A recent survey shows that the number of PC gamers continues to rise. It is also interesting to note which titles are being played. Most of them are not new releases.
What survey is it about? Newzoo is a market research company in the field of video games. Its director, Ben Porter, has provided PC Gamer with insights into the results of a study focusing on gaming on PC.
This makes it clear that the number of active players on PC is still increasing. While in 2023 around 873 million users played on their computers, that number will grow to 907 million in 2024.
Thus, the PC also surpasses the consoles, which together will only amount to “just” 653 million users in 2024.
Another exciting aspect of the study: Older titles are predominantly played, and most of them belong to a very specific category of games.
Who needs new games?
Which games are being played? Newzoo has determined that 92% of total gameplay time is spent on titles that are older than two years. In other words: New releases are played significantly less.
67% of the playtime is spent on titles that are even six or more years old. No wonder a trend from the past years is clearly emerging here. The keyword is: Live Service. That is, games that are designed to keep players engaged for a long time and that receive regular updates. The model is controversial and examples like Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League show that it can fail.
The top 5 games of the aforementioned 67% playtime are familiar titles:
- 7.1% of playtime is spent on Counter-Strike: Global Offensive/Counter-Strike 2
- 6.4% on League of Legends
- 6.2% on Roblox
- 5.8% on Dota 2
- 5.4% on Fortnite
Although CS: GO 2 was only released last year, since it is based on CS: GO, it still ranks 1st in the survey of titles that are at least six years old.
The numbers show that the Live Service model pays off in some cases. Fans remain loyal to their favorite games for years. New releases have a harder time and represent only 8% of playtime, making them a clear minority. What do you think about it? Do you prefer older games with a live service approach? Let us know in the comments. A developer has a clear opinion: The head of Palworld explains why his game won’t become a hated live service game
