How much should games cost? The players voted with their wallets

The gaming industry has been repeating for years that production is becoming more and more expensive and time-consuming, which should translate into an increase in the prices of new productions. In fact, some developers have already decided to do so and paying over PLN 300 for new products is no longer surprising. However, players have a slightly different opinion on this, as shown by Newzoo’s report.

Newzoo’s report shows that the ideal price for the game today is $30 and below. More and more productions in this segment generate high profits, much of which is due to indie titles that have enjoyed great interest in recent months. The latest representative of this trend is Slay the Spire 2

In 2025, the number of PC games priced below $30 that generated over $5 million in revenue increased from 17 (in 2024) to 26. This is mainly due to high-profile indie hits, including Schedule I and Hollow Knight: Silksong.

Newzoo emphasizes that titles under $30 have an increasing share of PC gamers’ spending. And Steam, as the most open platform, attracts audiences with very dynamic tastes, which favors rapid popularity explosions.

This trend continues in 2026, a recent example of which is Slay the Spire 2. The production is available in early access and sold exclusively on the Valve platform. It sold over 3 million copies in its first week.

Newzoo attributes the success of such games not only to the price, but also to the “explosive” social effect. Within hours of launch, word spreads on social media and the number of concurrent players on Steam grows into the hundreds of thousands.