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- A Newzoo report reveals that RPG is the most successful genre in terms of generated revenue worldwide.
- The list is followed by the shooter and strategy genres, with battle royale coming in fourth spot.
- Shooter is the dominant genre in North America, specifically, with sports taking over the European genre instead.
Many video game genres have emerged over the decades, but a dozen or so have cemented themselves as the most prevalent and recognizable across the scene. A select few of these categories have also been the most successful in terms of revenue and longevity.
As one may have guessed, RPG is the most revenue-generating genre worldwide in 2025, with the genre boasting a slew of established franchises and some new heavy-hitters like Kingdom Come Deliverance 2, Baldur’s Gate 3, and Clair Obscur: Expedition 33.
Why it matters: While some video game genres have fizzled out over the years, some of them have proven pretty lucrative because of the established franchises and innovative releases over the years.
As per the new Newzoo report, the second and third spots for the most lucrative genres are held by shooters and strategy. Both these genres have had a strong presence since the early gaming era.
The Call of Duty and Battlefield franchises have done a lot of heavy lifting to push the FPS genre to the second place. Meanwhile, the strategy genre is dominated by the likes of Age of Empires and Civilization.
And despite the massive impact of Fortnite and PUBG, the live-service battle royale genre is only at the fourth spot this year, with the puzzle genre coming in last place. Puzzle games have dominated the mobile gaming space and are popular among certain demographics.
Certain regions also have a liking for different genres, with shooters dominating North America, specifically, and sports being the most lucrative in Europe instead.
The Newzoo report also reveals that Europe and North America boasted only 20% of gamers but nearly half of the entire global gaming spend this year.
Do you think RPG will continue to hold the dominion over the gaming industry as the most revenue-generating genre in the next decade, or will it be inevitably surpassed? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below, or join the discussion on the Tech4Gamers forum.
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Shameer Sarfaraz has previously worked for eXputer as a Senior News Writer for several years. Now with Tech4Gamers, he loves to devoutly keep up with the latest gaming and entertainment industries. He has a Bachelor’s Degree in Computer Science and years of experience reporting on games. Besides his passion for breaking news stories, Shahmeer loves spending his leisure time farming away in Stardew Valley. VGC, IGN, GameSpot, Game Rant, TheGamer, GamingBolt, The Verge, NME, Metro, Dot Esports, GameByte, Kotaku Australia, PC Gamer, and more have cited his articles.
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