Midia Be taught: Global games industry estimated to succeed in $236.9bn in 2025
The document emphasizes that due to the IMF’s projection of a global inflation rate of 4.2% this year, the “global gaming market is largely stagnant.”
The global gaming industry is anticipated to grow by 4.6% by 2026, reaching $236.9 billion and expected to climb to $280.1 billion by 2031.
This information comes from a recent report by Midia Research, which indicates that the International Monetary Fund has forecasted an inflation rate of 4.2% for the world economy in 2025, asserting that “the global gaming market is largely stagnant.”
Looking ahead, the firm projects that revenues will rise by 4.4% year-over-year to $203.2 billion in 2025. It notes that gains will stem from “several premium releases” this year and in 2026, including Grand Theft Auto 6 and “Switch 2 launch-window titles,” along with games like Monster Hunter Wilds and Assassin’s Creed Shadows. By 2031, gaming revenue is estimated to increase to $237 billion.
PC gaming is “expected to outperform other segments as we approach 2031,” projected to reach $44.5 billion in 2025 compared to $41.6 billion in 2024.
Console gaming is estimated to reach $47.9 billion this year, an increase from $45.1 billion last year, while mobile gaming is predicted to hit $110.9 billion in 2025, compared with $108.1 billion in 2024.
Hardware revenue is expected to rise by 8.4% year-over-year to $20.6 billion, fueled by the Switch 2 launch. This comes after a 19.9% decline in 2024 “as Xbox faced challenges due to its focus on services and off-platform revenues while the original Switch approached the end of its life cycle.” Hardware revenues are predicted to reach $24.6 billion by 2031.
According to Midia, a significant shift for the remainder of the decade is a renewed focus on premium titles following an “oversaturation of live-service games.” This indicates that in-game revenue is expected to drop to 67% by 2031.
The company anticipates that consoles will remain the most popular platform for premium games, commanding 60% of the market share compared to 38% for PC.
Regarding multi-game subscription services, the report notes that while revenues may experience a boost from price increases and the potential addition of ad-supported tiers, it has “reached maturity.”
Midia highlights that the addition of Call of Duty to Xbox Game Pass contributed to an overall 16% year-over-year increase in subscription service revenue, reaching $11.8 billion in 2024. It forecasts this figure to grow to $13.1 billion in 2025 and to $18.5 billion by 2031.
The number of global gamers is projected to increase to 3.27 billion by 2025, and ev