2K global president Christoph Hartmann has told MCV that he believes the games industry’s progress will not be halted by the current economic slowdown.

In our exclusive interview, Hartmann said that if young people could “still afford to spend £500 to go crazy in Ibiza”, games would not be high on their list of things to cut out as they tightened their belts.

He told MCV:

“Traditionally, when the economy does badly, the entertainment market grows. I don’t see why it should be any different this time. The recession is coming, but it’s not only about the sad situation of people worrying if they can pay their mortgage – it’s people wondering if they can still afford to spend £500 to go crazy in Ibiza twice a year.

“People spend less than a tenth of that on a video game that will last for hours in their own home. Cost-wise for a decent amount of hours of entertainment, it’s cheap. Brutally cheap. The recession shouldn’t have too much of an impact.”