Global Gaming Market Projected to Reach $197 Billion by 2025, Surpassing Initial Projections

The global gaming market is anticipated to experience a 7.5% growth, reaching $197 billion by 2025, thus exceeding earlier expectations set by Newzoo. A preliminary review of the industry's performance from January to November indicates that this increase is primarily attributed to the robust performance of PC and mobile gaming. PC gaming is expected to rise by 10.4% year-over-year to $43 billion, driven by a strong lineup of premium release titles that have outperformed last year's releases. Mobile gaming is forecast to generate $108 billion, marking a 7.7% year-over-year increase, with growth supported by both new and evergreen titles. In September, Newzoo predicted that the global gaming market would reach $188.8 billion, driven by the launch of the Nintendo Switch 2, higher software prices, and major console releases. However, the current prediction suggests that console gaming will experience the lowest revenue increase year-over-year at 4.2%, reaching $45 billion. Newzoo has also tracked the top-performing games of 2025 in terms of revenue and engagement. On PC, Battlefield 6 led the charge in terms of revenue, followed by Schedule 1 and Arc Raiders. All titles in the top 10 were premium games, with shooters being the dominant genre. On console, which combines data from PlayStation, Xbox, and Nintendo Switch, EA Sports FC 26 and NBA 2K26 took the top spots, followed by Battlefield 6. The first non-sports title in the top 10 was Assassin's Creed Shadows, followed by Ghost of Yōtei, Pokémon Legends: Z-A, and Borderlands 4. Electronic Arts had four titles in the top 10, thanks to a strong premium release strategy and a predictable release cycle for sports games on console. Newzoo noted that Pokémon Legends: Z-A's position on the chart highlights the importance of platform exclusivity in terms of revenue, despite being available on only Switch consoles. The data firm also provided insights into Sandfall Interactive's Clair Obscur: Expedition 33, which continues to have a significant impact on the industry following its success at The Game Awards. The game's monthly active users (MAU) share was 43% on Xbox, 42% on PlayStation, and 15% on PC. As a Day One release for Xbox Game Pass, Clair Obscur has become the platform's top third-party release of 2025, with a lifetime MAU of 5.13 million players and a monthly MAU of 643,000 on console. Newzoo observed that the game's continued growth in engagement rankings months after launch demonstrates how resonance, word-of-mouth, and discovery can drive long-term growth without immediate top-tier scale. In terms of overall MAU, only one 2025 title, Landfall Games and Aggro Crab's Peak, made it to the top 10 chart for engagement across all platforms, driven by a free-to-play extension that significantly expanded its reach post-launch.