The premium games market for PC and consoles saw a significant 5% year-over-year revenue increase in the first half of 2026, reaching approximately $13.8 billion. This data comes from a new report titled “Deep Dive into PC & Console Premium Games Market” released by Sensor Tower.
Revenue Growth and Seasonal Trends
Across the PlayStation, Steam, and Xbox platforms, the combined revenue for premium (buy-to-play) games in the first half of 2026 totaled around $13.8 billion. This marks a healthy rise from the approximately $13.1 billion generated during the same period in 2025. The revenue was evenly split across the two quarters, with both Q1 and Q2 of 2026 bringing in roughly $6.9 billion each. The report also highlights the persistent seasonal nature of the market, with a peak in revenue typically occurring in Q4 of the preceding year, followed by a moderation in the first half of the following year.
Gaming Time Trends on Steam
On Steam, the total playtime for premium games experienced a substantial boost, growing by approximately 13% in the first half of 2026 compared to the previous year. Within this growth, the genre distribution saw notable shifts:
- Action games continued to dominate and showed the fastest growth, with a 28% increase in playtime.
- Strategy games followed closely, demonstrating a robust growth of about 24%.
- Shooter games exhibited slower growth at around 14%. Despite this, they still represent a smaller portion of total premium game playtime, though it’s worth noting that shooters are the most played genre among free-to-play titles on Steam.
- Role-playing games (RPGs) saw a decrease in playtime, down by approximately 14%.
- Simulation games experienced only modest growth.
- Sports and racing games registered more significant gains, particularly in the second quarter of 2026.
Social Media Advertising Landscape
The report also shed light on the advertising strategies of PC and console game publishers in the United States. Social media ad spending remains highly concentrated, with Meta’s platforms, Instagram and Facebook, collectively accounting for over half of the total expenditure. YouTube secured the second position, capturing just under a quarter of the market share. Together, Meta and YouTube represent approximately 76% of the ad spend. When TikTok is included, these four major platforms account for over 91% of the total.
Reddit, however, presented a distinct difference in ad spending patterns compared to mobile games. Its share in PC and console game social media advertising was nearly 5%, significantly higher than its proportion in mobile game advertising spend.
‘GTA 6’ Pre-Order Surge Driven by Netflix Preview
A compelling case study highlighted in the report involves the pre-order performance of Grand Theft Auto 6. Throughout most of August 2026, the game’s daily pre-order revenue on PlayStation and Xbox platforms hovered between $2.4 million and $3.8 million. However, the day after Netflix aired the game’s preview video, “An Extended Look,” pre-order revenue dramatically surged to $16.3 million – approximately six times the previous daily average.
PlayStation was the primary driver of this surge, contributing $12.9 million, while Xbox accounted for $3.4 million. Notably, the impact of this major media exposure extended beyond the single day of peak revenue. Two weeks later, daily pre-order revenue remained strong at around $5.9 million, nearly double the typical August figures, underscoring the lasting effect of significant media attention.
