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IGN Study Finds Most Engaged Gamers Skip Full-Price Games as Gen Z Hops Between Streamers

The results signal a pivot toward access over ownership that challenges $70 releases.

Overview

  • IGN Entertainment published its Generations in Play report with Kantar and UC Berkeley after surveying 6,250 highly engaged consumers in the US, UK and Australia.
  • Across the sample, 62% said they no longer buy games at full price, with 42% of Gen Z, 38% of Millennials and 20% of Gen X still willing to pay launch prices.
  • The study reports that 59% of Gen Z subscribers join a streaming service for one title and then cancel, a pattern the authors say shows weak platform loyalty.
  • Physical media is fading fast in this cohort, with 71% no longer buying music on disc and about 70% skipping DVDs and Blu-rays for TV and movies.
  • IGN says it will feed the report’s audience segments into its Imagine AI targeting tool and plans more analysis of the data later in 2026.