A recent report from the esteemed research firm Newzoo suggests that while the battle royale genre may be experiencing a contraction, Fortnite remains a dominant force within it. According to the Newzoo PC & Console Gaming Report 2025, the battle royale genre has seen a decline in playtime, dropping from 19% of total playtime in 2021 to 12% in 2024.
Newzoo's Game Performance Monitor, which analyzes 37 markets (excluding China and India) across PC, PlayStation, and Xbox platforms, indicates that shooter games and battle royale games together typically account for 40% of total playtime. As the playtime dedicated to battle royale games decreases, there has been a corresponding increase in playtime for shooter games.
Despite the genre's overall decline by 7%, Fortnite's share within the battle royale space has significantly expanded. In 2021, Fortnite held a 43% share of the battle royale genre, which surged to a commanding 77% by 2024. This indicates that even as the genre's popularity wanes, Fortnite has managed to capture an increasingly larger portion of its audience.
Simultaneously, role-playing games (RPGs) have experienced a notable rise 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.
The battle for player attention is intensifying, as noted by Newzoo. While stalwarts like Fortnite, Call of Duty: Warzone, and Apex Legends continue to thrive, other games struggle to maintain relevance. Meanwhile, both shooters and RPGs are gaining more ground and capturing more mindshare. The success of notable titles in these genres, such as Marvel Rivals and Baldur's Gate 3, underscores this trend.
Fortnite's resilience in the face of declining genre playtime can be attributed to its continuous evolution through updates, changes, and an expanding array of gaming experiences and genres. As audience interests evolve over time, it will be intriguing to observe how these trends continue to shift and adapt in the coming years.
