The live-service gaming scene is shifting towards different models, rather than dying out, according to a new report from Newzoo. The company put out an analysis in which it concluded that players are becoming increasingly more interested in certain genres, such as gacha-based RPGs, than they have been before — that particular kind of game rose to a 14.3% share of F2P playtime in 2025.
One of the key findings in the report is that players are starting to put more time into games with progression mechanics, rather than competitive gameplay. More specifically, they’re playing more RPGs with gacha mechanics, or games in which they can spend money on chance-based loot. Games like Wuthering Waves, Honkai: Star Rail and Zenless Zone Zero have driven the increased player interest in the genre.
The findings of the report point to certain kinds of games getting a bit more player attention, and not the ones that have historically received said attention. F2P playtime on console is on the decline, but it’s due to a dip in interest in larger titles. On both console and PC, revenue share is also falling out of the top titles on both platforms, with more trickling down to other, smaller games.
According to the conclusion of the report, “While some established live service games have lost momentum, overall engagement has remained resilient, with progression focused experiences such as gacha RPGs capturing a growing share of player attention.” That said, they noted that there is an increasing gap between engaging players and successfully convincing them to spend money on a F2P game.