A recent report published by Epyllion sums up the state of the games industry in more than two hundred pages. This gargantuan analysis examines everything from consumer spending to hardware records, giving readers critical insights into the last decade or so of gaming knowledge.
It reveals that, based on key data points from multiple sources, PC gaming has become increasingly powerful over the last decade or so, breezing past console platforms and generating more content spending and revenue.
PC Power
In Epyllion’s report (tracked down by FictionHorizon), the cold, hard facts are made clear.
One slide revealed that since 2011, PC’s content spend has dominated ‘living room’ console revenue by more than 65%, and it has earned 225% more than ‘combined console’ spend. That’s a total of $30 billion if you want to put a number on it.
Those numbers exclude hardware and accessories.
The report also showed that mobile gaming is leagues ahead of both PC and console platforms, representing the number one money maker in the games industry.
This stat has been recorded despite an $18 billion increase in spending on console platforms in 2024 compared to 2011. That 75% increase is still trumped by content spend on PC platforms.
But why is PC becoming increasingly popular and much more profitable?
Epyllion suggested it boils down to a few core reasons:
- PC platforms have a much larger library of games and ‘near-full backwards compatibility’
- On a PC, you can multi-task (stream, communicate, alt+tab, multiple monitors)
- Lower entry price point than consoles
- Higher top-end performance
- Better for esports and competitive gaming
- Able to play more early-access games
- More annual game releases
- Console ‘exclusives’ are now finding their way to PC
It’s easy to see where some of the money comes from. For instance, Counter-Strike’s ‘skin market’, which debuted in 2013, is now worth around $5 billion, and it’s tied exclusively to PC.
Home console sales have slumped somewhat in this generation compared to previous ‘eras’, while PC gaming continues to consistently show growth. With the rise of content creation, streaming, and UGC, everyone wants to play on a PC, and technological leaps are making hardware more readily available, powerful, and in many cases, affordable.
Do you have a PC, or are you reliant on home consoles? Let us know on the Insider Gaming forum.
For more Insider Gaming coverage, check out our esports interview with VALORANT’s Boostio
Yup the only console worth buying is Nintendo for exclusives. It’s getting worse for PS and XB with handheld PC’s and Steam Deck not to mention if Steam Machine comes back I could see it killing them it would actually do well now. Only Nintendo gamers care about physical games to any extent.