My colleague Matisse (equity analyst) and I (portfolio analyst) traveled to Cologne for Gamescom, the world’s largest computer and video game event, to deepen our knowledge of the gaming industry. Gamescom is the place where the industry showcases its next generation of games and hardware.
During our trip, we deliberately focused on two key areas. On the one hand, the latest developments from the major game developers (Nintendo, Tencent, Konami). On the other hand, the hardware and chips needed to run this generation’s games in the first place.
Artificial Intelligence in Gaming
We also picked up the controller ourselves every now and then. One game really stood out: “Project Black Box” by Meshi.AI, a game in which artificial intelligence adapts the gameplay as you play. The character and his powers evolve along with your playstyle, ensuring that no two sessions are the same. When we asked the developer if AI had been used in the game’s development, the answer was, surprisingly, no.
That distinction is more important than it seems. AI in games generally takes two forms. The first is in-game AI: intelligent, adaptive characters and systems that adjust as the game progresses. The second is AI in development: tools that generate 3D models, textures, animations, dialog, and even code. Studios are increasingly using the second category to drastically shorten production time. At the same time, human oversight remains crucial, as the debate within the industry over copyright, training data, and quality consistency is still in full swing. Therefore, a developer’s conscious decision not to use AI in the production process is also a strategic signal.
Nintendo: The lines don't lie
Nintendo’s popularity was impossible to miss: long lines and crowded booths. With the Switch 2 taking center stage, Nintendo showcased a wide lineup of playable titles, ranging from first-party exclusives like *Nintendo Switch Sports Resort*, *Splatoon Raiders*, and the new *Pokémon Pokopia* expansion to major third-party titles. The most notable guest was Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 4, which is returning to a Nintendo console for the first time in over a decade. For a console still in its early years, such a diverse lineup sends a powerful signal to both players and the market.
The engine under the hood: NVIDIA and AMD
None of these games will run without the chips. The games of this generation place such high demands that the graphics chip has effectively become the gateway to the gaming experience. Two names dominate this landscape. NVIDIA sets the high-end standard with its RTX 50 series (Blackwell architecture). AMD counters with the Radeon RX 9000 series (RDNA 4), which scores particularly well in terms of price-performance ratio.
The Rise of the Simulator
In addition to classic fiction games, a second trend stood out: so-called “simulator” games are clearly gaining ground. Farming Simulator, Bus Simulator, and truck and flight simulators had a strong presence and attracted a broad audience. It’s a genre that doesn’t rely on spectacle or marketing budgets, but rather on long-term player engagement—and thus on stable, recurring revenue for the studios behind them.
From the trading floor to the investment case
A day at Gamescom ultimately amounts to a day of market observation. What becomes apparent on the show floor eventually translates into the financial results of publicly traded companies: the content companies that own the franchises (Nintendo, Tencent, Konami, and others), the platform and distribution companies that reach the players, and the hardware and semiconductor manufacturers that provide the computing power driving this generation. The rise of AI adds yet another dimension to this: it influences both the cost structure on the production side and the demand for computing power and chips on the hardware side.
For those who view the gaming industry as an investment, the key question isn’t which game is the most fun to play, but which links in that chain structurally create and retain value: franchise strength, recurring revenue, and the underlying technological infrastructure. Gamescom doesn’t offer any stock price predictions, but it does provide something just as valuable: a glimpse of what game enthusiasts are already lining up for today.
Disclaimer: This blog post is for informational purposes only and does not constitute investment advice, an offer, or a recommendation. Past performance is not a guarantee of future results.
