Gacha games might not be everyone’s cup of tea, but there’s no denying their popularity. In recent years, the concept of the free-to-play gacha game has skyrocketed, and we’re seeing more surface every year, with an increasing cadence.
In a recent report from Newzoo, it was highlighted that F2P gacha games are driving insane growth on PC. From 2021 to 2025, gacha playtime grew by more than 92%, equaling an addition of almost one billion hours played. On consoles, the growth isn’t as strong, but it’s still there, and it’s becoming the next big thing.
Gacha Gotcha
Newzoo’s new specialized report on the growth of free-to-play gacha games tells a seriously strong story. The team stressed that these games are ‘capturing a growing share of player attention’, and in 2025, the number of major gacha titles on PC and console peaked, showing rampant growth over the last few years.
In 2021, only three major gacha games existed in the numbers. In 2025, there were seventeen major gacha games being looked at.
The team at Newzoo wrote:
As more major gacha titles reach PC and console, F2P is shifting away from titles built on competitive gameplay, which require thousands of hours to master and reward optional cosmetic spend. Instead, newer games increasingly use progression systems tied to characters, weapons, and upgrades, with drip-fed rewards linked directly to player spending.
As I said, gacha isn’t everyone’s thing, but you absolutely cannot discount their pulling power.
In case you’re unfamiliar with the concept, here are some of the top games in the space:
- Genshin Impact
- Wuthering Waves
- Zenless Zone Zero
- Honkai: Star Rail
- Arknights
And there are more coming all the time. When I went to the Tokyo Game Show in September, I was exposed to just how feral some folks become when confronted with a gacha game. They have literal venues in and around Japan dedicated to the gacha monetization experience.
Newzoo pointed out that gacha RPGs have become the main area of free-to-play growth in the PC market, a sector that is storming ahead of the competition, effectively leaving console-based gaming standing in the dust.
Neither bucket can touch mobile gaming, of course, but that’s a topic for another day.
Have you ever given any time or money to a gacha game? Let us know which one you’ve played on the Insider Gaming Discord server.
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Grant has been gaming for 30+ years and in the industry for 10+. You'll probably find him playing a post-apocalyptic game or an extraction shooter somewhere.
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