charted
Video-Game Sales Set to Reverse
Sales of the bigger-than-Hollywood pastimes may drop for the first time since 1995
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The meteoric rise of video games turned button-mashing into a bigger money-maker than Hollywood, but one veteran analyst is predicting the first industry downturn in a quarter century. Video-game revenue is headed for its first decline since 1995, with sales expected to fall 1 percent to $136.5 billion this year, according to Pelham Smithers, owner of an eponymous London-based research firm. He sees the drag lasting until at least 2020, blaming China’s stricter approach to game approvals, a shortage of big console hits and fatigue among players for battle-royale titles like Fortnite.