The global market for gaming software has been expanding at a steady compound annual growth rate of roughly 3 % over the last four years, and analysts expect this trajectory to continue for the next four-year period. Despite this healthy overall growth, player behavior reveals a striking preference for the familiar: about two‑thirds of gamers say 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 players across a variety of regions. The survey highlighted a widespread frustration with what respondents called the "unfocused middle" of the market – games that are overly generic, safe, and shallow, and therefore fail to capture attention.
To illustrate this point, the report contrasted the reception of two recent releases: *Baldur’s Gate 3* and *Concord*. *Baldur’s Gate 3* succeeded by aiming at a narrowly defined audience that craved deep role‑playing mechanics and narrative depth.
In contrast, *Concord* entered an already saturated hero‑shooter segment and struggled to persuade players who were accustomed to free‑to‑play models to spend a $40 price tag. This comparison underscores the value of targeting a specific player type rather than chasing a vague, mass‑market appeal. When Bain & Co examined public data on 100 titles launched since 2023, the numbers reinforced this conclusion. Focused games – those designed for a clearly articulated player persona – achieved commercial success in 83 % of cases, whereas unfocused titles managed to do so in only half of the instances.
Player preferences for game genres are also highly fragmented. When asked to choose between story‑driven adventures, open‑world sandbox experiences with user‑generated content, or multiplayer‑centric titles, no single category captured more than 26 % of votes.
About 20 % of respondents said their choice depends on mood or that they value the categories equally, while 17 % indicated they prefer other types of games or none of the listed options. The report identified two major forces reshaping the industry: rising player demand for deeper experiences and the rapid adoption of generative AI in development pipelines.
Younger gamers, in particular, are concentrating their playtime on a narrower set of platforms – with Roblox singled out as a burgeoning hub that has 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, but Bain & Co warns that technology alone does not mitigate risk. Without a well‑defined target audience, AI can simply amplify a misguided bet, "letting you scale the wrong bet faster." The firm predicts that the studios that will thrive in the coming years won’t necessarily be those with the deepest pockets or the most sophisticated AI stacks.
Instead, success will belong to teams that, early on, can articulate their ideal player in a single sentence and align every resource – from design to marketing – around that vision. Player sentiment toward AI in game creation has softened over the past twelve months. Forty‑two percent of surveyed gamers now feel more comfortable with AI’s role in the industry than they did a year ago, another 44 % feel unchanged, and fewer than one in seven respondents expressed increased discomfort.
Acceptance is especially high among younger players: 59 % of those aged 13‑17 reported greater comfort with AI this year, while 33 % said their view remained 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 & Co spokesperson noted. The firm also highlighted AI’s potential to deepen developers’ understanding of their audiences.
Emerging analytical tools can track engagement patterns, surface the elements that resonate most with a target segment, and create tighter feedback loops between creators and the community. These capabilities enable highly personalized experiences, from custom communications and targeted advertisements to bespoke in‑game content. Bain & Co’s research shows that such personalization drives higher spending, especially among teenage gamers. Eighty‑six percent of teenagers reported making at least one gaming‑related purchase each month, compared with just over half of players in their 50s, 36 % of those in their 60s, and 27 % of individuals in their 70s.
Gaming‑related expenditures encompass new game purchases, downloadable content, subscription services, and tips for streamers, but exclude hardware such as consoles or VR headsets. The study also found that nearly half of all gamers buy directly from developers’ online 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.
"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 of Bain & Co’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."