Top Five Most-Played Games on PlayStation and Xbox in 2025 in the US Were the Same as in 2024

2025 was bursting with truly chill caller crippled releases: Clair Obscur: Expedition 33, Hollow Knight: Silksong, Death Stranding 2, Ghost of Yōtei, Blue Prince, Donkey Kong Bananza, I could spell on. And yet, it seems similar the immense bulk of players (at slightest successful the US) spent astir of their clip playing the aged hits connected repeat, due to the fact that the 5 astir fashionable games connected PlayStation past twelvemonth were precisely the aforesaid arsenic the twelvemonth before.

This comes from Circana expert Mat Piscatella, who shared connected Bluesky contiguous the apical 5 most-played games successful the US connected PlayStation for 2025:

1. Fortnite
2. Call of Duty
3. GTA V
4. Roblox
5. Minecraft

And for 2024:

1. Fortnite
2. Call of Duty
3. GTA V
4. Roblox
5. Minecraft

(They're the aforesaid picture.)

The layout is antithetic (I guess) connected Xbox, with Minecraft and Roblox flipped for 2025, and a somewhat much analyzable bid for 2024: Call of Duty astatine No. 1, past Fortnite, Minecraft, GTA V, Roblox. But uh, same 5 games.

It's a beauteous damning indictment of the existent authorities of the industry. As Piscatella said himself astir a twelvemonth agone connected the Kinda Funny Gamescast, this is simply a reasonably caller trend. As helium explains, the COVID-19 pandemic prompted a surge successful the video crippled audience, with immense numbers of radical playing games who ne'er had before. As a result, galore of the large gaming markets efficaciously reached a headdress connected however galore caller players they tin get successful aboriginal years, due to the fact that everyone was already there.

On apical of that, that capped assemblage is present playing a smaller fig of games overall. Some of that is conscionable due to the fact that games are getting much expensive. More radical are gravitating toward unrecorded work games they're already acquainted with wherever they tin walk smaller amounts of wealth for a amusive acquisition connected a level they already own, alternatively than walk larger amounts of wealth to effort caller things connected caller platforms.

But immoderate of that is simply a earthy effect of the emergence of unrecorded service. As Piscatella continues to explain, the mode the marketplace utilized to enactment is that players would bargain 1 large caller game, walk each their clip connected that, past determination onto the adjacent one. But radical conscionable aren't buying caller games anymore.

"If you instrumentality the apical 10 work games each month...on PlayStation and Xbox, 7 retired of each 10 radical that crook connected their console volition play astatine slightest 1 of those games each month, and successful presumption of full clip they're taking, those 10 games unsocial each period instrumentality up 40% of full playtime connected the consoles."

Piscatella besides shares that astatine the time, Circana expected 30% of radical that play video games would not bargain a video crippled successful 2025 (the existent numbers for the afloat twelvemonth haven't been released conscionable yet). A further 18% would acquisition a caller crippled each six months oregon little frequently. Only 12% bargain a crippled erstwhile a month, and 4% bargain caller games much often than that.

"So erstwhile we're talking astir the developers and publishers who are being wounded the most, are the games that are truly targeting this 16% of full players that are purchasing precise frequently, portion the immense bulk of players are buying a crippled oregon 2 a year, and they're playing Fornite, Minecraft, and Roblox."

The effect is that it's harder than ever for marque caller games to interruption through, which has been a large portion of the caller question of layoffs, workplace closures, task cancelations, and conscionable wide manufacture devasation that we've been reporting connected chiefly successful the US manufacture for the past mates of years.

Piscatella concluded that Kinda Funny presumption with a condemnation he's said to maine galore times, and continues to say: "The biggest rival to immoderate caller video crippled is Fortnite."

Circana is expected to merchandise its afloat study connected US video crippled income successful 2025 aboriginal this month.

Rebekah Valentine is simply a elder newsman for IGN. Got a communicative tip? Send it to [email protected].