The gaming industry, the largest entertainment industry today, has the potential to reach over three billion players. With this enormous reach comes the responsibility to address its own carbon footprint. The effort to “untangle” “Emissions ownership” in the gaming sector is a complex issue, likened to a bag of cables. To provide clear guidance for companies on carbon accounting and accelerate climate action, Carbon Trust has commissioned a report from the Decarbonisation Working Group of the Playing for the Planet Alliance (P4P).

Why is report necessary?

The Playing for the Planet Alliance, launched in 2019, aims to accelerate climate action and decarbonization. A fundamental problem that is preventing faster action is the lack of clarity about how gaming companies should interpret and apply existing carbon accounting frameworks, such as the Greenhouse Gas Protocol (GHG Protocol), particularly when it comes to Scope 3 emissions. These emissions, which include all other indirect emissions in an organization’s value chain, such as manufacturing hardware or using products sold, are often the largest. The lack of clarity leads to inconsistent and incomparable reporting across companies.

The report consolidates the experiences and approaches of P4P members (including Microsoft Xbox, Sony Interactive Entertainment, Rovio and Ubisoft) to provide valuable guidance. While not defining a binding industry standard, the goal is to generate consensus within the Alliance.

Key paths for game studios

To manage their carbon footprint, gaming companies should focus on these four main steps:

1. Measure emissions: Measuring and reporting your carbon footprint is a fundamental pillar for reduction strategies because “you can’t manage what you don’t measure.”
2. Set ambitious goals: Following measurement, businesses should set science-based targets (SBTi) that are consistent with the goal of limiting global warming to 1.5°C.
3. Learn from others: Join networks to share best practices.
4. Engage players: Climate action should become part of the discussion.

The report identifies the need to improve the reporting of Scope 3 emissions, recommending consistency of reporting (for example, using GHG protocol categories), higher granularity (reporting by business unit or service, such as cloud streaming) and transparency methodologies, assumptions and justifications for excluded categories.

Emissions hotspots and challenges

For most gaming companies, the most significant categories of scope 3 emissions are Purchased goods and services (Category 1) a Use of sold products (Category 11), followed by Investment Property (Category 2).

The use of gaming hardware (consoles, PCs, mobile devices) and associated displays typically accounts for the largest portion of gaming's carbon impact, with emissions from manufacturing and energy consumption being the main factors. While emissions from game development are small, they are not negligible.

Despite the progress made, challenges remain, particularly in the area of Category 11. These include uncertainty about whether the use of gaming software should be considered direct or indirect emissions. The report notes that there is still a lack of consensus on this issue, but recommends that companies apply the principle of relevance.

Action Guide for Players

While studios are primarily responsible for the carbon footprint of games, the report also focuses on gamers, who have the opportunity to get involved in the solution. Players can contribute, for example: by checking system settings (by activating energy-saving modes), considering refurbished devices (which have a reduced carbon footprint) and an informed choice between physical and digital distribution. In addition, it is important choose the right hardware and display for gaming settings to reduce unnecessary power consumption.

For the future, P4P plans to commission the development of this study based on new calculator range 3 for the gaming industry to help reduce its carbon footprint. The entire industry has a unique opportunity to inspire action, create innovative solutions, and mobilize a generation of gamers in the fight against climate change. JRi