A Q1 2026 survey by market research firm Circana reveals that 41 percent of gamers play on consoles for exclusive titles. This marks an eight-point drop from last year, though it remains the leading factor. Other reasons like friends and family gaming on the same platform trail closely at 38 percent.
The Circana Q1 Future of Video Games consumer survey polled 2,500 active US video game players aged 13 and older, weighted by platform use and investment. When asked why they play games on consoles, 41 percent cited exclusive games unavailable elsewhere. This figure is down from 49 percent in Q1 2025. Friends and family also play on consoles at 38 percent, easier play with them at 37 percent, casual living room gaming at 36 percent, and physical game options at 24 percent, according to Mat Piscatella, Circana's senior director and video game industry advisor. Piscatella posted the results on Bluesky, noting, “this isn’t the whole story.” He added that the close results explain the ongoing debate over exclusives' importance: “The real answer is that everything matters.” Christopher Dring of The Game Business linked the data to console makers' strategies, observing that Xbox and PlayStation appear to be reducing ports of titles like Halo, Gears, Spider-Man, and God of War to rivals after modest sales for some, such as Starfield's estimated 200,000 copies on PS5. Newly appointed Xbox boss Asha Sharma told Game File, “I want to make the right decision, not the fastest decision,” on reevaluating exclusives. PlayStation's top sellers include third-party games, aligning with social factors over exclusives alone. Exclusives have driven hardware sales before, like the 116 percent PS5 spike in Japan during God of War Ragnarök's November 2022 release.
