Africa ‘ s game industry earned about $2.29 billion in 2025, with mobile games accounting for 60 per cent of the dominant forces

According to the State of the African Video Games Industry 2026, published jointly by SpielFabrique and Xsolla, the African game industry generated about $2.29 billion in revenues in 2025, with mobile games accounting for about 60 per cent of total market value. The report shows that the region ‘ s annual compound growth rate in 2025 is estimated at 12.32 per cent, which is higher than the global growth rate of about 7.5 per cent.

However, the report also notes that monetization is still constrained by payment frictions — about 90 per cent of Africans are unable to use credit cards or applied store credit. GooglePlay remains the main mobile application distribution platform for the entire African region, and the App Store market shares are small, but remain important in countries such as South Africa, Egypt and Morocco.

Nevertheless, inconsistent payment patterns, differences in shop coverage and affordability of equipment continue to constrain wider access. Therefore, iOS is primarily used to reach high-end consumers and international audiences. Despite the dominance of mobile games, cloud games are the fastest growing sub-market, with an annual compound growth rate estimated at 14 per cent, providing a potential alternative to the traditional host experience, although their growth remains heavily dependent on Internet infrastructure.

The report also indicates that, as the size of the continent ‘ s indigenous markets remains limited, African studios tend to prioritize global markets over local audiences, a strategy aimed at reducing business risks. While this has been successful in some international markets, it has also limited the development of the Africa Centre narrative and increased the dependency on overseas consumers. Unity remains the most widely used game engine across the African continent, followed by an illusory engine. Godot is growing rapidly, although it still accounts for a small share of large-scale applications. The ecosystem as a whole consists mainly of early stages and semi-occupational developers, with a small but steadily growing number of fully professional workshops, with some exceptions. The report notes the emergence of new mobile distribution platforms. Gara Store was launched in 2023 as a digital store focusing on Africa, initially targeting the West African language community, and subsequently planning to expand to the continent as a whole.

In addition, OEM app stores such as the China Applied Market and the Samsung Galaxy Shop also play a role, but their influence varies by equipment and region.

KaiOS KaiStore supports games within the functional mobile phone ecosystem, while third-party APK shops remain scattered and have high confidence and security risks. Although small in size, these platforms are receiving increasing attention in terms of developer communication, game creation activities and community-driven distribution.