PwC: GTA VI delay caused $2.7B impact on the US market in 2025
Market will reach $87.4B by 2029
General numbers on the US market
At the end of 2024, PwC estimates the market at $62.8B. That’s 3.6% growth after a 2.8% decline in 2023.
With a forecast of $87.4B by 2029, the US market’s five-year CAGR is projected at 6.8%.
The US market is expected to grow by 11.5% in 2026. It’s clear that the GTA VI factor is included. PwC analysts expect the game to retail for $100 (I doubt).
PwC forecasts growth for nearly every market segment between 2024 and 2029. Two segments in the negative: Browser casual games (-7.9% CAGR) and boxed PC game sales (-48% CAGR).
Strongest growth expected for in-game mobile ads — from $19.4B in 2024 to $35.2B in 2029 (CAGR 12.7%).
PwC analysts believe the growth potential for PC/console segments is limited and cannibalized by subscription services. The main potential is in ad revenue expansion.
In-game ad CAGR through 2029 is three times that of in-game purchases.
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PwC notes that social and casual games in the US earned $37.5B in 2024, over 60% of total revenue. Segment projected to grow to $57.2B by 2029 (CAGR 8.8%) with market share rising to 66%. This includes Roblox, MONOPOLY GO!, Candy Crush Saga, and others.
❗️By PwC methodology, all mobile games are included in “social and casual”.
Global games market estimated at $187.7B for 2024. Half of this is mobile revenue.
PC and Console Market
PC/console market in the US is estimated at $23.1B for 2024, it’s the largest traditional games market worldwide. Expected to reach $27.7B by 2029 (CAGR 3.7%).
The console market decreased by 3% in 2024, mainly due to lower sales. In-game transactions for 2024 hit $11B, 63.4% of all console revenue.
Delaying GTA VI to 2025 is estimated to have a $2.7B impact and 700K fewer PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series S|X sold. The game is expected to generate $3B in its first release year.
The US PC market generated $5.7B in 2024. Forecast: $6.6B by 2029 (CAGR 2.9%). Both full game sales and in-game transactions are growing; the latter accounts for 85% of total segment revenue.
The US subscription market is $6.6B. Expected to hit $9.9B by 2029 (CAGR 8.4%). There are over 60M Xbox Game Pass, PlayStation Plus, and Apple Arcade owners in the US, projected to grow by 2029.
US Esports
US esports market is comparatively small — $523M. No explosive growth expected, with a projection of $689M by 2029 (CAGR 5.7%).
The US is the world’s #2 esports market after China. Despite most discipline creators being US-based (Riot Games, Valve, Activision Blizzard), PwC expects the gap to widen.
US esports sponsorships valued at $189M in 2024. Only modest growth forecast to $225M by 2029.
While sponsorship numbers are modest, the market for selling competition rights is growing. In 2024, this was $166M, forecast to reach $233M by 2029. With a CAGR of 7%, this revenue stream is set to overtake sponsorships in 2028.
Interest in events is also there. Ticket sales market is expected to grow from $38M in 2024 to $57M by 2029 (+8.4% CAGR).