Newzoo2025年PC与主机游戏调查报告英文版94页_12mb

2025 PC & Console Gaming Report Summary

This report outlines the state of the PC and console gaming market in 2024 and projections for 2025-2027, highlighting key trends in player engagement, monetization, and platform dynamics.

Market Outlook

• PC & Console Revenues: The PC market shows stable but low growth, with revenue increasing by 2.6% from 2024-2027. Console revenues, however, are expected to rebound due to Grand Theft Auto VI (GTA VI) and the Nintendo Switch 2, growing by 7.0% over the same period.
• Market Saturation: Post-pandemic, player growth has slowed, with competition for audience hours becoming zero-sum. AAA titles dominate playtime, while free-to-play (F2P) and premium models face challenges in sustaining engagement.
• Platform Differences: PC players skew toward older F2P titles (e.g., Roblox, Fortnite), while console players depend on launch lineups (e.g., Call of Duty, EA Sports FC).

Playtime Analysis

• Consolidation of Engagement: Top titles (e.g., Fortnite, Call of Duty, World of Warcraft) capture a majority of playtime across platforms. In 2024, Fortnite accounted for 5.7% of total playtime on Steam and 3.1% on consoles.
• Declining Diversity: Players engage with fewer games, with 30 titles representing ~90% of all playtime on platforms. This trend reduces addressable markets for new launches.
• F2P Challenges: While F2P titles generate significant short-term interest (e.g., Marvel Rivals), player churn remains high. AAA titles like Elden Ring and Diablo IV maintain stability.

How Many Games Do We Really Play?

• Platform-Specific Trends:
  • PC: 70% of playtime comes from titles aged 6+ years (e.g., Fortnite, Dota 2).
  • Console: New titles face difficulty competing with older franchises, but PlayStation shows growth in newer releases (e.g., Call of Duty and EA Sports FC 25).
• Market Shifts: F2P monetization is less impactful on consoles. Titles like Palworld and Black Myth: Wukong gain traction but struggle to maintain long-term engagement.

Recursive Nostalgia

• Definition: Reintroducing older content (maps, mechanics, or lore) to rekindle interest in live-service games.
• Case Studies:
  • Fortnite’s "OG" event (2023) boosted engagement by 19% for Season 5 but failed to sustain long-term growth.
  • World of Warcraft Classic (2019) attracted 10–50% of the game’s MAU, but sustained engagement depends on ongoing innovation and player retention strategies.
• Takeaway: Nostalgia alone is not enough; it must be integrated with future-focused content (e.g., LEGO Fortnite) to maintain player interest.

Steam Visibility

• Discovery Challenges: Discounting events (e.g., Steam Sales) drive less visibility to store pages, while off-platform traffic (social media, streaming) becomes critical.
• Traffic Sources:
  • Top games rely less on external channels (e.g., ads, promotions) and more on Steam’s internal discovery algorithms.
  • Launch discounts generate the highest traffic boost (52x impressions, 22x visits), but their effectiveness has declined due to oversaturation.
  • Themed events (e.g., Fighting Games Fest) outperform seasonal events in driving visibility.

Key Insights

• Monetization: F2P and P2P models dominate but require strong IP, gameplay, and market conditions for success.
• Genre Trends: Shooters remain popular on PC, while consoles see growth in Adventure and Role-Playing (RPG) genres. Battle Royale (e.g., Fortnite) dominates consoles but declines in popularity.
• Player Behavior:
  • Gaming demographics are shifting toward core titles, with Gen Z and Alpha players spending more time on fewer games.
  • Steam users engage with more diverse titles than consoles, but console players (particularly PlayStation) show higher retention for new releases.

Recommendations

• Publishers should prioritize product differentiation and originality over graphical fidelity.
• F2P games need sustainable content and community engagement to avoid churn.
• Console strategies should leverage AAA titles (e.g., GTA VI) and address player fatigue through improved discoverability and quality.
• Steam visibility requires a balance between internal algorithms and external marketing, with tailored approaches for mid-tier and indie titles.
• Recursive nostalgia should be part of a long-term strategy, not a one-off tactic, to retain players and attract new audiences.

The report emphasizes that the gaming market is increasingly competitive, with success hinging on innovation, player-centric design, and effective monetization. Newzoo’s data underscores the need for publishers to adapt to shifting trends and focus on quality, community, and strategic content to thrive in a saturated landscape.