According to Newzoo’s upcoming Global Games Market Report, the worldwide video‑game sector is on track to expand by roughly 6.1 percent in 2026, pushing total revenue to an estimated $213.9 billion. More than half of that spending is expected to come from two powerhouses—China and the United States—underscoring the continued dominance of these markets in shaping industry trends.
The report, which will be released in full on September 10, breaks down the forecast by platform and business model, offering a granular view of where growth is coming from and what developers can expect in the near future. Console hardware and software sales, for instance, are projected to generate $46.9 billion, representing about 22 percent of the total market and marking a 5.1 percent year‑on‑year increase. A key driver behind this uptick is the highly anticipated November launch of Rockstar Games’ Grand Theft Auto VI.
Newzoo predicts that the new title will lift full‑game spending by 17.5 percent, a surge that the firm describes as the strongest growth among all business models currently in play. Mobile gaming remains the largest segment, accounting for an estimated 57 percent of global revenue—roughly $121.1 billion. This share is expected to grow by 6.8 percent compared with the previous year, fueled by higher average spend per player and the rapid expansion of direct‑to‑consumer (D2C) distribution channels.
A recent survey conducted by FastSpring and Omdia revealed that 96 percent of game studios either already run a D2C storefront or have plans to do so. Studios cite benefits such as heightened brand visibility, stronger player loyalty, and richer first‑party data as primary motivations for embracing this model.
In contrast, the PC platform is forecast to hold the smallest slice of the pie, with revenues projected at $45.9 billion or 21 percent of the total market. While still growing—Newzoo expects a 5.3 percent increase year over year—PC growth is set to decelerate from the 12 percent compound annual growth rate (CAGR) that the firm had projected for 2025.
Nevertheless, the growth that does occur is expected to be geographically diverse, driven largely by emerging markets across the Asia‑Pacific region, Latin America, and the Middle East‑Africa (MEA) corridor. When it comes to business models, premium and mid‑priced game releases are anticipated to continue sustaining full‑game revenue streams. At the same time, microtransactions are projected to reclaim their position as the largest source of income across all platforms, reflecting a broader industry shift back toward in‑game purchases after a period of relative stagnation. Player base dynamics also feature prominently in Newzoo’s outlook.
The total number of gamers worldwide is expected to rise to 4.07 billion by 2029, but the growth rate will slow. While 2026 should see a 4.4 percent increase in player numbers year over year, the compound annual growth rate from 2026 through 2029 is projected to settle at 3.2 percent. This slowdown suggests that future expansion will rely more on deepening engagement with existing players rather than attracting large numbers of new entrants.
Regional analysis highlights that growth is increasingly concentrated in emerging economies. The Asia‑Pacific region remains the largest market by revenue, while the Middle East and Africa are the fastest‑growing areas, indicating that developers and publishers should pay close attention to localization, payment infrastructure, and culturally relevant content for these audiences. In terms of player distribution by platform, mobile gamers are expected to number 3.10 billion in 2026, making up roughly 84 percent of the total gaming population.
Console players are projected at 651 million (about 18 percent), and PC gamers at 977 million, representing 26 percent of the overall base. These figures illustrate the continued dominance of mobile as the primary gateway to gaming for the majority of the world’s population. Penetration rates—defined as the proportion of the global online population that engages in gaming—are predicted to edge up slightly from 61.5 percent to 62 percent in 2026. Newzoo notes that there is limited headroom for dramatic increases in penetration; instead, growth will stem from the overall expansion of the online population, which is expected to rise by 3.5 percent to reach 5.97 billion individuals.
Overall, Newzoo’s forecast paints a picture of a maturing industry where incremental revenue gains are increasingly tied to monetising existing users, leveraging D2C channels, and capitalising on high‑impact releases such as Grand Theft Auto VI. Companies that can adapt to these trends—by enhancing player retention strategies, expanding microtransaction ecosystems, and tailoring experiences to fast‑growing regions—are likely to capture the lion’s share of the $213.9 billion market that lies ahead.