A survey conducted in the third quarter of 2024 found that over 92 percent of female internet users aged 16 to 24 years worldwide played video games on any kind of device. During the survey period, 93 percent of male respondents in the same age group stated that they played video games. Worldwide, over 83 percent of internet users were gamers.

In January 2025, total video games sales in the United States amounted to 4.5billion U.S. dollars, representing a 15 percent year-over-year decrease. Generally speaking, the video game industry has its most important months in November and December, as video game software and hardware make very popular Christmas gifts. In December 2024, total U.S. video game sales surpassed 7.54 billion U.S. dollars. Birth of the video game industry Although the largest regional market in terms of sales, as well as number of gamers, is Asia Pacific, the United States is also an important player within the global video games industry. In fact, many consider the United States as the birthplace of gaming as we know it today, fueled by the arcade game fever in the ’60s and the introduction of the first personal computers and home gaming consoles in the ‘70s. Furthermore, the children of those eras are the game developers and game players of today, the ones who have driven the movement for better software solutions, better graphics, better sound and more advanced interaction not only for video games, but also for computers and communication technologies of today. An ever-changing market However, the video game industry in the United States is not only growing, it is also changing in many ways. Due to increased internet accessibility and development of technologies, more and more players are switching from single-player console or PC video games towards multiplayer games, as well as social networking games and last, but not least, mobile games, which are gaining tremendous popularity around the world. This can be evidenced in the fact that mobile games accounted for 51 percent of the revenue of the games market worldwide, ahead of both console games and downloaded or boxed PC games.

In the first half of 2024, video ads accounted for 77.8 percent of all mobile game advertising creatives on digital platforms worldwide. Images made 18.8 percent of all creatives.

Between January 2023 and June 2024, casual mobile game advertisers accounted for 28.59 percent of all mobile game advertisers on digital platforms worldwide. Puzzles ranked second, with 13.87 percent.

Percentage of Canadians' time spent online and using video streaming services and video gaming services, in a typical week.

Ratio: The number of students among all student survey respondents who watch television for more than 3 hours per day on an average school day.

Definition: The percentage of students who watch television or play video/computer games and use the internet for a specified number of hours per day on an average school day.

Data Sources:

1) New Jersey Student Health Survey, Office of Student Support Services, Division of Student Services and Career Readiness, New Jersey Department of Education

2) High School Youth Risk Behavior Survey Data, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, http://nccd.cdc.gov/youthonline/

History: MAR 2017: Chart and table titles corrected to read as "More Than 3 Hours Per Day." They were erroneously labeled previously as "2 or Less Hours Per Day."