- The top 25 public companies by game revenue generated $107.3B USD in 2018, the highest ever.
- Tencent, Sony, Microsoft, Apple, and Activision Blizzard top the list by game revenue.
- Console games account for 38% of revenue for the top 25 companies in this report.
Newzoo 
has calculated the top 25 public companies by game revenue in 2018. These brands, led by Tencent , generated a combined total of $107.3B, an increase of 16% over 2017 and the first time the top 25 companies have exceeded the $100B mark.
The top 25 public companies by game revenue accounted for almost 80% of the entire $134.9B global games market, according to the report.
Despite China’s new game regulations enacted in 2018, Tencent accounted for nearly 15% of the market, earned $19.7B in revenue, and was the world’s top public company by game revenues for the sixth year in a row, according to Newzoo calculations.
Console led growth for the top 10 companies on Newzoo’s list, and it should come as no surprise that the revenue increase originated from the top three platform holders—Sony, Nintendo, and Microsoft.
Credit: Newzoo
Sony generated the second-highest revenues of $14.2B, a 41% YoY increase. Newzoo attributes the growth to a string of commercially successful PlayStation 4 exclusives such as God of War.
Related Article: How Tencent Was Impacted by China’s New Game Regulations in 2018
Microsoft rose one position to number three in 2018, overtaking Apple. The tech giant generated game-related revenues of $9.8B, an increase of 32% over 2017.
“The company has been making strides with its Xbox subscription services, Xbox Game Pass, and Xbox Live,” said Newzoo in the report. “Owing to this success, it is unsurprising that the company is starting to position Xbox as a service rather than a hardware platform.”
Thanks in part to the popularity of Nintendo Switch, Nintendo
earned revenues of $4.3 billion, a jump of 36% from 2017, and defended its place at number nine.
Credit: Newzoo
Capcom
made the list at number 25, growing 45% YoY to bring in $809M. Newzoo attributes these gains to the success of Monster Hunter: World. The company is expected to enjoy even more success in terms of revenue this year, following the Q1 releases of the Resident Evil 2 Remake and Devil May Cry 5.
Newzoo notes that continuously changing business models and high consumer expectations are creating challenges for traditionally large console publishers such as Activision Blizzard
, Electronic Arts (EA) , and Ubisoft.
Coming in at number five, Activision Blizzard’s $6.9B were gained by an increase of console revenues but offset by declines on mobile. Despite its struggles, Activision Blizzard rose two spots on Newzoo’s list compared to 2017. EA held its position at number eight with a modest 4% growth. Ubisoft rose two spots to number 13 with $2.2B in revenue.
Noteworthy changes that will impact future game revenues include Apple Arcade and Google’s Stadia platform, both scheduled for release this year.
Apple’s subscription service gives users access to a library of 100 new games for a monthly fee but does not include ads or microtransactions. Details are scarce for Google’s Stadia, but the idea is that Chrome browser users will have instant access to a variety of first- and third-party titles. Additional information about Stadia will be revealed this summer.
