Global data firm Newzoo has published its year-in-review report for January to November 2025 for the global video games market, a year marked by the release of the Nintendo Switch 2, and engagement-driven growth on PC, beating out consoles and mobile.
After yesterday's news from Circana outlining how November 2025 was one of the worst months for US physical game sales and hardware sales in 30 years, Newzoo's report on the global industry is a reminder that, at least on the consumer side, things are still trending in a positive direction. Issues like tariffs, the rising cost of living, and now memory shortages could have more of an impact in 2026, but as of the end of 2025, Newzoo expects the global games market to rise 7.5% compared to 2024 when all the 2025 numbers are tallied.
That's an increase to $197 billion, with mobile games expected to grow to $108 billion (a 7.7% increase), console gaming expected to hit $45 billion (a 4.2% increase), and PC gaming expected to grow to $43 billion (a 10.4% increase). The PC and mobile growth is what exceeded Newzoo's expectations, and the key drivers behind the expected growth getting to just shy of $200B, though, if growth continues in the way Newzoo predicts, the industry will be far past $200B by next year.
While Newzoo expects mobile to remain strong due to its stock of ol'reliable titles from publishers like Tencent and Century Games and the momentum perpetuated by new hits, much like how the console industry is kept up by the routine and habits of console gamers going back to major franchises each year, growth on PC is a bit more interesting.
That's exemplified in the top 10 games on PC by revenue for the year. Some of the games are major franchises, but none of them are free-to-play titles, and all of them are games that were released in 2025. "The 2025 outcome reflects players spending more deeply within games and ecosystems they already value, rather than growth being driven by a sudden expansion of the player base," said principal market analyst, Michiel Buijsman.
Two of the top 10 are indie titles, and three of the top 10 are brand new games not based on a pre-existing franchise on PC, which Newzoo says is "reflecting a broad appetite for varied experiences" and "PC's relative openness to new IP and system-driven design." It's also further signs that, while console games may take centre stage more often as far as what hits the mainstream, PC is still where the core industry is.
On console, the top 10 does clear one of the same bars that the PC list clears, which is that they're all games released in 2025, but none of them are indie titles or new franchises. They're all major franchises, and half the list are even annual releases.
EA is the winningest publisher with nearly half the list in its portfolio, though perhaps the most impressive inclusion is Pokemon Legends Z-A, which made it despite only being available on one platform.
Both of those lists are tallied by revenue, whereas the engagement lists (tallied by monthy active users) for PC and console are a different story. Only one of the titles in the top 10 on PC isn't based on a pre-existing franchise, while all of the games on the console list for the top 10 games by MAUs are major franchises.
As a side note, the top 10 console games by MAUs is in fact the only list in Newzoo's report where Call of Duty: Black Ops 7 makes the top 10. Battlefield 6 is still in that top 10, and made it on every the revenue and MAU list for both PC and consoles. It's still early of course, but at this point it feels safe to call it: Battlefield beat Call of Duty in 2025, and there's practically no question about it.
Lastly, the final key points from Newzoo's report, as it looks back at 2025 and towards the future to 2026, is that indie games were a huge factor in this year's industry conversation, largely due to successes like Clair Obscur: Expedition 33, which capped off its stellar year by winning a record number of awards at The Game Awards, including Game of the Year.
And as we look ahead, 2025's most significant moves, like EA moving to privatize and Ubisoft's opening of Vantage Studios mean that the industry is going through a massive shift. "The EA deal reflects a broader structual shift toward ownership concentration and tighter portfolio management," said Manu Rosier, director of market intelligence at Newzoo.
"A smaller number of companies now control a larger share of the industry's most influential IP, while platforms increasingly shape which games are funded, distributed, and scaled."
About the author: David has been writing about videogames, technology, and culture since 2020, with a focus on reporting daily news across multiple publications, including GameDaily.Biz, GameSkinny, and PlayStation Universe before joining Wccftech in 2025. David started contributing as Canada/US reporter for Wccftech's gaming section in 2025. Besides being up-to-date on the industry's movements, he loves interviewing developers, reviewing games, and writing intricate essays about the symbolism and layered meanings to be found in rich narratives as he's done for publications like GamesIndustry.Biz, LostInCult, and others. Outside of games he loves movies, music, theatre, his hometown, and his family, though not necessarily in that order.
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