Consumers in Australia (flag top in picture) and New Zealand (flag bottom in picture) spent a combined $3.1bn on video games in 2018.

That's according to new research published by local trade body Interactive Games and Entertainment Association (IGEA), which reports that Australia's market was worth AU$4.029 ($2.8bn) in 2018 - an increase of 25 per cent year-on-year. Digital saw a 39 per cent increase year-on-year to hit AU$2.851bn ($2bn), while physical sales saw a 0.2 increase to hit AU$1.179bn ($810m)

“The excitement for video games is continuing to grow, with phenomenal consumer sales in 2018,” IGEA CEO Ron Curry said.

“Australia continues to experience video games sales growth, in line with trends similarly experienced by other countries, including the USA and the UK."

Meanwhile, New Zealand's games market brought in NZ$548m ($355.6m), a 21 per cent increase year-on-year. Both physical and digital revenue was up 21 per cent, the former raking in NZ143.1m ($93m) and the latter NZ$405m ($263.1m)

Once again the data shows New Zealanders’ clear love of playing video games,” IGEA's Curry said.

"The fact that the industry has rocketed through the half billion dollar mark is evidence of an industry in great shape. New Zealanders’ are clearly engaged in playing games both physically and digitally, and they continue to find ways to upgrade and extend the life of their games and hardware, evidenced by the clear growth in console accessories sales."