贝恩玩家调查：普通玩家的终结

GamingReport2026

ChooseYourPlayer

Acknowledgments

TheleadershipteamofBain&Company’sGlobalGamingSectorpracticepreparedthisreport,withspecialdirectionfromAndersChristofferson,partnerandGlobalGamingSectorlead,andBrandonRogers,Mediapracticemanager.

TheauthorswouldliketothankDanielleSchwenker,AmanSharma,GunjanDawar,ShrayArora,RohanDoomra,ShagunJain,andChristofferKarlsmosefortheircontributionstothiswork.

ThanksalsotoHeatherClayberg,JeffBauterEngel,andtheeditorialteamfortheirassistance.

Copyright©2026Bain&Company,Inc.Allrightsreserved.

Contents

ChooseYourPlayer 2

GamerSurvey:TheEndoftheAverageGamer 3

AIWon’tSaveanUnfocusedGame 8

Gaming’sPersonalizationImperative 13

GameDistribution:HalfYourPlayersAlreadyBuyDirect 19

ChooseYourPlayer

Theeasilydefinedgamernolongerexists.Gaminghasbecomemoreglobal,social,anddiverse,whichmakeschasingtheaverageplayerthecostliestmistakeintheindustry.Playingtimeandspendinghavebecomeheavilyconcentrated.Butthisvaluablecoreofthemarketisn’toneaudience:Preferencesvarywidelyacrossageandeveryotherdimensionwetested.Theraceisontowinthecore.

Agamebuiltforeveryoneisnowtheriskybet.AIwon’trescuethesegames—itscalesthewrongbetsasfastastherightones.Theadvantagegoestocompaniesthatowntherelationshipwiththeirchosenplayers,understandingeachonewellenoughtopersonalizewhattheyofferand,increasingly,sellingtothemdirectly.Nearlyhalfofplayersalreadybuystraightfromdevelopers,bypassingtheappstores.

Thenextmarketleaderswon’tnecessarilywinthemostplayers.They’llwintherightones.

DanielHong

LeaderofBain’sGlobal

Media&Entertainmentpractice

AndersVidebaek

GamingSectorLead,Europe,theMiddleEast,andAfrica

AndersChristofferson

GlobalGamingSectorLead

TomRowlandGamingSectorLead,Americas

GamerSurvey:TheEndoftheAverageGamer

Supplyisexplodingasdemandfractures.Theadvantagenowbelongstocompaniesthatpickalaneandserveitwell.

ByAndersVidebaekandBenjaminSommer

AtaGlance

Today’splayerscanchoosefromapracticallyunlimitedgamescatalog,andtheirpreferencesarediverging.

Nosingle“ideal”gamingexperiencewinsmorethanaquarterofgamers,accordingtoBain’slatestannualsurvey.

Oursurveyfoundthatspendingconcentratesamonganarrow,identifiablesetofplayers,particularlyyoungcontentcreators.

Forstudios,themathhasflipped:Thebroadmiddleofthemarkethasbecomethecostlyplacetoaim.

Adecadeago,aplayer’schoiceofgameswasboundbywhatahandfulofplatformscouldstockandwhatafewdozenstudioscouldship.Thatceilinghasbeentornoff.TensofthousandsofnewtitlesreachdigitalstorefrontseveryyearfromindiesthroughAAAstudios.Live-servicegamescaptivateplayers

foryearsratherthanweeks.User-generatedplatformsturneveryplayerintoapotentialsupplier,theircontentcreationnowturbochargedbyAI.

Thegameshelfhasbecomeeffectivelyinfinite,andchoicesaremultiplyingfasterthananyplayer’sattentioncangrow.Whensupplyisscarce,abroadlyappealingproductcanwin.Whensupplyisbasicallyunlimited,personalfitiseverything.That’sthenewreality,anditexplainswhy“thereisnoaveragegamer”hasbecomeaboard-levelstrategicissue.

Thedemandistheretocapture.Threeoutoffourgamersareactivelyhuntingfortheirnexttitle,accordingtoBain&Company’slatestannualsurveyofmorethan5,300gamersworldwide.Mostarelookingincategoriestheyalreadylove,notseekingsomethingunfamiliar.Thelosingmovein2026istryingtoserveallofthem.ThequestioneverygamingCEOshouldbeaskingthemselveshasmorphedfrom“Howdowereachmoreplayers?”to“Whichplayersdowechoose,howdowebestengagethem,andhowdoweowntherelationshipcompletely?”

Whensupplyisbasicallyunlimited,personalfitiseverything.

Demandhasfragmented

Whenweaskedgamerstodescribetheexperiencetheywantmost,thefieldsplitfiveways.Nosingleexperiencetypesurpassed26%(seeFigure1).

Figure1:Gamers’preferencesaresplit,withnosinglegamingexperiencestandingout

Source:BainMediaConsumptionSurvey,June2026(gamersn=5,339)

Figure2:Gamers’preferencefor“opensandbox”oruser-generatedcontentexperiencesdeclinessharplywithageandvarieswidelyacrossmarkets

Source:BainMediaConsumptionSurvey,June2026(gamersn=5,339)

Thetop-linesplitisthemildversionofthestory.Thesharpdivergenceshowsupwhencomparingdifferentcohorts.Forexample,athirdof13-to-17-year-oldshaveanappetiteforopen,user-generatedworlds;thatsharecollapsesto15%orloweramongplayers50andolder.Preferencesdivergewidelybygeographyaswell(seeFigure2).

Spendinghasconcentrated

Asdemandhasfragmented,playingtimeandspendinghavebecomeheavilyconcentrated.Themostactiveplayersaccountforalmost60%ofallgamers’totalplayingtime,andthehighest-spendinggroupaccountsforaboutthree-quartersoftotalspending,accordingtooursurvey(seeFigure3).

Playerfragmentationreadsasbadnewsuntilyoulookatwherethespendingconcentrates:amonganidentifiable,deeplyengagedchunkofthemarket.

Althoughnottheonlyidentifier,demographicsareacriticalone.Thewillingnesstospenddeclineswithage,accordingtooursurvey.Approximately86%ofteenagersspendmoneyongaming-relatedactivitiesinatypicalmonth,comparedwithjustoverhalfofplayersintheir50s,36%ofthoseintheir60s,and27%ofthoseintheir70s(seeFigure4).

Figure3:Gamers’playingtimeandspendingareheavilyconcentrated

Notes:Mostengageddefinedasthe20%ofgamerswhospendthemosthoursplaying,moderatelyengagedincludesthe50thto80thpercentileofgamersrankedbyhoursspentplaying,andleastengagedincludestherest;topspendersdefinedasthehighest20%ofspenders,middleincludesthe50thto80thpercentileofspenders,andbottomincludestherest;valuesarerounded

Source:BainMediaConsumptionSurvey,June2026(gamersn=5,339)

Figure4:Youngerplayersaremorewillingtospendmoneyongamingactivities

Notes:Excludesthosewhoanswered“Idonotspendanyamount”or“Idonotknow”;gaming-relatedactivitiesincludepurchasingnewgames,in-gamecontent,subscriptions,andstreamertips;excludespurchasinghardwaresuchasconsolesorvirtualrealityheadsets

Source:BainMediaConsumptionSurvey,June2026(gamersn=5,339)

Thehigh-spendingplayersareevenmorerecognizablebybehavior.Thosewhocreategamecontentforpublicusearetwiceaslikelytospendmoney,oursurveyfound.

Together,splinteringdemandandconcentratedspendingflipthemathforstudios.Designingmass-appealgamesisnolongerasafebet,inpartbecausethosetitlesreachthelowspendersfirst.

Thehardertargetiswherethegrowthis:playerswhospendmoreandaremoreengaged.

Implicationsforgamingexecutives

Theaveragegamerwasalwaysaconvenientfiction.In2026,it’sanexpensiveone.Adaptingyourstrategytothechanginglandscapestartswithtwothings.

Sizethemarketbyfragment,notbyaverage.Nosinglenumberdescribesthismarket,andthemeansitsbetweenplayerswhowantoppositethings.Thewinningcompanieswillsizedemandbythecharacteristicsthatactuallysplitit(age,geography,taste,spendingtier,creativeidentity),understandingplayersbywhattheydo,notjustwhotheyare.

Aimwherespendingisgrowing.Headcountandspendinghavedecoupled.Thebroadestcohortsspendtheleast,whileanarrower,identifiablesetspendsmore.

Thischapterexplainshowtostartidentifyingthoseplayers.Committingtothetargetplayer—focusingtheportfolioandthecapitalbehindthatchoice—iswherethereportgoesnext.

AIWon’tSaveanUnfocusedGame

Inasaturatedmarket,AIrewardsstudiosthathaveacleartargetgamerandquicklycompoundsthelossesofthosethatdon’t.

ByTomRowlandandAndersVidebaek

AtaGlance

Manyoftheindustry’shighest-profilefailureshaveonethingincommon:Theytriedtobeeverythingtoeveryone.

Two-thirdsofgamerswantmoreofthesame;onlyabout20%wantsomethingnew.Unfocusedgamessatisfynoneofthem.

AIisanaccelerant,notarescue.Forstudioswithoutacleartargetplayer,itscalesbadbetsfaster.

Successfulstudioswillkillunfocusedprojects,rebuildonanAI-resetcostbase,andinvestinthecoreplayer.

Scrollthroughanygamingindustrynewsletterfromthepasttwoyears,andapatternemerges:Anotherhigh-profiletitlestumbles,anotherpostmortemaskswhatwentwrong.Thenameschange,butthediagnosisrarelydoes.Thesemissesweren’taresultofcreativemistakesorbadluck.Theywereexpensivegamesbuiltwithoutaclearanswertoabasicquestion:Who,exactly,isthisfor?

Thatquestionhasalwaysmattered.What’schangedisthecostofgettingitwrong.

Gamingisacreativeindustry,whichmeansswingsandmissescomewiththeterritory.Butthesedays,thebiggestmissesarethegamesthattriedtobeeverythingtoeveryone.

Foryears,spreadingbetslookedlikeprudentdiversification.Twoconvergingpressureshavesinceturnedtheunfocusedgameintooneofthemostexpensivelinesonthebalancesheet.

Thefirstisdemand.Thisreport’spreviouschaptershowedthattheaveragegamernolongerexists.Gamesupplyiseffectivelyunlimited,tasteshavesplitintofactionsthatwantoppositethings,andspendinghaspooledinanarrow,identifiablesetofplayers.

Skyrocketingsupplyhasn’tscatteredplayers—ithasconcentratedthem.Gamers,especiallyyoungerones,nowspendtheirtimeonamuchnarrowersetofgamesthaninthepast.Themostpopularlive-service,platform-stylegames,particularlyRoblox,havebecomethecenterofgravityfortheentiregamingecosystemoverthepastfiveyears.

Players’preferencesfortheirnextpurchaseconfirmhowhabitshavehardened,makingtheunfocusedgameariskybet.AccordingtoBain’s2026surveyofmorethan5,300gamersworldwide,two-thirdswantmoreofwhattheyalreadyhave:asequeltoafranchisetheylove,agamemuchliketheircurrentfavorites,ornonewgameatall.Onlyoneplayerinfiveisaftersomethinggenuinelydifferent(seeFigure1).

Nooneissatisfiedbythegameintheunfocusedmiddle:toogenerictodeliverthedepththemajoritywant,toosafetoprovidethenoveltyotherschase,tooshallowtopulltimebackfromthegiants.

Figure1:Two-thirdsofgamerswantmoreofthesame,whileonly21%areseekingnewgamesthataregenuinelydifferent

Source:BainMediaConsumptionSurvey,June2026(gamersn=5,339)

ThesecondpressureonunfocusedgamesisAI,andtheprevailinginstincthereisexactlywrong.Thenaturalassumptionisthatcheaperproductionshouldmakethemid-budgetgameviableagain—lowerthecostbase,lowerthestakes,unlockmorebets.Theoppositeisclosertothetruth.AIisanaccelerant,notarescue.Withoutacleartargetplayer,itdoesn’tloweryourrisk;itletsyouscalethewrongbetfaster.

Allofthisisforcingareckoning.Thedevelopersthatcomeoutaheadoverthenextseveralyearswon’tbetheoneswiththebiggestbudgetsorthemostsophisticatedAIcapabilities.They’llbetheonesthatcommit—earlierthantheircompetitors—tobuildingforaplayertheycandescribeinasinglesentence.

AIisanaccelerant,notarescue.Withoutacleartargetplayer,itdoesn’tloweryourrisk;itletsyouscalethewrongbetfaster.

Focusorfail

Theindustrygeneratesplentyofcoverageaboutunfocused,trend-chasingtitlesthatmissed,butit’shardertogaugehowsystemicthepatterntrulyis.Togetaroughread,Bainscannedpubliclyavailabledataon100titlesreleasedsince2023.Classifyinggamesasfocusedorunfocusedrequiredjudgmentcalls,anddataoncommercialfailuresisfarlessaccessiblethandataonsuccesses.Evenwiththosecaveats,theanalysispointsinthesamedirectionasthethesis:83%offocusedgamesinoursampleachievedcommercialsuccess,comparedwith50%ofunfocusedones.

ConsiderBaldur’sGate3andConcord,twobetsplacedaroundthesametime,atcomparablescale.Thefirstgame’sdevelopersbuiltitforahighlyspecifictarget:thedeep-lore,long-session,role-playinggamerwhohadgrownupontheBaldur’sGateandDivinityseries.Theydeliveredsomethingthatcommunityhadwaitedforyearstoarrive.Thegamewasasmashhit,reportedlysellingmorethan20millioncopiesandgenerating$657milliononSteamin2023,byfartheplatform’sbestsellerthatyear.Meanwhile,Concordshippedintoacrowdedhero-shootermarketandhadtroubleconvincingplayersalreadyinvestedinfree-to-playgamessuchasOverwatchorValoranttomakethe$40purchase.

Somestudioshavecaughtthemselvesbeforethemistakecompounds,shelvinggameswhenitbecameclearthattheplayersweren’tgoingtocome—evenifthatrealizationcamelateindevelopment.Cancelingagamethatfaralongisasignificantsunkcost.Shippingitwouldhavebeenmorepainful.

Jagexdemonstrateshownarrowingfocusoncoreplayerscanstrengthenthebusiness.Inrecentyears,theUK-basedstudiobehindRuneScapehasdivestedsomeacquiredstudios,streamlineditsprojectslateinpartduetoplayerfeedback,andrebrandeditself“Jagex:TheRuneScapeCompany.”Respondingtocommunityfeedbackonitsflagshipgame,thecompanyalsoremovedRuneScape’sTreasureHuntermicrotransactionssystem.JagexhassincereportedstrongplayernumbersforbothRuneScapeandOldSchoolRuneScape,aswellasmorethan1millionsalesinthefirstyearofitslatestoffshoot,RuneScape:Dragonwilds.

AIaccelerateseverything,includingscalingbadbets

AsAIresetsgamedevelopers’costbase,focusdictateswhotheresetrewards.Astudiothatknowswhoitbuildsforcanreinvestfreedmarginintodepthitstargetaudiencewillpayfor.AI’sbenefitscompoundwithfocus;theclearerthetarget,themorepreciselythesetoolscanbeaimed.Studiosthatdon’tnarrowtheirfocushavesimplymadethewrongbetcheapertoplace—andfastertolose.

Forastudiothatalreadyknowsitstargetplayer,AIhelpsonmultiplefronts.Themostobviousisdevelopmentspeed:fasterprototyping,cheaperiteration,andmorerapiddeliveryofdataandinsightsfromrealusers.Butit’snotjustaboutvelocity;AIcanalsohelpdevelopersmoredeeplyunderstandtheirplayers.Agrowingsetoftoolscananalyzeengagementpatterns,surfacewhat’sresonatingwithatargetaudience,andenablemoreeffectivefeedbackloopsbetweendeveloperandplayercommunity.

Crucially,playersaregrowingmoreopentothisshift.InBain’s2026survey,42%ofplayerssaythey’remorecomfortablewiththeindustryusingAIthantheywereayearago,44%feelthesame,andfewerthanoneinsevenarelesscomfortable.Amongplayersages13to17,thesignalisevenclearer:59%feelmorecomfortablethisyear,andanother33%saytheirfeelingsareunchanged(seeFigure2).

Figure2:ComfortwithAIingameshasincreasedorheldsteadyformost,withteensfeelingthemostcomfortable

Note:Valuesarerounded

Source:BainMediaConsumptionSurvey,June2026(gamersn=5,339)

ForstudiosworriedthatAIadoptioncarriesreputationalriskwiththeirplayerbase,thisdatasuggeststhewindowtomoveisopen,particularlywiththeaudienceswhowilldefinethemarketoverthenextdecade.ThestudiosthatwillcapturetheAImarginbenefitaren’tnecessarilytheoneswiththelargestcomputebudgets.They’retheonesthatknowwhatthey’reoptimizingfor—andthatusefasteriterationtogetclosertoadefinedplayer.

Implicationsforgamingexecutives

Inthismarket,themostsuccessfulportfolioswillhaveaclearfocus,withAIalignedtothatfocus.Threemovesgetacompanythere.

Killunfocusedgamesbeforethenextbudgetcycle.Foralargepublisher,thisisportfoliotriageacrossanexistingslate.Foramid-marketstudio,it’sexistential.Agame’sgreenlightdecisionisthelastcheapexitbeforesunkcostsbecomeirreversible.Thedisciplinerequiredisdifferent,buttheurgencyisthesame.

RebuildthefocusedportfolioonanAI-resetcostbase.Thisisatop-down,organization-widecapabilitydeployment,notsimplyhandingAPIkeystoindividualdevelopersandcallingitgood.StudioswithstrongtechnologicalcapabilitiesanddeeppocketscanbuildAItoolsin-house.Mostmid-marketfirmsshouldbuyorpartner;defendingacomputepositionatspotpricesagainstabetter-capitalizedcompetitorisalosinghand.

Investinyourtargetplayer.Justasinotherindustries,focusingonthecorecustomercanenablegamingcompaniestomaximizevaluecreation.Itmaysoundobvious,butthestudiosthatpullaheadwillbacktheirconvictionwithcapitaltomatch.They’llconcentratedevelopmentresources,marketingspending,andAIinvestmentondeepeningtheexperiencefortheircoreplayer.Forlargepublishers,theharderdisciplineisn’ttheinitialportfoliotriage;it’sresistingthepulltoreinvestfreedcapitalintonewunfocusedbets.Formid-marketcompanies,thestakesarehigher;focusedstrategyneedstobeexplicitenoughtogoverneverygreenlightdecision,everyhire,andeverypartnershipdecisiongoingforward.

Gaming’sPersonalizationImperative

Thenextgrowthleverisn’tmoreplayers.It’sunderstandingandengagingyourplayersbetterthananyoneelse.

ByYohannPlantecandAndersChristofferson

AtaGlance

Amidslowerindustrygrowth,boostingplayerengagementthroughpersonalizationisbecomingmoreimportant.

Mostgamersarecomfortablewithorneutraltowardpersonalizedoffersbasedontheirin-gameactivity,aBainsurveyfound.

TherequiredAItechnologyforpersonalizationhasimproved:OneearlyadopterliftedaLiveOpscampaign’srevenueperplayerbymorethanhalf.

Winningdependsonhavingcleargoals,cross-functionalownership,therighttechpartners,andthecouragetostartbeforethesolutionisperfect.

Thegamingindustryhasweatheredatumultuouspastfewyears.Thepandemicboomgaveway

toaconsolidationwave.Now,theindustryissettlingintoitsnewnormal:It’sharderthanevertowinnewplayersandkeepengagingexistingones.

Whilesomepocketsofgrowthremain,theacross-the-boardexpansionofthepastdecadehasstalled.Globalgamingsoftwarerevenuehasgrownatacompoundannualrateofabout3%overthepastfouryears,andBainforecastsasimilarpaceoverthenextfouryears(seeFigure1).Meanwhile,gaming’sshareoftotalmediaconsumptionhasplateaued.Mostoftheaudiencehasbeencaptured;thehoursarelargelyspokenfor.

Figure1:Globalgamingsoftwarerevenueisexpectedtocontinuegrowingbyabout3%annually,inlinewithrecentyears

Notes:ForecastasofDecember2025;excludeshardware,advertising,andesportsrevenueSources:IDC;PwC;Omdia;S&PCapitalIQ;Bainanalysis

Thisisn’tasecret.Thepastfewyearsbroughtlayoffs,studioclosures,dried-upfundingfornewgames,anddelayedmajorreleases.Consolidationhasaccelerated.AIisarriving,promisingtransformationbutalsoraisinguncomfortablequestionsandnotyetdeliveringfullvalue.Thepostpandemicgrowththatexecutivesplannedforfiveyearsagohasn’tpannedout.Evenworse,manycompanieshaven’tadjustedtheirstrategiesaccordingly,whichwillleadtoweakerresults.

Mostexecutivessensethatsomethingstructuralhasshifted.Whatfewerhaveinternalizedisthelogicalconclusion:Iftheoverallmarketisn’tgrowingasfastasbefore,thenstrengtheningrelationshipswiththeplayersyoualreadyhavebecomesevenmorecrucialtolong-termsuccess.

Personalization—customizingcommunications,advertisements,andcontenttoeachplayer—isoneofthemostimportantwaysthatgamingcompaniescanboostengagement.Personalizationpaysoff

ontwofrontsatonce:Playersgetamoreenjoyable,tailoredexperience,andthatimprovedexperiencecandeliverthestrongerengagementandrevenuethatstudiosareultimatelypursuing.

Gamingcompaniesunderstandablypoursignificanttime,energy,andresourcesintoperfectinggameplay.Now,it’stimeforthemtoinvestmoreinmakingeverythingoutsideofgameplayanamazingexperience,too.That’swheretechnology-enabledpersonalizationcomesin;itcanhelpcompanieswinplayers’

heartsandminds.

Thevalueiswaitingtobecaptured

Manyexecutivesmaybesurprisedtolearnthatplayersareactuallyopentodata-drivenpersonalization.Bain’slatestannualsurveyfoundthatmostgamersfeeleithercomfortablewithorneutraltowardpersonalizedoffersbasedontheirin-gameactivity(seeFigure2).

Trueone-to-onepersonalizationhasbeenaholygrailfordecades.Otherconsumercategorieshaveshownwhattheplaybookcouldlooklikeingaming.Videostreamingplatformsuseviewinghistory,pausebehavior,andbrowsingpatternstorecommendacustomer’snextbinge-worthytitle.E-commercemarketplacesserveupmorerelevantgoodsbasedoneachperson’spastsearchesandpurchases.

Gamingcompaniesthathavedirectrelationshipswiththeirplayersatscalearesittingonrichbehavioraldata.Forexample,companiesthatruntheirowngamingplatformoroperateadirect-to-consumersubscriptionservicehavetherawmaterialintheformofin-gamemicro-decisions,socialgraphconnections,andpurchasehistory.

Untilrecently,thechallengewasthatthetechnologytodeliverone-to-onepersonalizationforgamersdidn’texist.Now,that’sstartingtochange.

Figure2:Thevastmajorityofgamersfeelcomfortablewithorneutraltowardpersonalizedoffersacrossdifferentscenarios

Notes:HypotheticalscenarioAwas“Afternoticingyou’dbeenbrowsingskinsforaparticularcharacter,thegameoffersyoua20%discountonone”;scenarioBwas“Basedonthegamesyouplayacrossmultipleplatformsanddevices,thegamerecommendsanitemsuitedtoyouroverallplaystyle”;scenarioCwas“Thegameoffersyouadiscountonakeyupgradeexactlyatthemomentitssystempredictsyoumightstopplaying”

Source:BainMediaConsumptionSurvey,June2026(n=5,339)

Whatone-to-onepersonalizationactuallymeans,andwhynow

Theterm“personalization”getsusedloosely,soit’sworthbeingprecise.Studioshaveruncustomersegmentationplaysforyears:groupplayersintocohorts,sendtargetedmessages,runA/Bteststocomparedifferentoffers.That’snotwhatwe’retalkingabout.Trueone-to-onepersonalizationmeanseveryinteractionisoptimizedinrealtimefortheindividualplayer,basedontheirspecificbehavior,preferences,andstageofthecustomerlifecycle—withoutahumananalystmakingeverydecision.

Thisismadepossiblebycontextualbanditalgorithms,aclassofmachinelearningmodelsthatenableagentstolearncontinuouslyfromplayerbehaviorandoptimizedecisionsinrealtime.Theagenttreatseveryplayeraccordingtowhatthedatasayswillworkbestforthatindividual.Itgearsahigh-frequencyplayer’sexperiencestowardretainingthemanddeepeningtheirengagement.Forexample,adeveloperadvertisingagame’snewseasoncouldsendapersonalizedemailtoacasualplayerhighlightingthereturnofthatplayer’sfavoritecharacter.Meanwhile,ahardcoreplayermightreceiveanin-gamenotificationaboutthecompetitiverankingsystemlaunchingwiththenewseason.

Contextualbanditenginesarestillfrontiertechnology,butthebarriertoentryisgettinglower.Thetoolinghasimproved,themodelshavegottenbetteratinferringpatternsfromincompletedata,andtechnologypartnersthatcanhandlemuchoftheorchestrationlayerhaveemerged.

“Thetechnologyhascompletelychangedoverthelasttwoyearsandisnowabletodeliverrealvalueatareasonablecost,”saysGeorgeKhachatryan,vicepresidentandheadofAIdecisioningatBraze,oneofthetechnologypartnersthatBainworkswithtohelpgamingcompaniesimplementthesekindsofsolutions.

Nevertheless,onlyasmallnumberofgamingcompaniesarebeginningtobuildtheinfrastructure.Mostindustryparticipantsareinwait-and-seemode.

Fiveplacestoputone-to-onepersonalizationtowork

Outsidegameplayitself,thehighest-impactpersonalizationopportunitiesclusteraroundfiveareas.We’veroughlysequencedthembywhereROItendstoshowupfirst.

In-gamestoreandofferoptimization.Thisincludesdynamicpricingandtailoredbundlesbased

oneachplayer’sspendinghistoryandpropensitytospend.It’stypicallythefastestpathtomeasurablerevenuegrowth,andit’stheareawherestudioswithgoodtransactiondatacanmovequickly.

Lapsedplayerreengagement.Reengagementisoneofthehighest-ROIusecasesbecausetheplayersalreadyknowthegame.Thiscategoryincludesintelligentcampaignsthatidentifywhenaplayerisdriftingorhasstoppedplayingagame,determinetherightmomentandchanneltoreachthem(email,push,in-game),anddeliveramessageoroffertunedtowhatattractedthembefore.

Personalizedonboarding.Moststudiosstilldeliverthesameonboardingtoeveryplayer.Thefirstfewsessionsplayingagamearedisproportionatelypredictiveoflong-termretention.Byanalyzingeachperson’sgameplayduringthoseinitialsessions,companiescanbuildadaptiveonboardingmechanismsoutsidethegame—personalizedhintsandtips,newfeaturerecommendations,

andsoon—thatreflectplayerskilllevel,playstyle,andpreferences.

In-gamecontentdiscovery.Thegoalistosurfacetherightmodes,maps,andeventsforeachplayerattherightmoment.Thiscanreducethefrictionbetweenlogginginandfindingsomethingworthdoing.

Cross-titlerecommendationswithinaportfolio.Forpublisherswithmultipletitles,usingbehavioraldatafromonegametointelligentlyguideplayerstowardothersisabigopportunity.Thisiswherescalecreatesacompoundingadvantage:Themoretitlesyouhave,themoresignalyouhave,andthebetteryourrecommendationsbecome.

Therealpowerofcontextualbandittechnologyisthatagentscouldassesstrade-offsbetweenthesefivedifferentareasinrealtime—suchasdecidingthatthebestwaytoengageandmonetizeaplayeris

toofferthatpersonabundlevs.sendinganin-gamerecommendationorsuggestinganew,similargameinthestore.

Forexample,byimplementingBraze’ssolution,alargefree-to-playgamingcompanyreplaceditsfixed-schedule,broadlytargetedpromotionswithreal-timeofferspersonalizedtoeachplayer.