Shooters or Sports: What's the Most Popular Gaming Genre?

The gaming industry continues to demonstrate significant global reach, with consumer engagement extending well beyond traditional console play into streaming and social media. This analysis examines current gaming trends, focusing on genre popularity and franchise preferences across different generations to help brands better understand and engage this diverse audience. The findings are based on consumer data collected in the third quarter of 2022.

Shooter games maintain their position as the most popular genre globally, with 57% of consumers reporting participation in the last 12 months, a trend that has persisted for five years. Action/adventure follows closely at 54%, while sports, racing, and puzzle/platform games round out the top five. While shooters dominate across most demographics, preferences shift by age: Gen Z and millennials favor shooters and action/adventure, whereas Gen X shows a notable preference for puzzle and platform games, driven by a primary motivation to relax or unwind.

Franchise popularity is led by Call of Duty and FIFA, both of which captured 21% of the market in the measured period. The success of these titles is attributed to strategic accessibility, such as the mobile expansion of Call of Duty and the consistent retail performance of the FIFA series. Other top-tier franchises include Minecraft, Mario, PUBG, and League of Legends. The data underscores that gamers are not a monolithic group; successful brand engagement requires a nuanced approach that accounts for varying generational motivations and platform habits, particularly the high prevalence of mobile gaming, which 81% of gamers utilize.