The Entertainment Software Association says 65% of U.S. adults play games
The Entertainment Software Association says 65% of U.S. adults play games
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65% of American adults play video games

About 65% of adults, or more than 164 million people, play video games in the U.S., according to a new report by the game industry trade group Entertainment Software Association.

Each year, the percentage of Americans playing games has been going up, as non-gamers die off and younger folks start playing games. The ESA collects data for its annual report, and this year’s survey is entitled “2019 Essential Facts About the Computer and Video Game Industry.”

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Written by

Dean Takahashi

Dean Takahashi is editorial director for GamesBeat. He has been a tech journalist since 1988, and he has covered games as a beat since 1996. He was lead writer for GamesBeat at VentureBeat from 2008 to April 2025. Prior to that, he wrote for the San Jose Mercury News, the Red Herring, the Wall Street Journal, the Los Angeles Times, and the Dallas Times-Herald. He is the author of two books, "Opening the Xbox" and "The Xbox 360 Uncloaked." He organizes the annual GamesBeat Next, GamesBeat Summit and GamesBeat Insider Series: Hollywood and Games conferences and is a frequent speaker at gaming and tech events. He lives in the San Francisco Bay Area.