The Gaming Market Is Flourishing: Studios Are Closing and Employees Are Losing Jobs, but the Industry Is Showing Outstanding Results

The analytics firm Sensor Tower has unveiled its annual “State of Gaming 2026” report, offering a deep dive into the industry’s current trajectory.

Despite a turbulent period marked by studio closures and widespread layoffs, the gaming market continues to expand. In 2025, total downloads across all platforms hit a staggering 52 billion. The mobile sector was particularly active, averaging 95,000 installs every minute, though revenue growth in this segment remained relatively flat, rising just 1% to reach $82 billion.

In contrast, the PC and console markets saw more dynamic growth, with revenues climbing by 13% and download numbers increasing by 7%. The volume of new software releases also rose by 8.4%, a trend largely driven by major publishers in the AA and AAA spaces.

Battlefield 6 claimed the title of the year’s best-selling game on PC and consoles. It was followed by the perennial sports favorites EA Sports FC 25 and EA Sports FC 26.

In the free-to-play category, Skate. led the pack as the most downloaded title. Other significant performers in the top charts included Marvel Rivals, Delta Force, and Deadlock.

The independent scene also saw major commercial success, with REPO and Peak emerging as the top-selling indie hits of the year.

Source: iXBT.games