A recent report from the renowned research firm Newzoo sheds light on the evolving landscape of the battle royale genre, suggesting a contraction in its popularity. Despite this trend, Fortnite continues to demonstrate remarkable resilience and growth within the sector.
According to Newzoo's PC & Console Gaming Report 2025, the battle royale genre has experienced a decline in playtime, dropping from 19% of total gaming hours in 2021 to 12% in 2024. This data was gathered from Newzoo's Game Performance Monitor, which tracks gaming activity across 37 markets (excluding China and India) on PC, PlayStation, and Xbox platforms. Interestingly, as the battle royale genre's share of playtime has decreased, the overall playtime for shooter games has increased, maintaining a combined total of 40% of playtime with battle royale games.
Despite the genre's overall decline, Fortnite has significantly expanded its dominance within the battle royale space. The game's share of the genre increased dramatically from 43% in 2021 to an impressive 77% in 2024. This suggests that while the battle royale genre as a whole is shrinking, Fortnite is capturing a larger portion of the remaining audience.
In addition to the shifts in the battle royale genre, role-playing games (RPGs) have also seen a surge in popularity, growing from a 9% share of playtime in 2021 to 13% in 2024. Newzoo highlighted that 18% of RPG playtime in 2024 was devoted to major releases from 2023, including standout titles such as Baldur's Gate 3, Diablo IV, Honkai: Star Rail, Hogwarts Legacy, and Starfield.
Newzoo's report underscores the competitive nature of the gaming industry, where titles like Fortnite, Call of Duty: Warzone, and Apex Legends continue to vie for player attention. At the same time, shooters and RPGs are gaining ground, with notable successes like Marvel Rivals and Baldur's Gate 3 capturing significant mindshare.
Fortnite's ability to maintain and even expand its market share can be attributed to its continuous evolution through updates, changes, and an expanding array of gaming experiences and genres within its ecosystem. As gaming trends evolve with shifting audience interests, it will be fascinating to observe how Fortnite and other leading titles adapt and thrive in the years to come.
