28 2,807 2.97
Mississippi 253 53 60 366 1.45 426 1.68
Missouri 538 182 241 961 1.79 1,189 2.21
Montana 57 12 17 85 1.50 101 1.77
Nebraska 134 29 43 206 1.54 245 1.83
Nevada 1,031 602 647 2,280 2.21 2,940 2.85
New Hampshire 180 52 107 339 1.88 426 2.37
New Jersey 738 240 366 1,344 1.82 1,672 2.27
New Mexico 192 39 56 287 1.50 339 1.76
New York 5,730 3,163 4,398 13,291 2.32 17,360 3.03
North Carolina 2,849 1,596 2,409 6,854 2.41 9,023 3.17
North Dakota 30 5 8 43 1.43 50 1.66
Ohio 1,280 565 700 2,545 1.99 3,220 2.52
Oklahoma 259 68 84 410 1.58 491 1.90
Oregon 1,560 784 1,089 3,433 2.20 4,441 2.85
Intrastate Impacts Total Interstate Impacts
State Direct Effect Indirect Effect Induced Effect Total Impacts Multiplier Total Impacts Multiplier
Pennsylvania 1,727 740 1,211 3,678 2.13 4,741 2.75
Rhode Island 54 13 17 83 1.54 99 1.83
South Carolina 413 123 144 680 1.65 821 1.99
South Dakota 21 3 6 30 1.43 35 1.67
Tennessee 648 226 333 1,207 1.86 1,509 2.33
Texas 9,437 4,998 8,010 22,445 2.38 29,517 3.13
Utah 587 296 471 1,353 2.31 1,770 3.01
Vermont 38 10 13 61 1.60 73 1.92
Virginia 920 300 424 1,644 1.79 2,034 2.21
Washington 10,870 5,023 12,531 28,424 2.61 38,249 3.52
West Virginia 165 28 39 232 1.41 268 1.63
Wisconsin 795 333 610 1,737 2.19 2,255 2.84
Wyoming 46 10 9 65 1.42 75 1.64
Puerto Rico 52 78 47 177 3.40 240 4.61
U.S. Totals 104,080 56,095 102,705 262,881 2.53 350,015 3.36
Table A-2: State Labor Income (Total Compensation) Impacts of U.S. Video Game Industry, 2023
($millions)
Source: TEConomy IMPLAN analysis of 2023 U.S. Video Game Industry Database
Intrastate Impact of In-State Video Game Industry (Columns 2-6) and Interstate Impact of U.S. Industry
Overall (Columns 7-8).
Intrastate Impacts Total Interstate Impacts
State Direct Effect Indirect Effect Induced Effect Total Impacts Multiplier Total Impacts Multiplier
Alabama $20.25 $4.89 $5.34 $30.48 1.51 $35.14 1.74
Alaska $2.61 $0.36 $0.66 $3.63 1.39 $4.12 1.58
Arizona $88.57 $31.29 $38.28 $158.14 1.79 $190.19 2.15
Arkansas $10.46 $2.97 $2.75 $16.18 1.55 $18.74 1.79
California $9,265.12 $2,725.73 $3,912.38 $15,903.24 1.72 $19,011.92 2.05
Colorado $145.29 $42.58 $57.63 $245.50 1.69 $292.16 2.01
Connecticut $25.07 $6.68 $9.07 $40.82 1.63 $48.15 1.92
Delaware $5.29 $1.35 $1.28 $7.92 1.50 $9.10 1.72
District of Columbia $27.40 $5.96 $3.07 $36.43 1.33 $40.22 1.47
Florida $475.37 $158.33 $197.66 $831.36 1.75 $995.73 2.09
Georgia $202.81 $72.74 $83.18 $358.72 1.77 $430.05 2.12
Hawaii $9.90 $1.82 $2.95 $14.68 1.48 $16.94 1.71
Idaho $17.03 $6.10 $5.43 $28.56 1.68 $33.69 1.98
Illinois $268.68 $87.37 $118.86 $474.91 1.77 $570.96 2.13
Indiana $43.41 $12.58 $14.77 $70.76 1.63 $83.31 1.92
Iowa $12.89 $2.79 $3.18 $18.86 1.46 $21.59 1.68
Kansas $36.19 $9.22 $10.14 $55.54 1.53 $64.36 1.78
24 25
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Intrastate Impacts Total Interstate Impacts
State Direct Effect Indirect Effect Induced Effect Total Impacts Multiplier Total Impacts Multiplier
Kentucky $36.16 $10.40 $11.00 $57.56 1.59 $67.27 1.86
Louisiana $49.56 $14.58 $15.48 $79.62 1.61 $93.27 1.88
Maine $4.90 $1.42 $1.76 $8.08 1.65 $9.55 1.95
Maryland $164.26 $46.07 $51.15 $261.48 1.59 $305.82 1.86
Massachusetts $286.91 $78.96 $123.17 $489.04 1.70 $584.48 2.04
Michigan $77.25 $23.44 $30.30 $131.00 1.70 $155.90 2.02
Minnesota $102.70 $38.41 $46.47 $187.58 1.83 $226.64 2.21
Mississippi $12.08 $2.33 $2.59 $17.00 1.41 $19.24 1.59
Missouri $38.61 $11.59 $13.31 $63.51 1.64 $74.90 1.94
Montana $2.99 $0.58 $0.86 $4.44 1.48 $5.11 1.71
Nebraska $8.63 $1.71 $2.30 $12.64 1.46 $14.50 1.68
Nevada $110.41 $39.36 $36.64 $186.41 1.69 $220.43 2.00
New Hampshire $22.54 $4.25 $7.32 $34.11 1.51 $39.63 1.76
New Jersey $73.20 $19.44 $25.88 $118.51 1.62 $139.57 1.91
New Mexico $11.61 $2.15 $2.74 $16.49 1.42 $18.76 1.62
New York $858.59 $324.98 $339.64 $1,523.22 1.77 $1,824.39 2.12
North Carolina $369.27 $115.83 $136.78 $621.87 1.68 $737.83 2.00
North Dakota $1.81 $0.30 $0.43 $2.54 1.40 $2.88 1.59
Ohio $96.75 $34.70 $38.76 $170.22 1.76 $203.74 2.11
Oklahoma $15.41 $3.42 $4.22 $23.06 1.50 $26.59 1.72
Oregon $168.46 $68.95 $66.92 $304.33 1.81 $365.41 2.17
Pennsylvania $175.75 $60.27 $76.59 $312.61 1.78 $375.92 2.14
Rhode Island $3.36 $0.81 $0.99 $5.16 1.54 $5.99 1.78
South Carolina $26.74 $6.60 $7.01 $40.36 1.51 $46.54 1.74
South Dakota $1.16 $0.20 $0.32 $1.68 1.45 $1.93 1.66
Tennessee $55.37 $15.65 $21.08 $92.10 1.66 $109.20 1.97
Texas $1,106.12 $362.94 $466.10 $1,935.15 1.75 $2,319.04 2.10
Utah $71.09 $20.22 $25.12 $116.43 1.64 $137.35 1.93
Vermont $2.39 $0.62 $0.73 $3.75 1.57 $4.37 1.83
Virginia $81.93 $22.02 $23.96 $127.90 1.56 $148.83 1.82
Washington $2,744.44 $535.80 $883.60 $4,163.84 1.52 $4,837.66 1.76
West Virginia $8.98 $1.52 $1.99 $12.49 1.39 $14.12 1.57
Wisconsin $96.67 $23.73 $34.80 $155.20 1.61 $182.67 1.89
Wyoming $2.78 $0.49 $0.39 $3.66 1.32 $4.05 1.46
Puerto Rico $5.52 $3.25 $1.77 $10.54 1.91 $12.66 2.29
U.S. Totals $17,550.74 $5,069.74 $6,968.83 $29,589.31 1.69 $35,202.59 2.01
Table A-3: State Value Added Impacts of U.S. Video Game Industry, 2023 ($ millions)
Source: TEConomy IMPLAN analysis of 2023 U.S. Video Game Industry Database
Intrastate Impact of In-State Video Game Industry (Columns 2-6) and Interstate Impact of U.S. Industry
Overall (Columns 7-8).
Intrastate Impacts Total Interstate Impacts
State Direct Effect Indirect Effect Induced Effect Total Impacts Multiplier Total Impacts Multiplier
Alabama $22.31 $7.95 $10.54 $40.80 1.83 $48.94 2.19
Alaska $2.23 $0.66 $1.18 $4.07 1.83 $4.91 2.20
Arizona $130.78 $48.23 $72.64 $251.65 1.92 $305.54 2.34
Arkansas $12.60 $4.80 $5.40 $22.80 1.81 $27.22 2.16
California $20,379.81 $4,417.69 $7,201.26 $31,998.76 1.57 $37,216.28 1.83
Colorado $239.81 $65.13 $108.39 $413.34 1.72 $491.40 2.05
Connecticut $32.10 $11.07 $15.98 $59.15 1.84 $71.17 2.22
Delaware $4.66 $2.57 $2.58 $9.82 2.11 $12.03 2.58
District of Columbia $56.11 $8.96 $4.67 $69.74 1.24 $75.21 1.34
Florida $715.33 $240.16 $381.64 $1,337.13 1.87 $1,615.71 2.26
Georgia $300.80 $112.39 $159.90 $573.09 1.91 $693.83 2.31
Hawaii $13.20 $2.88 $5.90 $21.98 1.67 $26.00 1.97
Idaho $21.18 $9.59 $10.13 $40.91 1.93 $49.40 2.33
Illinois $408.53 $126.62 $210.29 $745.44 1.82 $896.98 2.20
Indiana $54.34 $17.91 $26.51 $98.76 1.82 $118.53 2.18
Iowa $16.48 $4.59 $6.17 $27.25 1.65 $32.00 1.94
Kansas $42.57 $13.89 $19.18 $75.64 1.78 $90.26 2.12
Kentucky $41.21 $15.43 $19.91 $76.56 1.86 $92.08 2.23
Louisiana $65.97 $22.16 $30.02 $118.15 1.79 $141.19 2.14
Maine $6.48 $2.21 $3.41 $12.10 1.87 $14.61 2.25
Maryland $427.59 $76.58 $97.97 $602.14 1.41 $678.76 1.59
Massachusetts $465.26 $120.29 $208.94 $794.49 1.71 $943.18 2.03
Michigan $106.99 $34.01 $54.42 $195.42 1.83 $235.07 2.20
Minnesota $157.10 $56.08 $82.07 $295.25 1.88 $356.68 2.27
Mississippi $12.66 $4.13 $5.30 $22.09 1.75 $26.23 2.07
Missouri $49.20 $18.28 $24.54 $92.01 1.87 $110.89 2.25
Montana $2.46 $0.98 $1.49 $4.93 2.01 $6.04 2.46
Nebraska $8.64 $2.96 $4.49 $16.09 1.86 $19.42 2.25
Nevada $172.54 $61.56 $74.92 $309.02 1.79 $368.64 2.14
New Hampshire $25.69 $6.64 $12.88 $45.21 1.76 $54.11 2.11
New Jersey $89.18 $29.89 $45.31 $164.38 1.84 $197.93 2.22
New Mexico $13.88 $3.64 $5.45 $22.97 1.65 $27.03 1.95
New York $1,638.25 $511.93 $608.18 $2,758.36 1.68 $3,246.48 1.98
North Carolina $600.84 $173.34 $254.70 $1,028.88 1.71 $1,219.26 2.03
North Dakota $1.82 $0.48 $0.71 $3.01 1.65 $3.54 1.94
Ohio $146.09 $56.18 $72.99 $275.25 1.88 $332.04 2.27
Oklahoma $15.79 $5.66 $7.99 $29.44 1.86 $35.48 2.25
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Intrastate Impacts Total Interstate Impacts
State Direct Effect Indirect Effect Induced Effect Total Impacts Multiplier Total Impacts Multiplier
Oregon $299.69 $103.22 $119.58 $522.49 1.74 $619.35 2.07
Pennsylvania $265.76 $87.47 $130.84 $484.07 1.82 $581.33 2.19
Rhode Island $3.49 $1.32 $1.81 $6.61 1.90 $7.99 2.29
South Carolina $28.45 $10.38 $14.33 $53.16 1.87 $64.09 2.25
South Dakota $1.07 $0.35 $0.55 $1.97 1.84 $2.37 2.21
Tennessee $63.93 $23.28 $37.78 $124.99 1.95 $152.39 2.38
Texas $1,630.46 $554.83 $867.44 $3,052.73 1.87 $3,688.98 2.26
Utah $108.74 $31.53 $51.34 $191.61 1.76 $228.82 2.10
Vermont $3.00 $1.01 $1.38 $5.39 1.80 $6.45 2.15
Virginia $117.78 $36.59 $47.58 $201.95 1.71 $238.95 2.03
Washington $5,937.84 $897.70 $1,772.58 $8,608.12 1.45 $9,827.54 1.66
West Virginia $8.59 $2.53 $3.68 $14.80 1.72 $17.56 2.04
Wisconsin $145.91 $35.93 $63.67 $245.51 1.68 $290.57 1.99
Wyoming $4.15 $0.80 $0.81 $5.76 1.39 $6.44 1.55
Puerto Rico $41.34 $5.01 $3.84 $50.19 1.21 $53.88 1.30
U.S. Totals $35,160.68 $8,089.47 $12,975.29 $56,225.44 1.60 $65,670.74 1.87
Table A-4: State Output Impacts of U.S. Video Game Industry, 2023 ($ millions)
Source: TEConomy IMPLAN analysis of 2023 U.S. Video Game Industry Database
Intrastate Impact of In-State Video Game Industry (Columns 2-6) and Interstate Impact of U.S. Industry
Overall (Columns 7-8).
Intrastate Impacts Total Interstate Impacts
State Direct Effect Indirect Effect Induced Effect Total Impacts Multiplier Total Impacts Multiplier
Alabama $39.47 $17.18 $18.60 $75.25 1.91 $95.09 2.41
Alaska $4.10 $1.31 $1.95 $7.37 1.80 $9.24 2.25
Arizona $246.14 $93.03 $124.16 $463.34 1.88 $586.01 2.38
Arkansas $22.91 $10.15 $9.75 $42.82 1.87 $53.74 2.35
California $26,097.1 $7,186.10 $11,608.48 $44,891.6 1.72 $55,678.0 2.13
Colorado $338.4 $115.29 $181.51 $635.2 1.88 $805.1 2.38
Connecticut $48.25 $19.90 $25.09 $93.24 1.93 $118.52 2.46
Delaware $9.59 $4.66 $4.15 $18.40 1.92 $23.20 2.42
District of Columbia $69.04 $13.50 $6.91 $89.45 1.30 $100.03 1.45
Florida $1,105.6 $468.45 $664.39 $2,238.4 2.02 $2,881.6 2.61
Georgia $455.7 $207.38 $271.73 $934.8 2.05 $1,205.0 2.64
Hawaii $19.78 $5.54 $9.65 $34.97 1.77 $43.74 2.21
Idaho $58.76 $19.95 $18.02 $96.73 1.65 $117.44 2.00
Illinois $588.3 $224.98 $350.07 $1,163.3 1.98 $1,492.4 2.54
Indiana $89.52 $34.32 $45.51 $169.35 1.89 $214.41 2.39
Iowa $27.04 $9.34 $10.80 $47.18 1.74 $58.41 2.16
Intrastate Impacts Total Interstate Impacts
State Direct Effect Indirect Effect Induced Effect Total Impacts Multiplier Total Impacts Multiplier
Kansas $71.22 $27.00 $34.25 $132.47 1.86 $166.91 2.34
Kentucky $72.82 $31.75 $35.43 $140.01 1.92 $177.36 2.44
Louisiana $119.11 $46.98 $52.88 $218.97 1.84 $274.53 2.30
Maine $10.93 $4.38 $5.67 $20.98 1.92 $26.64 2.44
Maryland $549.7 $132.64 $159.00 $841.4 1.53 $1,004.5 1.83
Massachusetts $642.9 $198.45 $328.66 $1,170.0 1.82 $1,473.1 2.29
Michigan $164.15 $67.50 $96.33 $327.98 2.00 $421.05 2.57
Minnesota $247.72 $102.78 $140.65 $491.15 1.98 $628.92 2.54
Mississippi $22.79 $9.40 $9.80 $41.99 1.84 $52.60 2.31
Missouri $81.59 $36.57 $43.13 $161.28 1.98 $205.81 2.52
Montana $4.79 $2.31 $2.76 $9.85 2.06 $12.69 2.65
Nebraska $14.47 $5.93 $7.69 $28.09 1.94 $35.76 2.47
Nevada $279.2 $112.74 $122.74 $514.6 1.84 $645.3 2.31
New Hampshire $36.50 $11.65 $20.63 $68.78 1.88 $87.44 2.40
New Jersey $130.93 $53.32 $72.89 $257.13 1.96 $328.56 2.51
New Mexico $28.28 $7.64 $9.56 $45.48 1.61 $55.14 1.95
New York $2,339.3 $811.61 $920.31 $4,071.2 1.74 $5,035.5 2.15
North Carolina $901.5 $320.01 $438.81 $1,660.3 1.84 $2,089.8 2.32
North Dakota $3.14 $1.08 $1.32 $5.53 1.76 $6.87 2.19
Ohio $242.8 $107.95 $126.62 $477.3 1.97 $608.3 2.51
Oklahoma $26.97 $12.68 $14.81 $54.47 2.02 $69.82 2.59
Oregon $579.8 $185.54 $199.62 $965.0 1.66 $1,178.4 2.03
Pennsylvania $410.2 $154.86 $221.31 $786.4 1.92 $1,000.1 2.44
Rhode Island $5.94 $2.57 $2.98 $11.50 1.93 $14.60 2.46
South Carolina $47.42 $22.10 $25.06 $94.57 1.99 $120.83 2.55
South Dakota $1.91 $0.73 $0.98 $3.62 1.90 $4.59 2.41
Tennessee $100.20 $44.69 $62.94 $207.83 2.07 $268.90 2.68
Texas $2,556.0 $1,036.12 $1,526.42 $5,118.6 2.00 $6,578.1 2.57
Utah $159.19 $60.72 $89.33 $309.24 1.94 $394.69 2.48
Vermont $5.13 $2.04 $2.30 $9.47 1.85 $11.89 2.32
Virginia $176.44 $66.37 $78.69 $321.50 1.82 $402.59 2.28
Washington $7,191.6 $1,448.08 $2,796.92 $11,436.6 1.59 $13,907.5 1.93
West Virginia $15.41 $5.37 $6.48 $27.26 1.77 $33.90 2.20
Wisconsin $208.69 $66.89 $109.61 $385.19 1.85 $486.61 2.33
Wyoming $6.66 $1.88 $1.50 $10.04 1.51 $11.86 1.78
Puerto Rico $53.05 $7.27 $5.97 $66.29 1.25 $73.46 1.38
U.S. Totals $46,728.07 $13,640.67 $21,124.81 $81,493.56 1.74 $101,376.67 2.17
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Intrastate Impacts Total Interstate Impacts
State Direct Effect Indirect Effect Induced Effect Total Impacts Total Impacts
Pennsylvania $9.34 $2.45 $5.48 $17.28 $20.39
Rhode Island $0.27 $0.04 $0.09 $0.41 $0.47
South Carolina $2.11 $0.28 $0.83 $3.21 $3.69
South Dakota $0.12 $0.01 $0.02 $0.14 $0.15
Tennessee $2.25 $0.35 $1.20 $3.80 $4.55
Texas $34.13 $14.45 $37.55 $86.12 $107.00
Utah $1.92 $0.53 $2.19 $4.63 $5.76
Vermont $0.06 $0.01 $0.03 $0.10 $0.12
Virginia $5.73 $0.94 $2.66 $9.33 $11.24
Washington $45.91 $17.25 $71.67 $134.84 $171.02
West Virginia $0.64 $0.04 $0.12 $0.81 $0.88
Wisconsin $2.60 $0.84 $2.61 $6.04 $7.48
Wyoming $0.14 $0.01 $0.03 $0.18 $0.20
Puerto Rico N/A N/A N/A N/A N/A
U.S. Totals $543.67 $168.77 $600.61 $1,313.04 $1,630.96
Table A-6: State Tax Impacts of U.S. Video Game Industry, 2023 ($ millions)
Source: TEConomy IMPLAN analysis of 2023 U.S. Video Game Industry Database
Intrastate Impact of In-State Video Game Industry (Columns 2-5) and Interstate Impact of U.S. Industry
Overall (Columns 6).
Intrastate Impacts Total Interstate Impacts
State Direct Effect Indirect Effect Induced Effect Total Impacts Total Impacts
Alabama $2.14 $0.34 $0.74 $3.22 $3.44
Alaska $0.10 $0.02 $0.05 $0.16 $0.18
Arizona $5.80 $1.76 $4.24 $11.80 $13.09
Arkansas $1.66 $0.27 $0.48 $2.41 $2.56
California $1,165.88 $260.02 $566.99 $1,992.89 $2,169.27
Colorado $7.78 $1.90 $4.66 $14.35 $15.77
Connecticut $2.35 $0.54 $1.00 $3.89 $4.21
Delaware $0.29 $0.14 $0.16 $0.60 $0.66
District of Columbia $0.00 $0.00 $0.00 $0.00 $0.00
Florida $18.11 $6.73 $19.11 $43.94 $49.60
Georgia $11.92 $3.74 $7.59 $23.25 $25.65
Hawaii $1.34 $0.17 $0.57 $2.08 $2.25
Idaho $1.54 $0.47 $0.79 $2.80 $3.06
Illinois $19.01 $5.28 $12.93 $37.23 $41.16
Indiana $4.63 $0.89 $1.82 $7.34 $7.91
Iowa $1.15 $0.20 $0.34 $1.69 $1.80
Kansas $2.65 $0.53 $1.23 $4.41 $4.79
Kentucky $3.63 $0.76 $1.49 $5.88 $6.35
Table A-5: Local/County Tax Impacts of U.S. Video Game Industry, 2023 ($ millions)
Source: TEConomy IMPLAN analysis of 2023 U.S. Video Game Industry Database
Intrastate Impact of In-State Video Game Industry (Columns 2-5) and Interstate Impact of U.S. Industry
Overall (Columns 6).
Intrastate Impacts Total Interstate Impacts
State Direct Effect Indirect Effect Induced Effect Total Impacts Total Impacts
Alabama $1.41 $0.16 $0.46 $2.03 $2.30
Alaska $0.09 $0.01 $0.03 $0.13 $0.15
Arizona $3.45 $0.98 $2.93 $7.36 $8.96
Arkansas $0.53 $0.06 $0.14 $0.74 $0.84
California $237.82 $79.15 $343.98 $660.95 $831.81
Colorado $5.93 $1.20 $6.17 $13.30 $16.14
Connecticut $2.21 $0.32 $0.81 $3.34 $3.83
Delaware $0.07 $0.04 $0.05 $0.17 $0.21
District of Columbia $2.31 $0.39 $0.37 $3.07 $3.43
Florida $15.84 $6.01 $17.55 $39.39 $49.84
Georgia $8.98 $2.42 $8.14 $19.54 $24.09
Hawaii $0.51 $0.05 $0.23 $0.80 $0.93
Idaho $0.61 $0.13 $0.33 $1.08 $1.28
Illinois $11.04 $2.93 $11.33 $25.30 $30.60
Indiana $2.21 $0.35 $0.86 $3.41 $3.92
Iowa $0.91 $0.13 $0.27 $1.31 $1.48
Kansas $1.55 $0.23 $0.83 $2.61 $3.08
Kentucky $1.70 $0.32 $0.69 $2.70 $3.10
Louisiana $4.89 $0.55 $1.68 $7.12 $8.06
Maine $0.29 $0.06 $0.17 $0.53 $0.62
Maryland $11.00 $2.32 $5.15 $18.48 $22.64
Massachusetts $6.47 $2.02 $7.4 4 $15.93 $19.93
Michigan $3.47 $0.60 $1.96 $6.03 $7.05
Minnesota $2.85 $1.08 $2.89 $6.83 $8.62
Mississippi $1.03 $0.09 $0.22 $1.34 $1.48
Missouri $2.28 $0.48 $1.23 $3.99 $4.66
Montana $0.06 $0.02 $0.04 $0.12 $0.15
Nebraska $0.53 $0.08 $0.19 $0.79 $0.90
Nevada $3.06 $1.03 $2.49 $6.58 $8.27
New Hampshire $0.65 $0.21 $0.62 $1.47 $1.80
New Jersey $4.41 $1.03 $2.52 $7.96 $9.40
New Mexico $0.44 $0.07 $0.17 $0.68 $0.79
New York $71.34 $18.81 $35.66 $125.82 $149.75
North Carolina $9.29 $3.43 $9.72 $22.43 $29.41
North Dakota $0.04 $0.00 $0.01 $0.05 $0.06
Ohio $7.77 $1.62 $3.30 $12.69 $14.74
Oklahoma $0.87 $0.12 $0.29 $1.28 $1.45
Oregon $10.55 $3.06 $5.18 $18.79 $22.24
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Intrastate Impacts Total Interstate Impacts
State Direct Effect Indirect Effect Induced Effect Total Impacts Total Impacts
Louisiana $5.28 $0.82 $1.85 $7.94 $8.51
Maine $0.43 $0.11 $0.23 $0.77 $0.84
Maryland $17.25 $3.30 $6.59 $27.14 $29.23
Massachusetts $19.07 $4.95 $10.49 $34.50 $37.79
Michigan $6.58 $1.38 $3.47 $11.43 $12.48
Minnesota $9.23 $3.23 $6.16 $18.63 $20.60
Mississippi $1.95 $0.23 $0.45 $2.63 $2.77
Missouri $2.10 $0.54 $0.99 $3.62 $3.94
Montana $0.16 $0.05 $0.08 $0.29 $0.32
Nebraska $0.51 $0.10 $0.19 $0.80 $0.86
Nevada $6.07 $2.04 $4.96 $13.07 $14.58
New Hampshire $0.43 $0.18 $0.45 $1.05 $1.18
New Jersey $5.19 $1.53 $2.92 $9.64 $10.58
New Mexico $1.08 $0.18 $0.40 $1.67 $1.80
New York $79.25 $23.71 $34.64 $137.60 $149.47
North Carolina $21.96 $7.05 $14.40 $43.40 $47.94
North Dakota $0.14 $0.02 $0.03 $0.18 $0.19
Ohio $9.19 $2.00 $3.86 $15.05 $16.29
Oklahoma $1.38 $0.23 $0.48 $2.09 $2.24
Oregon $14.41 $4.85 $5.93 $25.19 $27.33
Pennsylvania $13.48 $3.71 $7.50 $24.69 $27.07
Rhode Island $0.32 $0.06 $0.11 $0.49 $0.53
South Carolina $2.16 $0.40 $0.86 $3.43 $3.69
South Dakota $0.13 $0.01 $0.02 $0.16 $0.17
Tennessee $4.36 $0.81 $2.57 $7.75 $8.49
Texas $37.04 $15.44 $39.43 $91.92 $103.81
Utah $4.51 $1.23 $2.96 $8.70 $9.61
Vermont $0.32 $0.07 $0.14 $0.54 $0.58
Virginia $6.42 $1.36 $2.61 $10.40 $11.23
Washington $102.48 $33.93 $131.61 $268.02 $305.26
West Virginia $1.34 $0.12 $0.29 $1.75 $1.84
Wisconsin $6.11 $1.61 $3.77 $11.49 $12.65
Wyoming $0.33 $0.03 $0.06 $0.42 $0.44
Puerto Rico $1.81 $0.27 $0.51 $2.59 $2.75
U.S. Totals $1,632.45 $399.33 $915.20 $2,946.98 $3,228.83
Table A-7: Federal Tax Impacts of U.S. Video Game Industry, 2023 ($ millions)
Source: TEConomy IMPLAN analysis of 2023 U.S. Video Game Industry Database
Intrastate Impact of In-State Video Game Industry (Columns 2-5) and Interstate Impact of U.S. Industry
Overall (Columns 6).
Intrastate Impacts Total Interstate Impacts
State Direct Effect Indirect Effect Induced Effect Total Impacts Total Impacts
Alabama $4.42 $1.13 $1.30 $6.85 $7.93
Alaska $0.49 $0.08 $0.15 $0.72 $0.82
Arizona $22.38 $7.53 $9.74 $39.65 $47.36
Arkansas $2.30 $0.68 $0.68 $3.66 $4.25
California $2,793.85 $683.02 $1,002.61 $4,479.49 $5,241.27
Colorado $38.91 $10.29 $14.53 $63.72 $74.89
Connecticut $6.60 $1.79 $2.45 $10.84 $12.74
Delaware $1.01 $0.31 $0.30 $1.62 $1.89
District of Columbia $5.59 $1.01 $0.52 $7.11 $7.73
Florida $136.40 $41.88 $54.69 $232.97 $276.11
Georgia $50.98 $17.00 $20.55 $88.53 $105.17
Hawaii $2.23 $0.40 $0.71 $3.34 $3.86
Idaho $4.16 $1.48 $1.35 $6.99 $8.21
Illinois $68.27 $19.99 $28.66 $116.92 $138.85
Indiana $9.65 $2.65 $3.43 $15.74 $18.45
Iowa $2.88 $0.64 $0.76 $4.29 $4.91
Kansas $8.35 $2.11 $2.44 $12.91 $14.91
Kentucky $7.45 $2.21 $2.50 $12.16 $14.23
Louisiana $10.93 $3.03 $3.49 $17.45 $20.33
Maine $1.16 $0.33 $0.44 $1.92 $2.26
Maryland $50.66 $11.23 $12.90 $74.79 $85.42
Massachusetts $79.77 $19.97 $31.38 $131.12 $154.49
Michigan $18.90 $5.41 $7.43 $31.74 $37.50
Minnesota $25.96 $8.80 $11.19 $45.96 $54.87
Mississippi $2.31 $0.53 $0.62 $3.46 $3.97
Missouri $8.72 $2.62 $3.14 $14.48 $17.03
Montana $0.64 $0.14 $0.21 $0.99 $1.15
Nebraska $1.72 $0.40 $0.56 $2.67 $3.10
Nevada $30.99 $10.30 $10.22 $51.51 $60.41
New Hampshire $5.15 $1.00 $1.76 $7.92 $9.19
New Jersey $17.90 $4.82 $6.63 $29.35 $34.50
New Mexico $2.55 $0.50 $0.67 $3.72 $4.24
New York $240.48 $79.46 $85.36 $405.30 $47 7.4 4
North Carolina $95.90 $27.11 $33.57 $156.59 $183.54
North Dakota $0.37 $0.07 $0.09 $0.53 $0.60
Ohio $22.75 $7.90 $9.22 $39.88 $47.44
Oklahoma $2.94 $0.74 $0.96 $4.65 $5.41
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Intrastate Impacts Total Interstate Impacts
State Direct Effect Indirect Effect Induced Effect Total Impacts Total Impacts
Oregon $45.01 $16.28 $16.37 $77.66 $91.85
Pennsylvania $43.58 $13.71 $18.30 $75.59 $89.92
Rhode Island $0.75 $0.19 $0.25 $1.20 $1.40
South Carolina $5.94 $1.55 $1.80 $9.29 $10.77
South Dakota $0.23 $0.05 $0.07 $0.35 $0.41
Tennessee $12.16 $3.52 $4.95 $20.63 $24.45
Texas $275.71 $83.92 $112.94 $472.57 $560.77
Utah $18.49 $4.87 $6.42 $29.79 $34.84
Vermont $0.54 $0.14 $0.18 $0.85 $1.00
Virginia $20.29 $5.37 $6.14 $31.80 $36.87
Washington $856.12 $141.10 $240.09 $1,237.31 $1,412.05
West Virginia $1.67 $0.32 $0.45 $2.44 $2.79
Wisconsin $24.83 $5.59 $8.52 $38.94 $45.34
Wyoming $0.75 $0.13 $0.11 $0.99 $1.09
Puerto Rico $2.14 $0.64 $0.30 $3.08 $3.46
U.S. Totals $5,093.94 $1,255.98 $1,784.14 $8,134.06 $9,503.49
Appendix B
Development and Use of 2023 Video Game Industry
Establishment-Record Database to Estimate Industry Economic Impacts
The development of the Video Game Industry establishment-record database used for this analysis and
report was a two-step process.
9
The first step was to develop a “master list” of video game industry
firms active in 2023. The second step was to connect, assign and/or develop employment and location
information for these firms. A review and discussion of each of these steps is provided below. Once the
industry database was complete, TEConomy used industry classification information and other firm-
level information to assign each record to both a video game industry classification (e.g., developer,
publisher, etc.) and to the appropriate sector for IMPLAN modeling.
Developing a Master List of Core and Extended Video Game Industry Firms
A principal task while developing this master list was to include firms that were active in 2023
(captured during the July – October 2023 timeframe). Though additional of this characteristic was
primarily achieved, there may be some firms that went “out of business” prior to 2023 that have games
still available through one of the “publishers” used for source data. Considerable effort was made to
determine a true “active in 2023” status of firms within the database by examining company websites
and social media accounts for recent (2023 or at least 2022) activity. The second critical component
was to determine the U.S. location or locations of each firm. The development of this list attempted to
include any U.S.-based operations, even if the firm’s headquarter operations were located outside of
the U.S.
Sources of Video Game Firms
The development of this master list is graphically depicted in Figure 4. The following industry-specific
sources were used, in whole or in part, to provide input for the 2023 list of active video game industry firms.
For 2023, the list of firms started with the prior TEConomy video game industry database and a recent
dataset developed for ESA for mapping purposes. Additional lists of potential U.S. video game indus-
try firms were added from GameDevMap, GiantBomb and Gamesmith using a web scraping tool or
manual capture. Developer and publisher data from Steam were collected by accessing game data via
the SteamSpy API and lists of companies with recent releases were collected from Indie DB and Riot
Pixel. For developers identified through Steam, an additional check was performed to select only “paid
for” games. Though there are several massively successful “free-to-play” games, these games do not
generate economic activity measurable through the methodology used in this effort (though they may
ultimately generate economic activity through in-game purchases and advertising sales).
Additionally, a small number of companies were incorporated directly into the database from a variety of
additional sources, including various industry and market research reports.
9
Note: from a data perspective, any dataset that identifies and provides information regarding specific firms or establishment-
level data is considered to be a microfirm-level database.
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The inclusion of video game industry firms from these sources often yielded names of firms but little
additional information—typically limited, if any, locational information, and no employment information.
Where some locational information was available, these data were typically limited in geographic scope
for individual firms (e.g., one record for all of Activision Blizzard with a single California location).
Figure 4. Approach to Developing and Updating the U.S. Video Game Industry Database
Source: TEConomy Partners
Beyond these industry-specific sources, two key proprietary data sources were also used for developing
the master list and securing company employment and location information: Dun & Bradstreet/Hoovers
(D&B) and Reference USA (a product of DataAxle). Finally, a fourth proprietary data source, the PitchBook
venture capital database, was queried to find any additional, emerging companies involved in the video
game industry that may be in the nascent or pre-revenue stage of development.
Developing the Establishment Data Records
The master list created in step one became the starting point for developing the ultimate industry
database for this effort in step two. From this list, employment and locational specific information was
added in a number of ways. These include:
• Matching to the master list
- Matching algorithms were used to match list to records within D&B and Reference USA.
- For video game firms from the curated list that had a strongly correlated matching data record
(or records in the case of multi-establishment firms), those records were brought into the initial
database.
- Though matching records worked in part, some stray matches, due to the algorithms and lack
of corresponding information, did occur that had to be identified and removed.
- Many records had to be matched in a manual lookup process due to slight variations in names,
etc. that did not allow for successful algorithmic matching within the D&B and Reference USA
systems.
• Developing data records for existing, but non-matched firms
- Due to the update cycles and other issues inherent in the two proprietary company information
providers, there were a significant number of existing video game firms (e.g., firms with active
websites and new games in 2023) for which no record could be found within the D&B or
Reference USA data.
- For these firms, TEConomy worked to find specific locations using web searches and company
and employee information from websites and various social media pages (e.g., LinkedIn, X
(Twitter), Facebook).
• Consideration for multi-location video game firms
- Many of the larger developers and developer/publisher firms have multiple specific locations,
often due to the location of key developer studios. For these firms, website information (as
well as annual reports of public firms) was used to identify the active (as of 2023) locations,
capturing street address, city, state and zip code if possible.
- To the extent possible, these addresses were matched with specific records from D&B or
Reference USA.
- If a key location record was not included with these proprietary datasets, TEConomy
estimated the employment at these locations using company and employee information
from annual reports, websites, company LinkedIn pages and the LinkedIn Talent Insights (LTI)
tool that allows for querying among a set of employee LinkedIn pages all stating the same
current employer.
Steam IndieDB Riot Pixel
Pitchbook, D&B, &
Reference USA
Business Records
De-duplicated US firms,
additional cleaning
Initial list of US video
game industry firms
De-duplicated US firms due to
name changes and M&A
activity, additional cleaning
Final List of US Video Game Industry
Firms for Database Development
Firms that have a
product release
within the last year
Expanded list of “new” or “active”
US video game industry firms
Firms that have a product release
within the last year
Additional list of “new” or “active” in
2023 video game development firms
D&B query of “active” firm names
to determine if US locations exist
Firms that have huge
Englishlanguage product
release as recently as 2023
AND >0 active player base
Firms that have a
product release
within the last year
Prior TEConomy Industry
Data Records
GameDevMap GiantBomb
Industry and
Market Research
Reports
Gamesmith
36 37
VIDEO GAMES IN THE 21
ST
CENTURY: THE 2024 ECONOMIC IMPACT REPORT VIDEO GAMES IN THE 21
ST
CENTURY: THE 2024 ECONOMIC IMPACT REPORT
• Consideration for video game firms’ remote workers
- The U.S. video game industry not only employs workers who are logistically “housed” within
specific locations, but also has been a U.S. and global leader in providing remote work
opportunities.
- When querying industry firms using the LTI tool, significant employment can be found at the
state level that does not correspond to any of a firm’s existing “address-specific” location.
- For states, with and without address-specific locations, the LTI-specified employment was
first examined at the metropolitan level (to associate individuals living near address-specific
locations to those locations). For employment that reflected truly “remote” workers, sample
LinkedIn profiles of these workers were examined to determine if these remote workers were
actual company employees.
- If these locations (at the state level) met these inclusion criteria, for those with substantive
levels of employment (typically at least 5+ workers), a record of this employment for the
company in question was added to the U.S. video game industry database.
• Developing video game industry employment estimates for multi-industry firms
- Certain firms, primarily within the consoles, hardware and peripherals sector, are significant
players in the video game industry that also have substantial, if not the majority, of their
operations and revenue tied to non-video game-related markets. For this current effort, the
approach used for these firms is a key difference from the prior analysis, as discussed in the
next section.
• Industry-specific retail establishments
- For certain video game-specific retail establishments, (e.g., GameStop, RazerStore) we
included 100% of their employment as video game-related, even though some items they may
sell are ancillary to the core video game market. These retail firms were primarily limited to
operations of publicly traded or otherwise large corporations.
- In this regard, TEConomy and ESA acknowledge that many smaller video game-related retail
entities exist, and that video game-related merchandise is also sold by major retail players
(e.g., Best Buy, Walmart, Target, etc.). To the extent that these additional retail sources of video
games are not included within the analysis, this will inherently make the presented economic
impact results more conservative.
Appendix C
Estimated Economic Impacts of ESA Members
• The data in these tables are based upon identification, within the 2023 U.S. Video Game Industry
database, of ESA members and their studios and other operations located in the United States.
Table C-1: The Economic Impact of the U.S. employment of ESA Members, 2023
Source: TEConomy IMPLAN analysis of U.S. Video Game Industry, 2023
(Values in $ Millions)
Impact Type Employment
Labor
Income
Value-
Added Output
Local &
County Tax
Revenue
State Tax
Revenue
Federal Tax
Revenue
Direct 45,116 $8,869.6 $18,957.0 $23,312.5 $228.0 $795.8 $2,674.7
Indirect 34,277 $2,937.7 $4,638.8 $8,224.0 $102.9 $189.8 $724.1
Induced 80,853 $5,287.4 $9,634.5 $17,084.7 $408.4 $559.2 $1,335.5
Total Impact 160,246 $17,048.6 $32,973.0 $48,476.7 $740.1 $1,538.7 $4,711.6
Multiplier 3.55 1.92 1.74 2.08
Table C-2: ESA Member Impacts Share of Total Industry Impacts, 2023.
Source: TEConomy IMPLAN analysis of U.S. Video Game Industry, 2023
Impact Type Employment
Labor
Income
Value-
Added Output
Local &
County Tax
Revenue
State Tax
Revenue
Federal Tax
Revenue
Direct 43% 51% 54% 50% 42% 49% 53%
Indirect 42% 43% 43% 42% 40% 42% 43%
Induced 49% 49% 49% 49% 49% 49% 49%
Total Impact 46% 48% 50% 48% 45% 48% 50%
© 2024 Entertainment Software Association