The worldwide market for gaming software has been expanding at a steady compound annual growth rate of roughly three percent over the last four years, and analysts expect that momentum to continue for at least another four‑year cycle. Despite this healthy macro trend, player behaviour remains heavily tilted toward the familiar: about two‑thirds of respondents said they gravitate toward existing franchises or sequels, while only one in five actively looks for brand‑new experiences. These insights come from Bain & Company’s latest annual Gaming Report, which gathered responses from more than 5,300 gamers across diverse regions and demographics. The survey uncovered a pronounced dissatisfaction with what the firm labels the "unfocused middle" of the market – games that are overly generic, safe, and shallow, and therefore fail to capture attention.
To illustrate the concept, Bain compared two recent releases. "Baldur’s Gate 3" succeeded by honing in on a narrowly defined audience that craved deep role‑playing mechanics and narrative richness.
In contrast, "Concord" entered a saturated hero‑shooter segment and struggled to persuade players already committed to free‑to‑play ecosystems to spend a full $40 on a premium title. The divergent outcomes underscore the advantage of targeting a specific player archetype.
When the researchers examined public data for 100 titles launched since 2023, they found that 83 % of games with a clear, focused positioning achieved commercial success, versus just 50 % of titles that took a broader, unfocused approach. This stark gap suggests that clarity of purpose is a stronger predictor of market performance than sheer budget size. Player preferences for genre and play style are also highly fragmented.
When asked to choose between story‑driven adventures, open‑world sandbox or user‑generated experiences, and multiplayer‑centric games, no single category attracted more than 26 % of respondents. About 20 % said their choice varies with mood or that they enjoy all categories equally, while 17 % selected "none of the above" or offered alternative categories.
The report also identified two overarching pressures reshaping the industry: escalating player expectations and the rapid adoption of generative AI technologies. Younger gamers, in particular, are concentrating their playtime on a limited set of platforms such as Roblox, which Bain describes as becoming "the centre of gravity for the entire gaming ecosystem" over the past five years. On the AI front, developers are leveraging generative tools to accelerate content creation, but Bain warns that without a well‑defined target audience, AI merely amplifies the speed of a misguided bet: "it lets you scale the wrong bet faster." The firm argues that the studios that will thrive in the coming years won’t necessarily be those with the deepest pockets or the most sophisticated AI pipelines. Instead, success will belong to teams that can articulate their ideal player in a single sentence and align every resource – from design to distribution – around that vision.
Player sentiment toward AI in game development has softened over the last twelve months. Forty‑two percent of surveyed gamers now feel more comfortable with AI usage than they did a year ago, another 44 % feel unchanged, and fewer than one in seven express increased discomfort. Acceptance is especially high among teens: 59 % of 13‑ to 17‑year‑olds report greater comfort with AI, while 33 % say their view remains the same.
Bain’s analysts interpret these numbers as a green light for studios hesitant about reputational risk: the window to adopt AI responsibly is open, particularly for the demographic that will shape the market over the next decade. Moreover, AI can serve as a powerful analytics engine, helping developers decode engagement patterns, surface the elements that resonate with a target cohort, and create tighter feedback loops between creators and communities.
Personalisation is another lever highlighted in the report. Tailored communications, targeted advertisements, and bespoke in‑game content can boost spending, especially among younger players.
Indeed, 86 % of teenagers reported spending money on gaming‑related activities each month, compared with just over half of players in their 50s, 36 % of those in their 60s, and 27 % of those in their 70s. These activities encompass purchases of new titles, downloadable content, subscriptions, and streamer tips, but exclude hardware such as consoles or VR headsets. Direct‑to‑developer sales are also on the rise. Nearly half of gamers said they bought something directly from a developer’s web store at least once in the past year, and 27 % did so repeatedly.
The trend is most pronounced among the youngest cohort: 40 % of 13‑ to 17‑year‑olds reported multiple direct purchases in the last twelve months. "The question for gaming executives is no longer solely about reaching more players. It's reaching the right players, in the right way, and getting more ownership over that relationship," said Anders Christofferson, global lead for Bain’s Video Game sector and partner in its Media & Entertainment practice. He added, "The studios pulling ahead are the ones that have made a deliberate choice about who they are building for and are aligning every resource behind that answer; AI, distribution, and personalisation alike."