The Rise of Affordable Games on Steam Puts $70 Titles at Greater Risk

The 2026 PC and Console Gaming Report from a prominent video game analytics firm is packed with intriguing insights, ranging from the decline in subscription-based MMORPG revenue to the top 20 games with the most playtime on Xbox and PlayStation. However, the standout statistic is the remarkable 156 percent increase in “sub-$30” purchases on PC from 2022 to 2025.

Released on March 12, the report reveals a significant trend: “Steam-led PC growth” is projected to push PC game sales past the total revenue of console game sales by 2028. This isn’t just a vague prediction—it’s estimated that PC game sales will surpass the combined sales of the Nintendo Switch 2, PlayStation 5, and Xbox Series S/X by that year.

This projection focuses solely on game purchases. The report highlights that Nintendo, Microsoft, and Sony continue to rake in substantial revenue from subscription services like PlayStation Plus and Xbox Game Pass, which Steam does not provide. Nonetheless, the statistic is striking, prompting questions about the factors driving the growth of PC game sales. The answer? Affordable games.

When referring to “cheaper” games, the report specifies that it’s not about discounts; rather, it’s the full-priced games retailing below “sub-$30” that are fueling this trend. In 2025, a notable portion of PC’s top sub-$30 games contributed to 3.2 percent of the market.

New releases priced under $30 also represented about 9 percent of PC’s total revenue in 2025. Additionally, these games accounted for 32 percent of PC’s revenue distribution based on launch MSRP. In contrast, sub-$30 games made up only 7 percent of PlayStation’s revenue distribution and 9 percent for Xbox.

Ben Porter, a director of consulting at the analytics firm, explained that this trend is partly due to the “cycles” of console generations. “It doesn’t grow in the same way as console, because consoles have these cycles: You have a console generation, and you’ll see upgrades, and then you’ll see changes in people’s spending behaviors around this.” It will be interesting to see how much of the sub-$30 statistic is influenced by Slay the Spire 2 in the 2027 report.