PC & Console Predictions in 2026

Industry Trends

APAC Continues to Gain Market Share

The influence of the APAC region is no longer speculative—it is now firmly established. Genres such as souls-likes, and increasingly others, are dominated by APAC-based developers and players. Lower production costs, combined with rising technical polish and AAA ambitions, have led to a growing number of high-quality releases from the region. This momentum is expected to continue into 2026.

Reduction in Development Time

The era of 6–10 year development cycles is beginning to contract. Pressure from indie developers, alongside recent high-profile failures of long-cycle AAA projects, is forcing change. Advances in game engines, wider use of AI tools, and growing acceptance that not every game needs to be a 200+ hour ultra-realistic open world experience will help shorten production timelines—benefiting developers, publishers, and players alike.

AI Tools Become Industry Standard

AI tools are increasingly unavoidable. As more AAA, AA, and indie titles openly tag themselves as “AI-assisted” on platforms like Steam, resistance is becoming harder to justify. These tools will support project management, concept development, writing, asset creation, coding, and QA—gradually becoming standard across the industry.

Steam Release Volume Accelerates

Improved tooling and smaller, more efficient teams will continue to increase the number of games released on Steam. While this democratization is positive, it further exacerbates discoverability challenges, making marketing, community-building, and platform curation more critical than ever.

Pricing Models

Episodic Pricing Makes a Comeback

Dispatch has demonstrated that episodic pricing can succeed when paired with strong execution and a reliable content cadence. The failure of episodic games in the past was less about the model itself and more about inconsistent delivery and value perception. Expect multiple attempts to replicate this approach in 2026.

“Buy Now, Pay Later” Sees Wider Adoption

By 2026, “Buy Now, Pay Later” (BNPL)–style experiences will become a more normalized monetization model across PC and console games, particularly outside of traditional premium AAA releases. As player price sensitivity increases and competition for attention intensifies, developers and publishers will increasingly look for ways to lower upfront friction without fully committing to free-to-play economies. Several forces will push BNPL adoption forward. First, the sheer volume of releases on PC storefronts makes convincing players to commit upfront increasingly difficult. Second, rising premium price points have conditioned players to expect clearer value before paying. Finally, improved backend tooling and platform support make flexible monetization models easier to implement without the heavy design overhead associated with live-service systems.

Continued Diversification of Premium Price Points

The uniform $60 price point is firmly dead. By 2026, pricing will span a wide spectrum:

• $100+ tentpole releases (e.g., GTA VI)

• ~$80 as the new AAA standard

• $50–70 for large AA titles selling millions of units

• $20–50 for co-op and social games

• $5–20 for breakout indie hits

This fragmentation reflects both rising production costs and more nuanced player value expectations.

Genre Trends

“Friendslop” Becomes an Established Subgenre

The success of titles such as Peak, RV There Yet?, and R.E.P.O. highlights a growing appetite for lo-fi, social co-op experiences. These games benefit from faster development cycles and, when marketed effectively, can deliver outsized returns. By 2026, this style of game will be firmly established as a repeatable subgenre rather than a passing trend.

Wider Industry Outlook

New Engines Squeezed by Unity / Unreal Collaboration

A closer partnership between Unity and Unreal is likely to reshape the engine ecosystem. While this presents clear advantages for developers and players through standardization and improved tooling, it may also stifle the growth of newer or open-source engine alternatives as industry practices consolidate around the two dominant players.

Xbox Faces Continued Pressure and Price Increases

Microsoft enters 2026 under significant strain. Hardware sales remain sluggish, and the arrival of Steam Machines compounds existing concerns about Xbox’s long-term commitment to consoles. First-party output has underperformed, with few studios beyond Obsidian Entertainment and MachineGames positioned for standout success. Even Call of Duty no longer guarantees momentum under the Xbox banner. As innovation slows and investor pressure mounts, further Game Pass price increases appear likely.

Remakes and Remasters Accelerate

Publishers will increasingly mine their back catalogs, capitalizing on proven IP and nostalgia-driven demand. With lower risk and predictable returns, remakes and remasters will continue to surge as a core release strategy.

PlayStation to Enter the Handheld Market

Longstanding rumors of a dedicated PlayStation handheld are gaining credibility. Positive reception to Xbox’s collaboration with ROG, strong sentiment around portable PlayStation experiences, and continued growth driven by the Nintendo Switch 2 and Steam Deck all point toward Sony finally entering the handheld space in earnest.