Newzoo has once again revised its 2024 report - it's final now
The new adjustment is better than the last one, but still worse than the initial projections.
Newzoo released a forecast adjustment in March this year, and since then, the outlook for the market has improved.
2024 Updated Results
After all revisions, Newzoo’s final figure for 2024 is $182.7 billion (+3.2% YoY). The initial projection was $184.3 billion, later adjusted down to $177.9 billion. The final forecast is lower than the original expectation but higher than the Q1’25 revision.
The strongest growth came from mobile games, up 5.5% YoY to $100.3 billion. The increase was driven by the US and European markets, as well as a 3.1% rise in China’s mobile market.
PC is the second-fastest growing segment, up 4.4% YoY to $39 billion, helped by Steam’s growth in China.
The console market in 2024 is estimated at $43.5 billion, down 2.5% YoY.
The active VR device user base reached 28.6 million by year-end, but game spending dropped 3.6% to $1 billion.
Across Newzoo’s tracked markets, user time spent in games grew 6% in 2024.
The Chinese market grew 5.6% YoY in 2024, driven by PC revenue growth, Blizzard’s return, increased console popularity, and mobile segment gains.
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Forecast to 2027
Newzoo projects that the 2025 games market will reach $188.9 billion.
The market is expected to grow at a 3.3% average annual rate through 2027.
By 2027, the market is expected to reach $200 billion.
PC market growth is forecast at 3% per year, supported by rising popularity in Southeast Asia and Japan, a growing user base, higher game prices, and increased engagement from Gen Z and Alpha players.
The console market outlook is more optimistic. Newzoo analysts expect 5.6% annual growth from 2024 to 2027, driven by the Nintendo Switch 2 launch, GTA VI release, rising game prices, and more premium monetization releases.
Mobile is expected to grow 2.4% per year through 2027, supported by regulatory changes, D2C growth, higher publisher margins, and greater reinvestment opportunities.