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 at least another four‑year period. Despite this overall growth, the habits of players reveal a striking reluctance to explore unfamiliar experiences. According to Bain & Company’s latest annual Gaming Report – which gathered responses from more than 5,300 gamers across a range of regions – about two‑thirds of players gravitate toward titles they already know, such as sequels or established franchises, while only one in five actively seeks out brand‑new releases.
Survey participants also voiced a common frustration with what the firm calls the "unfocused middle" of the market. This term describes games that play it safe, offering generic mechanics and shallow narratives that fail to distinguish themselves from the crowd. To illustrate the impact of focus, Bain & Co contrasted the reception of two recent releases.
"Baldur’s Gate 3" succeeded by aiming at a narrowly defined audience of role‑playing enthusiasts, delivering deep storylines and complex gameplay that resonated strongly with that segment. By contrast, "Concord" entered an already saturated hero‑shooter space and struggled to persuade players who were accustomed to free‑to‑play models to spend a full $40 on the game, resulting in a lukewarm commercial performance. When the researchers examined public data for a sample of 100 titles launched since 2023, the numbers reinforced the importance of targeting.
Focused games – those designed for a specific player archetype – achieved commercial success in 83 % of cases, whereas unfocused, broadly aimed titles succeeded only half the time. The data suggests that a clear, well‑defined player persona is a far more reliable predictor of financial results than a generic, mass‑appeal approach.
Player preferences for genre also appear highly fragmented. When asked to choose between story‑driven adventures, open‑world sandbox experiences with user‑generated content, or competitive multiplayer modes, no single category attracted more than 26 % of respondents. About 20 % indicated that their preference shifts depending on mood or that they treat the three categories as roughly equal, while 17 % selected "none of the above" or mentioned other types of games altogether.
This dispersion underscores the difficulty of catering to a monolithic audience. The report identified two major forces reshaping the industry: escalating player demand and the rapid adoption of generative AI. Younger gamers, in particular, are concentrating their playtime on a limited set of platforms such as Roblox.
Bain & Co describes Roblox as having become "the centre of gravity for the entire gaming ecosystem" over the past five years, pulling a disproportionate share of attention and spending. On the AI front, developers are increasingly leveraging generative tools to accelerate production pipelines.
However, the firm warns that AI alone does not mitigate risk unless the underlying game concept is sharply targeted. "It lets you scale the wrong bet faster," the report notes. The analysts argue that the studios that will thrive in the coming years will not necessarily be those with the deepest pockets or the most sophisticated AI stacks, but rather those that can articulate their ideal player in a single, concise sentence and commit to serving that audience early on. Player sentiment toward AI in game creation has improved over the past twelve months.
Forty‑two percent of respondents said they feel more comfortable with AI use in the industry than a year ago, another 44 % said their comfort level remained unchanged, and fewer than one in seven expressed increased discomfort. The shift is especially pronounced among teenagers: 59 % of players aged 13‑17 reported greater comfort with AI this year, while 33 % said their view stayed the same.
Bain & Co interprets these findings as a green light for studios hesitant about reputational risk. "The window to move is open, particularly with the audiences who will define the market over the next decade," said a senior partner.
The report also highlights how AI can deepen developers’ understanding of their audience. 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 players. Such insights enable highly personalized experiences – from custom communications and targeted advertisements to bespoke in‑game content. The study found that 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. These activities include buying new titles, purchasing downloadable content, subscribing to services, and tipping streamers, but they exclude hardware purchases like consoles or VR headsets. Direct purchases from developers’ own web stores also feature prominently.
Nearly half of all gamers said they buy directly from a developer at least once a year, and 27 % do so repeatedly. The behavior is most common among the youngest cohort: 40 % of players aged 13‑17 reported making multiple direct purchases in the past twelve months. Anders Christofferson, global lead for Bain & Co’s Video Game practice and partner in the Media & Entertainment group, 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 that are pulling ahead are those that have made a deliberate decision about who they are building for and have aligned every resource – from AI tools to distribution channels to personalization tactics – behind that singular focus.