2025年视频游戏营销调查报告 ANNUAL VIDEO GAMES MARKETING SURVEY 2025

ANNUALVIDEO

GAMESMARKETING

SURVEY2025

PartoftheBastionNetwork

Xin

www.bastion.co.uk

02|ANNUALVIDEOGAMESMARKETINGSURVEY2025

RaviVijh

ManagingDirector,Bastion

FOREWORD

Thegamesindustryisshiftingfast—budgetsaretighter,competition’sfiercer,andthefightforattentionhasneverbeentougher.

Ourlatestmarketingsurveyrevealsaclearpicture:thechallengesareuniversal,andsoarethemovesthatgetresults.Discoverabilitystilltopsthelist—butit’snolongerjustaboutbeingseen.It’saboutowningthespotlightinanovercrowdedmarket.

Marketerstellustheirbiggestwinscomefrom:

•Laser-focusedaudienceprofilingthatspeaksdirectlytotherightplayers.

•Creativethatlandsearly—surprising,engaging,andconvertingfromdayone.

•Storefrontstreatedlikemarketingpowerhouses—especiallySteam.

Theone-size-fits-allplaybook?Dead.

FrominfluencerpartnershipstoSteameventstohowstudiosshowuponLinkedIn—theruleissimple:authenticitywins.Withteamsunderpressure,marketersareturningto

trustedagencypartnerstodeliverbold,performance-drivencreativeatscale.

AtBastion,that’sexactlywhatwedo—andwedoitsoourpartnersdon’tjustcompete…theydominate.

Wehopeyoufindthereportuseful.IfyouhaveanyquestionspleasereachoutorcomeandseeusontheUkieboothatGamescom.

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03|ANNUALVlDEOGAMESMARKETlNGSURVEY2025

www.bastion.co.uk

ClareHawkins

G2MDirector

EXECUTIVESUMMARY

GAMESMARKETINGIN2025:LEANER,SMARTER,LOUDER

Theworldofgamesmarketingisn’tjustevolvingit’saccelerating.Overthelast12months,marketershavebeenaskedtodomorewithless:tighterbudgets,leanerteams,andamarketburstingattheseams.Agilityisno

longeranicetohave,it’svitaltosuccess.

OurlatestG2Msurveytakesthepulseoftheindustry.Theresults?Over60%ofrespondentsbringadecadeormoreofpublishingexperiencetothetable,butmostworkinteamsoffewerthanfive.That’sapowerhouseoftalent,stretchedrazorthin.

Discoverabilityremainstheindustry’sAchilles’heel.31%ofrespondentsexpectittobethetopchallengethisyearanditcutsacrossstudiosize,region,andbudget.Whilstsometeamsarespendingmorewithagencies(39.9%sawthatrisein2024),63.9%stillsaytheiroverallmarketingbudgetsfallshort.

lnterestingly,whilethesplitbetweenpublishers(51.3%)anddevelopers(48.7%)isnearlyeven,theirstrategiesareremarkablyaligned.Smallerteamsarebettingbigonstandoutcreative,communitymomentum,andsmart,

scrappypartnerships.Steampageoptimisation,optimisingtrafficandstorefrontplacementremainhighpriorities,proofthatastrongstorepresencestillmovestheneedle.

lnfluencermarketingistheclearcorestrategicingredientofsuccessfullaunchesin2025.Marketersseeitasthemosteffectivewaytocutthroughthenoiseespeciallyorganicinfluencerstrategies,nowleadingallother

channelsinperceivedimpact.Ownedandearnedmediaaredominating,withcommunitymanagement

(16.3%)andinfluencerpartnerships(25%)emergingasthesecretweaponsforbothconversionandlong-termengagement.

Audienceinsightisbecomingtheultimatestrategicedge.Themostsuccessfulcampaignsstartbypinpointingthe“trueaudience”andmeetingthemwheretheyareongenre-specificDiscords,throughcarefullymatched

creators,andwithmessagingthatactuallyresonates.Despiteathirdofcompaniesshrinkingtheirmarketing

teams,44.4%remainundecidedabouthiringinthenextyear.Thatuncertaintyreflectsbroadermarketjittersbutit’snotstoppingsavvyteamsfrompushingforwardwithsmarteraudiencesegmentationandlaser-focused

creatorcollaborations.

There’sashiftintone,too.Theindustryismovingawayfromchasingshinynewplatformsandtowardbuildingtrust,relevance,andcreativityacrossallchannels.Storefrontsarereclaimingtheirimportancenotjustassalestools,butasspacesforstorytelling.

High-impacttrailers,sharpcapsuleart,andnarrative-richandcommunityfocusedcampaignsaremakinga

comeback.Andthenthere’sAl,2025’sbiggestconversationstarter.Someseeitasagame-changerfor

productionandtargeting.Othersworryaboutitsroleinaddingmorenoisetoanalreadycrowdedmarket.Butonethingisclear:platformslikeSteam,Reddit,andDiscordarewinningfavourasauthenticspacesfor

community-buildingunliketheincreasinglypay-to-play,volatilenatureoftraditionalsocialmedia.Lookingahead?Gamesmarketingwillcontinuetofragment.Teamswillshrink.Contentwillgetmorepersonal.

Discoverabilitywillremaintough.Butwithsharpcreative,therightchannelmix,andstrongunderstanding,there’sstillhugeopportunityforstudiosbigandsmalltobreakthroughandtrulyconnectwithplayers.

www.bastion.co.uk

1

3

8.3%19.4%8.3%63.9%

16.7%8.3%2.8%5.6%22.2%38.9%5.6%

HOWMANYYEARSEXPERIENCEDOYOUHAVEINTHEVIDEO

0to34to67to910+

ABOUTOUR

RESPONDENTS...

WHERE

GAMEPUBLISHINGINDUSTRY?

WHATISYOURCURRENTROLE?

04|ANNUALVIDEOGAMESMARKETINGSURVEY2025

C-SUITEMANAGINGDIRECTOR

DIRECTORMANAGEROTHER

2

AREYOUBASED?

VPOF

PUBLISHING

VPOF

MARKETING

30%

20%

10%

0

05|ANNUALVIDEOGAMESMARKETINGSURVEY2025

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60%

50%

40%

30%

20%

10%

0

4

1to5

63.9%

6to10

19.4%

11to20

13.9%

21to30

2.8%

WHATISTHE

MARKETINGTEAM?

SIZEOFYOUR

5

WHICHOFTHEFOLLOWINGBEST

DESCRIBESYOURBUSINESS?

PUBLISHER

51.3%

DEVELOPER

48.7%

PUBLISH/DEVELOP?

AAA15.1%

YOU

WHATTYPESOFGAMESDO

40

AA28.8%

INDIEGAMES23.3%

AR/VR6.8%

MOBILE8.2%

LIVESERVICE13.7%

OTHER1.4%

i

05101520253035

06|ANNUALVIDEOGAMESMARKETINGSURVEY2025

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7

HOWHASTHE

SIZEOFYOUR

MARKETINGTEAMCHANGEDOVER

THEPASTYEAR?

DECREASED

33.3%

INCREASED

22.2%

Significantlylessof

thissamplehave

UNCHANGED

44.4%

8

increasedtheirteams

WILLYOUBE

HIRINGFORTHIS

TEAMINTHENEXT

12MONTHS?

comparedtolast

year,wherenearly

40%increased.

UNDECIDED

44.4%

NO

38.9%

YES

16.7%

OVERTHELASTYEAR?

CHANGED

HOWHASYOURAGENCYSPEND

INCREASED38.9%DECREASED27.8%

UNCHANGED33.3%

Themajorityofthesampleisincreasingtheiragencyspendthisyear.

Significantlylessmarketers(14.2%)aredecreasingtheiragencyspendthisyearcomparedtolastyear.

Alargernumberofparticipants(13%more)

aren’tchangingtheiragencyspend.

10

DOYOUFEEL

YOURCURRENTBUDGETIS

ADEQUATETOMEETYOUR

MARKETINGOBJECTIVES?

YES

36.1%

In2024,themajority

(60%)feltthattheyhad

sufficientbudget,butthisfigurenowsitsat36%.

NO

63.9%

010203040

07|ANNUALVIDEOGAMESMARKETINGSURVEY2025

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11

FORYOURMAJORTITLES,WHATISTHETYPICALSIZEOFYOURMARKETINGBUDGETPERGAME?

MoreofthesamplethisyearproduceAA

andAAAgames,suggestingmoreofthese

gametypeshaveexperiencedbudget

restrictionsoverthelast12months.

Moreofthesamplethisyearhavebelow

500Kbudgetformajortitles(81%).

Comparedto2024wherethisfigurewas

63.3%.

Fewermarketersarenowworkingwitha

budgetofoverthis(19%)whichpreviously

satat36.6%.

UNDER100K

29.7%

301K-500K

24.3%

101K-300K

27%

501K-750K

5.4%

OVER1M

13.5%

HOWEARLYDOYOUTYPICALLYSTART

INVESTING/SPENDINGYOURMARKETINGBUDGETBEFOREAGAME’SRELEASEDATE?

12

12MONTHS34.2%

8MONTHS21.1%

6MONTHS26.3%

3MONTHS10.5%OTHER7.9%

05101520253035404550

13

WHATDIDYOUCONSIDER

TOBETHEBIGGEST

CHALLENGEINVIDEOGAMEPUBLISHINGLASTYEAR?

14

DOYOUTHINKTHISWILLREMAINTHEBIGGEST

CHALLENGEOVERTHENEXT12MONTHS?

Discoverability,marketsaturation,

lay-offsandcompetitionremainthelargestchallengesforvideogame

marketersoverthelast12months.Releaseschdulechanges,fundingandmoralehaveemergedthisyearasotherconcernsthatmaygrowfurtherin2026.

LACKOF

RESOURCES

DUETO

LAYOFFSRELEASE

SCHEDULE

CHANGING

MARKET

SATURATION

REMOTE

WORKINGCRUNCHCOMPETITIONOTHER

CULTURE

31.5%16.4%6.2%26%2.7%1.4%11%2.7%

30

25

20

15

10

YES

94.4%

NO

5.6%

DISCOVERABILITY

5

0

08|ANNUALVIDEOGAMESMARKETINGSURVEY2025

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15

OFTHOSEWHOANSWERED“NO”,THEMOSTCOMMONCONCERNSWERESPREADEVENLYACROSS

DISCOVERABILITYONCERELEASED

FUNDING

STAFFING/MORALE

SELECTTHE3MOST

MEETINGYOUROBJECTIVES.

16EFFECTIVECHANNELSAT

11.5%

4.8%

OrganicInfluencersand

CommunityManagement

haveemergedaswhatthe

PR

PAIDMEDIA(ABOVETHELINE)

majorityofthesampleseesatthemosteffectivemarketingchannel.Ashiftfrom2024

wherePaidMedia(Above

theLine)andPaidInfluencer

5.8%

wherethemostpreferred.

PERFORMANCEMEDIA

Eventsemergesasagrowing

marketingchannelbackedby

9.6%

qualitativedatawheresome

PAIDINFLUENCERMARKETING

participantsbelieveithelps

discoverability.

25%

ORGANICINFLUENCERMARKETING

12.5%

Thedatasuggestsashift

towardsmoreorganicand

communityledcontentover

CHANNELMARKETING(STEAM/XBOX/PS)

thelast12months.

16.3%

COMMUNITYMANAGEMENT

6.7%

PAIDSOCIALMEDIA

2.9%

EVENTS

4.8%

ORGANICSOCIAL

0102030

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REVIEWS22.4%

OTHER

0

6.2%20.6%7.2%9.3%3.1%9.3%5.2%8.2%10.3%2.1%

SELECTTHELEASTEFFECTIVECHANNELSATMEETING

YOUROBJECTIVES

Overthe12months,paidmediahasnowbecomethechannelviewedastheleasteffectiveonecollectively.

WHICHCONTENTTYPEDOYOUCONSIDERTHEMOSTIMPORTANT?

18

ORGANIC

SOCIALPAID

SOCIALMEDIA

17

09|ANNUALVIDEOGAMESMARKETINGSURVEY2025

CHANNEL

MARKETING

(STEAM/XBOX/PS)

PR

5

PAID

INFLUENCERMARKETING

PAIDMEDIA

(ABOVETHELINE)

20

15

10

ORGANICINFLUENCERMARKETING

COMUNITYMANAGEMENT

PERFORMANCEMEDIA

WALKTHROUGHS

4.7%

GUIDES

3.5%

SHORT-FORMCONTENT(TIKTOK,REELS)23.5% LIVESTREAMS(TWITCH,YOUTUBE)21.2%

ADVERTISING

2.4%

TRAILERS22.4%

IIIIIII

051015202530

DOYOUUTILISECONSUMERDATAPLATFORMSSUCHAS

GLOBALWEBINDEX?

19

58.3%YES

41.7%NO

10|ANNUALVIDEOGAMESMARKETINGSURVEY2025

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20

HOWIMPORTANTAREINFLUENCERSANDCONTENTCREATORSINYOUR

MARKETINGSTRATEGY?

WEDON’T

WORKWITH

INFLUENCERS

ATALL

WE

INFLUENCERS

AREOURMAIN

STRATEGY

WERARELY

WORKWITHINFLUENCERS

SOMETIMES

UNDECIDED

WORKWITHINFLUENCERS

11.1%

2.8%

0%

47.2%

38.9%

Incontrasttolastyear,everyonesampledisworkingwithinfluencersinsomecapacity.Mostpreferamixofpaidandorganic.

YOU

SPENDYOURINFLUENCERMARKETING

BUDGETPAIDVSORGANIC?

50%

MOSTLYORGANICINFLUENCERS

40%

30%

Generallyspeaking

organictakespriority

overpaid,enhancingthe

hypothesisthatorganic/

AMIXOFBOTHEQUALLY

earnedmediaisthe

20%

directionvideogame

marketingisheading.

MOSTLYPAID

NOTSURE/UNDECIDED

10%

INFLUENCERS

0

53.8%15.4%25.6%5.1%

HOWISYOURSPENDONINFLUENCER

22

MARKETINGLIKELYTOCHANGEOVERTHENEXT12-24

MONTHS?

INCREASING

47.2%

Nosignificant

changefrom2024

DECREASING

5.6%

REMAINING

THESAME

47.2%

11|ANNUALVIDEOGAMESMARKETINGSURVEY2025

MULTI-

PLAYER

43.2%

MULTI-

PLAYER

11.1%

LIVE

SERVICE

GAMES

18.2%

SINGLE

PLAYER

38.6%

SINGLE

PLAYER

36.1%

LIVE

SERVICE

52.8%

WHICHOFTHE

FOLLOWINGISTHELEASTIMPORTANTGAMETYPEFOR

YOURBUSINESSRIGHTNOW?

WHICHOFTHE

FOLLOWINGISTHEMOSTIMPORTANTGAMETYPEFOR

YOURBUSINESSRIGHTNOW?

SALES

24

22.1%

HOWDOYOUCURRENTLY

MEASURETHEROIOFYOURCPA5.3%

MARKETINGCAMPAIGNS?

CPC7.1%

DOWNLOADS9.7%

WEBSITE/STEAMTRAFFIC8.8%

WISHLISTS15.9%

SOCIALMETRICS(IMPRESSIONS,REACH,ENGAGEMENT)8.8%

PRESSCOVERAGE9.7%

25PLAYERNUMBERS11.5%

OTHER0.9%

05101520