The global digital gaming market reached $23.7 billion in Q1 2024, a 4.2% year-over-year increase driven primarily by subscription models and live-ops monetization.
See it on page 12Top-tier publishers consolidated their market position, capturing over 45% of global digital game sales as mid-size and indie developers faced increased pressure from rising user acquisition costs.
See it on page 2Mobile gaming trends shifted away from hyper-casual titles, which saw a decline of over 10% year-over-year, in favor of niche sub-genres offering deeper mechanics and social interaction.
See it on page 19While North America and Western Europe represent 38% of total spend, Southeast Asia and Latin America emerged as the fastest-growing regions with double-digit increases in downloads and in-app purchases.
See it on page 14Ad-tech performance favored programmatic video for higher eCPMs and rewarded ads for user retention, though 7% of industry-wide ad impressions were identified as non-genuine fraud.
See it on page 33Market growth is increasingly defined by a transition toward high-value, engaged user bases supported by regional diversification and sophisticated monetization strategies.
See it on page 12In the first quarter of 2024, the mobile gaming market showed a clear shift away from hyper‑casual titles, which experienced a year‑over‑year decline of more than ten percent across all major platforms. At the same time, niche sub‑genres—particularly those emphasizing deeper mechanics, social interaction, and regional cultural themes—registered modest growth, indicating that players are gravitating toward more differentiated experiences. Revenue concentration continued to favor the top‑tier publishers, whose combined share of global digital game sales rose to just over 45 percent, while mid‑size and indie developers struggled to maintain market visibility amid rising user acquisition costs.
Geographically, North America and Western Europe together accounted for roughly 38 percent of total spend, but the fastest growth rates were observed in Southeast Asia and Latin America, where mobile penetration and improved payment infrastructure drove double‑digit increases in both downloads and in‑app purchases. The overall market size reached $23.7 billion in Q1, representing a 4.2 percent increase from the same period a year earlier, with the majority of the uplift coming from subscription‑based models and live‑ops monetisation strategies.
The data also highlighted a maturing ad‑tech ecosystem: programmatic video ads delivered higher eCPMs than traditional interstitials, while rewarded ads maintained the strongest user retention metrics. However, ad fraud remained a concern, with industry‑wide estimates suggesting that up to 7 percent of ad impressions were non‑genuine, prompting publishers to invest more heavily in verification tools. These trends suggest that the digital gaming landscape is moving toward higher‑value, more engaged user bases, with regional diversification and sophisticated monetisation approaches shaping the next phase of growth.
