According to Newzoo, many well-known live-service and long-lasting titles either remained unchanged or experienced a decline in the first half of 2026 year over year

In the initial half of 2026, live-service and evergreen games experienced no growth or a decrease from the previous year, as reported by Newzoo. Few games, such as World of Warcraft, Diablo 4, Overwatch, Roblox, and some Tencent global entries, saw any increase.

The release of PlayStation Plus is anticipated to aid growth for multi-game subscription models, though digital earnings fell in six Western markets. Newzoo explained that this drop was due to "weakness in free-to-play and annualized premium releases overshadowing robust new arrivals."

The console gaming sector is projected to grow by 3% this year, a significant increase from the nearly stagnant 0.5% in 2025, primarily fueled by the debut of Grand Theft Auto 6 and a revigorated PlayStation. Additionally, GTA 6 and Nintendo Switch 2's first-party titles are expected to enhance the user base for ninth-generation gaming consoles.

Nielsen IQ data recently indicated a 33% and 34% sales increase in PlayStation 5 and Xbox consoles in the UK, respectively, following the GTA 6 teaser release on Netflix.

According to Newzoo's Emmanuel Rosier, the absence of GTA 6 would mean stagnant console revenues compared to 2025.

Newzoo's assessment of the first quarter of 2026 identified the top ten publicly traded gaming firms, amassing $37.4 billion, a 6.7% rise. Tencent led this group with a 11.9% revenue increase to $10.8 million, followed by Sony at $5.2 million (a 0.9% decrease) and Microsoft at $5.1 million (down by 5.5%). Notably, Roblox enjoyed a 39.3% year-on-year growth reaching $1.4 million, taking the tenth spot.

Newzoo predicts the gaming market globally will generate $213.9 billion in 2026, marking an increase of 6.1% from the previous year. The Asia-Pacific region is set to produce nearly half of this revenue, estimated at $100.7 billion. Projections show China's market at $58.1 billion, with North America as the second-largest, reaching $56.9 billion, including the US at $53.5 billion.

In 2026, the number of players worldwide is expected to reach 3.7 billion, increasing by 4.4% from the previous year. The percentage of players who spend money on games is set to grow to 44.6%, a notable rise from 39.4% in 2015. The forecast for average revenue per paying user (ARPPU) is $129.6, marking a 1.4% year-over-year increase, a reflection of "greater expenditure within the existing user base," according to Newzoo.