New Zealand's video game industry is soaring.

Figures just released by the Interactive Games and Entertainment Association show an 18% jump in the industry's value last year, to $347 million.

The traditional channels - games on discs, sold in retails stores - have softened slightly, by 2%.

That hasn't stopped the consoles though, with sales of hardware up almost a quarter following the launch of the PlayStation 4 and the Xbox One last year.

And the softening in retail sales has been more than offset by a 34% jump in digital sales.

Subscription mobile games have led the charge, as more Kiwis spend their downtime on the smaller screens.

Association director Mark Goodacre says the trends are positive.

“New major console releases and an ongoing shift towards digital sales clearly show New Zealanders continue to be avid consumers of games across a wide variety of platforms."

He says the strong overall growth highlights the fact Kiwis are exploring the new and varying ways to purchase games.

"New Zealanders are also embracing the new and complimentary ways to play games on mobile and tablet devices."