The Pesquisa Game Brasil (PGB) just released its newest edition, with the 2025 survey on the behavior of digital gaming consumers. This year, PGB interviewed about 6,282 people in Brazil, in 26 states and the Federal District, between the months of January and February. The study is developed by SX Group and Go Gamers in partnership with Blend New Research and ESPM. Among the new features for 2025, the survey brings three major innovations to its approach:
- Generational segmentation: more precise parameters were implemented to understand the specific behaviors of Generation Z (individuals between 15 and 29 years old), Millennials (between 30 and 44 years old), and other generational segments, allowing for deeper analysis on consumption, preferences, and gaming habits;
- Greater detail in consumer journey: the understanding of how games are part of players’ routines was expanded, generating more insights about the gamer audience’s relationship with products, services, and experiences offered by the market.
- Refinement of the ‘Parents and Children’ study: PGB now provides more detailed information on children’s consumption of games, ensuring a more precise look into how children interact with the world of digital games and their purchasing habits;
With these developments, PGB 2025 was able to identify that 82.8% of Brazilians claim to consume digital games, 8.9 percentage points more than in 2024 and the highest number and increase ever recorded by the study.
For the first time, games of chance appeared in various responses during the survey period. “Casinos and online betting games, such as ‘Jogo do Tigrinho,’ made a presence by attracting an engaged audience, willing to spend and motivated by financial, emotional, and social factors,” explains Guilherme Camargo, CEO of SX Group and coordinator of ESPM’s postgraduate program.
“But precisely because the game is solely focused on luck, and since many of them also appeal to the emotional and financial state of those who ‘play,’ here we seek to understand what really motivates the consumer who seeks this type of entertainment, and why they view games of chance in a similar way to digital games,” concludes Camargo.
Another factor, according to the research, is directly related to the consumption of games on computers and game subscription services. The increase in household income and the decrease in unemployment rates contributed to higher entertainment consumption, in addition to the fact that computer sales skyrocketed in 2024.
PGB also presents the data that 88.8% of the respondents consider digital games one of their main forms of entertainment, with 80.1% considering games the main way to have fun.
Player Profile
“This year, we were able to observe, in practice, how certain economic movements also affected some pointers of the PGB, especially regarding the profile of those who consume digital games,” says Carlos Silva, CEO of Go Gamers, the creator of PGB. “With an improvement in players’ purchasing power, we noticed that games now occupy a larger space in the routine of Brazilians, driven by purchases of hardware, software, subscriptions, microtransactions, and investments, thus expanding the experience beyond games.”
The changes in the demographic profile of players were noticeable:
- The number of women playing digital games increased by 2.3% compared to last year, reaching 53.2% of the consumer public for this type of entertainment;
- The majority of the gaming audience are Millennials (between 30 and 44 years old), representing 49.4% of the sample;
- The middle class represents the majority of players, with 44.4% concentrated among classes B2, C1, and C2. However, there was a 1.8% decrease compared to the previous edition of the PGB;
- The higher-income classes grew, with the class A representing 17.1% of the sample (+1.2% compared to 2024), and the B1 with 19.3% (7.7% more than last year);
- The classes D and E had a significant increase of12.8% in one year, reaching20.3% of the sample;
- Currently, individuals who identify as white are the majority of digital game consumers (53.9%), while black and brown individuals represent43.9%.
The preferred platform for consumers continues to be the smartphone, at 40.8%. However, the number decreased by 8 percentage points compared to the previous edition. At the same time, preference for the console increased by 3 percentage points (reaching 24.7%); and the computer by 5.5 points (reaching 20.3%). Looking at gender breakdowns, women remain the majority of smartphone game consumers, representing 48.4%, while men, 32.2%. However, men continue to be the majority among those who consider themselves gamers, and they show a preference for playing on the computer (36.1%).
Games of chance and their impact on digital game consumption
The numbers are quite significant: 38.2% of the respondents claim to play recreational luck-based games, indicating a relevant presence of this segment in the gaming market. In terms of how often they gamble, 39% play at least once a week, with 14.2% playing four times or more weekly. The vast majority (89.9%) invest money in these games, with 34.6% spending between R$51 and R$200 monthly; 8.6% of the gamblers spend over R$500 per month. The time spent on luck games is also considerable: 70.2% of players dedicate up to 3 hours per week, while 19.5% play more than 3 hours weekly.
“Of course, due to the very name given to these games and the presence of microtransactions in them, it’s natural that part of the public also considers casino games as a form of entertainment, and this is also reflected in the PGB 2025 results,” explains Guilherme Camargo.
The motivational factor that this type of game causes in the public was also discussed. Around 30.4% seek the thrill of victory, and 29% use the game as a way to relax. However, the biggest motivation is always to earn more money (43.9% play for that), and 24.7% see bets in these games as “an investment to increase income.”
According to Carlos Silva, it is not possible to say that games of luck are equivalent to digital games for entertainment. “The only reason for these games to exist is for the person to invest an amount of money and expect to receive more than they spent, with an entertainment bias. Digital games are not just about money transactions; there is something much bigger in terms of narrative construction, characters, and others – microtransactions are parts of the experience, and the motivations that lead someone to bet on these games and play digital games are different.”
The relationship of parents and children with digital games
This year, the Pesquisa Game Brasil conducted a refinement in the “Parents and Children” panel to understand how children and teenagers have related to and consumed digital games. Through parents who participated in the study, it was identified that the so-called Alpha Generation (between 0 and 14 years old) already differs in several aspects compared to previous ones, starting with the use of platforms: 38.3% of them opt for console games, while the trend among older generations is the preference for smartphones.
“For some years now, we have been following the relationship between parents, children, and games, where most parents play with their children and teenagers, creating the culture of digital games in the family environment,” says Mauro Berimbau, consultant at Go Gamers and professor at ESPM.
Among the young, 53.6% are between 10 to 15 years old, and 21.8% of them play between 8 and 20 hours weekly. Nearly half of Generation Alpha (42.7%) play online daily, and 19.2% of them claim to have spent between R$ 101 and R$ 300 on games in the last year.
“Generation Alpha already has contact with digital games from a very young age, being active, engaged, and following the news in the digital gaming ecosystem,” concludes Berimbau.
The PGB 2025 is now available. To access the complete free report, click here.
