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 this trajectory to continue for the next four-year period. Despite this overall growth, the habits of players reveal a strong preference for the familiar: about two‑thirds of gamers gravitate toward established franchises or sequels, while only one in five actively looks for brand‑new experiences.
These insights come from Bain & Company’s annual Gaming Report, which gathered responses from more than 5,300 players across the globe. The survey highlighted a widespread frustration with what respondents termed the "unfocused middle" of the market—games that feel overly generic, safe, and shallow, and therefore fail to capture attention. To illustrate this phenomenon, Bain compared two recent releases: Baldur’s Gate 3 and Concord.
Baldur’s Gate 3 succeeded by honing in on a narrowly defined audience, delivering a deep, narrative‑driven experience that resonated with fans of the series and role‑playing enthusiasts. In contrast, Concord entered a saturated hero‑shooter segment and struggled to persuade players who were already committed to free‑to‑play ecosystems to spend the full $40 price tag.
This case study underscores a broader pattern identified by Bain: when developers concentrate on a specific player type, the odds of commercial success rise dramatically. Analyzing public data on 100 titles launched since 2023, Bain found that 83 % of games with a clear, focused target audience achieved commercial success, compared with just 50 % of titles that lacked a defined focus.
This disparity suggests that clarity of purpose is a more decisive factor than budget size or production polish. Player preferences for genre also appear fragmented.
When asked which type of experience they favored—story‑driven adventures, open‑world sandbox or user‑generated content, or multiplayer competition—no single category captured more than 26 % of votes. About 20 % of respondents said their choice varied depending on mood or that they enjoyed all categories equally, while 17 % indicated they preferred other or niche genres. The report also identified two major forces reshaping the industry: escalating player expectations and the rapid adoption of generative AI. Younger gamers, in particular, are concentrating their playtime on a smaller set of platforms, with Roblox emerging as a central hub that now anchors much of the gaming ecosystem.
Bain describes Roblox 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 a misguided bet: "it lets you scale the wrong bet faster." The firm predicts 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 those that can articulate their ideal player in a single sentence and align all resources—AI, distribution, personalization—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 teenagers: 59 % of respondents aged 13‑17 report greater comfort with AI, while 33 % say their opinion remains the same. Bain’s analysts interpret these findings as a green light for studios hesitant about reputational risk: "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." Beyond risk mitigation, AI offers powerful tools for deeper player insight. Emerging analytics platforms can dissect engagement patterns, surface what resonates with specific demographics, and create tighter feedback loops between developers and their communities.
This capability enables highly personalized experiences—customized communications, targeted advertisements, and bespoke in‑game content—that have been shown to boost spending, especially among younger audiences. Indeed, spending habits differ markedly by age. Eighty‑six percent of teenagers report 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 purchases from developers’ own web stores also feature prominently. Nearly half of gamers buy directly from a developer at least once a year, and 27 % do so repeatedly.
The trend is strongest among the youngest cohort: 40 % of 13‑ to 17‑year‑olds reported multiple direct purchases in the past year. Anders Christofferson, global lead for Bain’s Video Game sector and partner in the Media & Entertainment practice, 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, "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 personalization alike."