The great dilemma of video games and Generation Z. Despite the industry’s efforts, young people are reluctant to buy PS5 and Xbox Series

As is the case with all companies that seek to stay at the top of their sector, the big brands in the video game world must anticipate the trends of tomorrow and adapt to the new tastes of your consumers. In this way, and adding to the already laborious task of maintaining the attention of millions of people around the world, companies such as Nintendo, PlayStation, Xbox, Ubisoft either Electronic Arts now face an additional challenge: adjusting to the preferences of Generation Z and teenage users. After all, we are talking about a completely digitalized group that, although it is already more than accustomed to electronic devices and adventures in fantasy worlds, also arrives with such specific inclinations when it comes to this medium of entertainment that they are capable of shape the entire current ecosystem.

Looking purely at the numbers, companies have good reason to note the preferences of young players. According to 2023 Yearbook of the Spanish Video Game Association, a 86% of users between 15 and 24 years old they enjoy digital adventures in our country; figure that, according to statistics newzoo, rises to 88% if we cover the entire community spread throughout Europe. So, in terms of general interest, it is clear that the world will continue playing video games for decades to come.

However, the alarms went off with a news story focused on Japan: According to a survey of 700 young people belonging to Generation Z, the majority prefer to enjoy video games through a smartphonea PC, a Nintendo Switch and even a Nintendo DS before getting the most current PS5 and Xbox Series. Are we really facing a worrying situation for PlayStation and Xbox in their console business? To answer this question, we have consulted a good handful of reports and statistics on player preferences in the rest of the world. And, although there are many details to unpack (as we explain in the next paragraphs), the final conclusion is very clear: while it is true that Gen Z brings unprecedented changes and challenges, the outlook is not so negative.

Playing on a smartphone, an indisputable trend

In fact, companies have been noting the new trends of Generation Z for years when it comes to the use and enjoyment of video games. After all, many of the current initiatives of PlayStation, Xbox and Nintendo, among other brands, respond to their own analysis of preferences among young players. Peter Moore, former Microsoft executive, spoke about it in an interview with IGN:

“And what are we doing? Well, we’re not in the room anymore. We’re back in the room with our YouTube influencers, our TikTok creators, and it’s all about on-demand content. And we’re going through the same thing in sports. You’re seeing these different pressures, so to speak, of this generation that Phil (Spencer) talks about. Generation Z is coming and they’re like,Why do I have to invest 400 or 500 dollars in a piece of hardware when I have my smartphone, or my PC or Macand I can do things there with a pretty decent controller?'”

Moore has good reasons for reaching this conclusion. Beyond everything we’ve seen regarding the new digital and entertainment habits of young gamers, The data corroborate the popularity of the smartphones as device gaming. newzoo defines it this way in a report released last November that covers the preferences of the community at a global level: “In each generation, the mobile is the most common platform to play video games. The low barriers to entry of mobile games make it the most accessible platform compared to playing on PC or console.” And, although here we talk about a common trend in all user groups, the conclusions of Pocket Gamer indicate that 81% of Generation Z use this device to play video games.

Consoles and PCs, devices intrinsically related to video games

That does not mean, at all, that Gen Z only plays on mobile phones. While it is true that we are talking about a versatile device that entertains with its myriad of functions (many of them beyond video games), young people prefer other platforms to enjoy digital adventures. At least, that was the conclusion he reached. Tinuiti after analyzing the phenomenon gaming through surveys carried out this same 2024: “However, the results were very different when players were asked what device they mainly use to play. Only 29% of Gen Z chose the mobile phone as their main gaming device […]. For less than one point on mobile devices, PCs were the most voted option for Gen Z, with nintendo switch also being a strong alternative among younger adults.

The THAT (Entertainment Software Association) recorded similar results in its own report, although focusing only on US gamers. In short, the entity indicates that mobile phones are predominant among Generation Z and Generation Alpha gamers (users between 5 and 14 years, approximately), but They also enjoy consoles (58%) and PCs (54%).

Until now, console data has only mentioned the Nintendo Switch. After all, it is one of the most popular consoles of the moment and, as we have seen previously, it is causing a sensation in territories like Japan. Is the rest of the world also surrendering to the Big N device? Although its presence in the sector is indisputable, analyzes carried out in other parts of the globe indicate that the community, as expected, PlayStation and Xbox are also very present. “Among popular consoles, Gen Z and Millennials have a clear favorite: PlayStation. Nearly half (49%) of console gamers say YPulse who play on PlayStation, compared to 34% who play Xbox and 11% who play Nintendo”, indicates this report prepared in 2022. According to another document from the same center, this time focused on preferences gaming among young people in Europe, 63% of Gen Z users play on PlayStation; although that does not mean that part of the public is also investing time in Xbox.

Here we see that, while it is true that PlayStation and Xbox remain well-loved brands among Generation Z gamers, there are many people (even from Gen Alpha) who They resist making the jump to PS5 and Xbox Series. Although the aforementioned report from Japan says nothing about the current performance of the old-genUS reports recall the constant popularity of PS4 and Xbox One. According to data from Statista collected last January, the majority of teenagers (this includes other groups of young users apart from Gen Z) continue to enjoy the previous generation of consoles. Taking away the already mentioned popularity of mobile phones and PCs, 29% are still on PS4 (compared to the 11% that have made the jump to PS5) and 24% do the same with Xbox One (compared to the 9% that is already on Xbox Series). Meanwhile, and to no one’s surprise, Nintendo Switch continues to occupy an important place in the community’s preferences.

The industry is already responding to Gen Z trends

With this data in hand, the industry has begun to mobilize to adapt to the preferences of Generation Z. Ultimately, it is important for companies to analyze the market and change your traditional strategies to ensure a good position in the sector. And that is why, to the surprise of many members of the community, PlayStation, Xbox and other big brands have announced unprecedented initiatives which, mainly, are focused on their younger audience.

An example of this is Microsoft; after announcing to the entire world that a handful of ‘Xbox-branded’ adventures They would also be available on PlayStation and Nintendo Switch (a decision that, according to the head of Xbox, arises from the idea that “games that are exclusive to one piece of hardware are going to be an increasingly smaller part of the gaming industry”), Phil Spencer gave an interview to Polygon in which he stated the following:

“The notion that Xbox can just be this device that plugs into a TV is not something we see in Gen Z research. Because, for them, nothing else is like that. Some of them will have an iPhone, some of them will have a Android, but all the games and everything is the same. I can access TikTok on both, at least for now. All your things are available wherever you want“.

Because, and while it is true that Xbox has grabbed the headlines (and conversations between users) with its new strategy around some of its exclusives, it is worth remembering one of its great initiatives in the face of the new trends of Generation Z and the younger groups of players: your new digital store for mobile phones. In fact, it is expected that this app, which seeks to compete against the Apple and Google stores through its own games such as Minecraft or Candy Crush, It will be available from next July. And let’s not forget that PlayStation is taking a similar path; Although there is still not much information about it, we know that the Japanese They have started the process of hiring engineers for a “distribution and publishing platform” on iOS and Android.

This should also be linked to the many mobile games that have been developed by companies traditionally focused on the console ecosystem: Super Mario Run (Nintendo), Pokémon GO (Niantic/The Pokémon Company), Minecraft (Microsoft) or the Uncharted already retired (PlayStation) are some examples of this trend. As if this were not enough, the initiatives around the smartphones and other devices gaming is complemented by Microsoft’s efforts to leverage the benefits of the cloud either Ubisoft and Capcom collaborating with Apple To trow Resident Evil 4 Remake and Assassin’s Creed Mirage on iPhone.

In short, PlayStation and Xbox consoles remain popular among members of Generation Z. And, although many are reluctant to make the jump to PS5 and Xbox Series, there is certainly a large base of players who continues to enjoy his hobby through old-gen. Now, does that mean that video game companies can maintain their lifelong strategy? Not at all; As we have explained in the last paragraphs, the big brands in the sector are expanding its sights to adapt to the new tastes of Gen Z and younger groups of players. So, although the outlook is not as worrying as we were led to think with the data from Japan, there is no doubt that curves are coming in the video game sector.

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