The global market for video‑game 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 another four‑year horizon. Despite this overall growth, player behaviour shows a strong preference for the familiar: about two‑thirds of gamers say they gravitate toward sequels or titles they already know, while only around 20 % actively seek out brand‑new experiences. These insights come from Bain & Company’s latest annual Gaming Report, which gathered responses from more than 5,300 players across a wide range of regions and demographics.
The survey revealed a common frustration with what respondents dubbed the “unfocused middle” of the market – games that feel overly generic, safe, and shallow, and therefore fail to capture attention. To illustrate the point, the report contrasted two recent releases. Baldur’s Gate 3 succeeded by honing in on a narrowly defined audience that was passionate about deep, narrative‑driven role‑playing.
In contrast, Concord entered a saturated hero‑shooter space and struggled to persuade gamers who were already committed to free‑to‑play ecosystems to spend the full $40 price tag. The comparison underscores a broader pattern identified by Bain: when developers target a specific player archetype, the odds of commercial success rise dramatically. Analyzing public data for 100 titles launched since 2023, Bain found that 83 % of games with a clear, focused positioning achieved profitable outcomes, compared with just 50 % of titles that took a more generic, unfocused approach.
This stark gap suggests that precision in audience definition is becoming a decisive factor for revenue generation. 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 captured more than 26 % of votes.
About one‑fifth of respondents said their choice depends on mood or that the categories are roughly equal for them, while 17 % indicated they favor other or niche types of games. The report also highlighted two macro‑level pressures reshaping the industry: escalating demand from players and the rapid adoption of generative AI technologies.
Younger gamers, in particular, are concentrating their time on a relatively small set of platforms – Roblox is singled out as having become 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 production pipelines. However, Bain cautions that without a well‑defined target audience, AI can simply amplify the speed of a misguided bet: "it lets you scale the wrong bet faster." The firm predicts that the studios that will thrive in the coming years are not necessarily those with the deepest pockets or the most sophisticated AI stacks, but those that can articulate their ideal player in a single, concise sentence and commit to that vision earlier than their rivals.
Player sentiment toward AI in game creation has softened over the last twelve months. Forty‑two percent of surveyed gamers now feel more comfortable with AI’s role in development than they did a year ago, another 44 % are unchanged, and fewer than one in seven have grown more uneasy. The shift is especially pronounced among teenagers: 59 % of players aged 13‑17 report increased comfort with AI, while 33 % say their opinion remains the same.
"For studios worried that AI adoption carries reputational risk with their player base, this data suggests the window to move is open, particularly with the audiences who will define the market over the next decade," a Bain spokesperson noted. The firm also points out that AI can deepen developers’ understanding of their audiences. Emerging analytics tools can dissect engagement patterns, surface the elements that resonate most with a target segment, and create tighter feedback loops between creators and communities.
These capabilities enable highly personalized experiences, from bespoke marketing messages to tailored in‑game offers. Bain’s research shows that such personalization drives higher spending, especially among younger gamers.
Eighty‑six percent 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. Gaming‑related expenditures encompass purchases of new titles, downloadable content, subscriptions, and streamer tips, but exclude hardware such as consoles or VR headsets. Notably, almost half of all gamers buy directly from developers’ own web stores at least once a year, and 27 % do so repeatedly. This direct‑to‑consumer trend is strongest among the youngest cohort, with 40 % of 13‑ to 17‑year‑olds reporting multiple direct purchases in the past year.
Anders Christofferson, global lead for Bain’s Video Game practice and partner in its Media & Entertainment division, summed up the strategic implication: "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." He added that studios pulling ahead are those that have made a deliberate choice about who they are building for and have aligned every resource – from AI tools to distribution channels to personalization tactics – behind that singular focus.