Digital games earn $10.6 billion in October driven by Genshin Impact

Free-to-play sensation Genshin Impact helped significantly drive up October 2020's digital revenues, analyst firm SuperData reports.

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According to SuperData's new digital earnings report, the global games market generated $10.6 billion in revenues in October 2020, up 14% year-over-year. Console gaming saw the most dramatic spike up +18%, driven by NBA 2K21, FIFA 21 (which sold 1.5 million digital units at launch), Watch Dogs: Legion, and Modern Warfare.

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Speaking of which, Watch Dogs Legion had the best launch in the series. SuperData reports Legion sold 1.9 million digital copies, more than EA's powerhouse FIFA 21.

"Even though the game was only on sale for the final three days in October, its first month sales were significantly higher than Watch Dogs 2, which was released on November 15, 2016 and sold 431K digital units," the repot says.

EA also benefited from Star Wars Squadrons, which actually sold more digital copies than Battlefront II, a live game mired by microtransaction controversy. Conversely, Squardons doesn't have any form of in-game monetization.