The Top Game Publisher of 2025 Won By a Truly Ridiculous Amount

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The video game industry is currently experiencing a strange mix of high profits and rising expenses. Even very successful companies aren’t necessarily secure, and in the independent game scene, some games thrive while others disappear. Overall, gaming continues to be a rapidly expanding industry, particularly with the growing popularity of mobile games.

In 2025, established publishers still did well, but mobile game developers actually generated more overall revenue. One company, in particular, significantly outperformed all others, demonstrating that the industry’s shift towards mobile gaming is now a permanent trend.

Tencent Was The World’s Most Successful Game Publisher In 2025

In 2025, Tencent was the most financially successful game publisher globally, earning an impressive $8.75 billion. A major factor in their success was their strong performance in the mobile gaming market, which now accounts for around half of all gaming revenue. While companies like EA, Take-Two Interactive, and Capcom led the way in console and PC gaming in America, Nintendo and other publishers performed better in regions like the UK and Japan.

In 2025, Tencent was the most successful gaming company worldwide, largely due to its strong position in the mobile market. It significantly outperformed other mobile-focused publishers, earning billions more in revenue. Two of its mobile games, Last War: Survival ($2.12 billion) and Honor of Kings ($1.31 billion), were among the top three highest-grossing games globally. Beyond mobile, Tencent also fully owned the popular game League of Legends and had a stake in major titles like Fortnite. With a total of 1.41 billion downloads across mobile platforms, Tencent’s games continued to attract new players.

How Tencent’s Success Compares To Other Game Publishers (And What It Means For The Future)

Honestly, even looking at the giants in gaming, Tencent’s rise is just incredible. I think their big move was really focusing on mobile games. It’s way cheaper to make a mobile game than a huge AAA title like you see from EA, and that probably gave them a real edge. Plus, they’re not putting all their eggs in one basket. They’ve got everything from quick, fun games like Last War: Survival to massive esports titles like League of Legends. That means they’re not reliant on just one type of game to bring in the money, which is super smart.

Companies like Nintendo faced unusual circumstances, such as the release of the Switch 2, which made it harder to get clear financial results. However, Tencent’s large profits also show how the gaming industry is changing. Free-to-play and mobile games performed exceptionally well, while even popular titles like Borderlands 4 didn’t meet expectations. Mobile gaming has its own difficulties, particularly when it comes to appealing to younger audiences, which can create problems – as Roblox constantly experiences, despite being the most downloaded mobile game of 2025.

Mobile gaming is becoming increasingly dominant, with the rest of the gaming market divided between consoles and PCs. Because of Tencent’s success, mobile games are expected to continue being the primary way games are developed, particularly for new titles seeking a large and consistent player base. While dedicated home gamers will likely always prefer immersive experiences on consoles and PCs, Tencent’s performance suggests mobile gaming will remain central to the industry.

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2025-12-30 20:14