This year, global games revenue is expected to rise by about 5 %, barely beating inflation. This means that, for the first time in a long time, many game developers are clawing growth from rivals rather than the market. In addition, PC spending fell 10% and console spending 15% last year, and over the past month, Xbox and PlayStation have hiked prices to cover parts and tariffs.

Meanwhile, acquisition costs bite. Mobile CPIs hover at $2-$6, and Meta installs cost 126% more than a year ago. Salaries, tooling, cloud—all up. However, there is an upside: brand money is still flowing! 

Global ad spend is set to climb around 6% this year, led by digital, and it’s been proven time and time again that games deliver attention and conversion rates that banner ads can only dream of.

So, how do you turn that brand appetite into revenue?

In our new 2025 Intrinsic In-Game Advertising Key Trends Report, we crunched data from 105 titles and 333 campaigns to reveal just that. Picking out the insights that really matter to game developers. We’ve broken down five actions below that you can take to help boost revenue right now.

1  |  Own the Sports Cycle

Sports titles deliver a double win: time and price. 

According to our research, players stay put for 6.1 minutes per session in sports titles, 2.1× longer than average, so each placement earns more eyeballs and the highest CPMs than any other genre.

If you run a sports title, to capitalize on this opportunity, locking in sponsorships around kickoff, playoffs, and transfer windows means you’re converting predictable real-world hype into premium, repeatable revenue instead of just chasing one-off spikes.

2  |  Prep Early for the Q4 CPM Surge

Thanksgiving, Black Friday, Cyber Monday, and the Christmas lead-up are huge sales periods for many brands. As a result, holiday ad budgets hit their stride in Q4, pushing CPMs roughly 45% above the annual norm. 

To capitalize on this opportunity, game developers should try to lock inventory and seasonal creatives in early and let their ad provider know about upcoming in-game seasonal events that brands might want to run ads alongside. This will help them command premium rates before the end-of-the-year scramble and keep every cent of the uplift.

3  |  Double Down on High-Value Regions

When it comes to location data, the report shows that a US or European impression can pay up to four times more than one in APAC because many brands seek to reach audiences within these areas.

By steering user acquisition towards audiences within these sought-after regions, you can multiply your ARPDAU instantly without shipping a single new feature.

One thing to note on this point is that Anzu predominantly serves US and European advertisers, and APAC is largely focused on Australia when it comes to the data. So there may be a sampling bias in player engagement and CPMs. 

4  |  Ride Real-World Hype in Racing

The report shows that engagement soars when the F1 lights go green, with viewers rushing to their favorite games to race along with the pros.

If you run a racing title, syncing in-game events and updates with the real-world racing calendar channels fan fever straight into your revenue stream, making your titles even more attractive to advertisers looking to reach fans peak, pre, and post-season.

This also doesn’t just apply to racing games. Sports titles in general can jump on this trend, timing updates and new feature releases alongside major real-world sporting events to help brands extend their reach beyond physical stadiums.

5  |  Balance Your Genre Mix

Sports and racing top the charts, but simulation and action still deliver healthy dwell times. 

If you have a large game portfolio, distributing ad placements across games of many different genres can help even out revenue peaks throughout the year and keep brands spending even when one category cools.

Using These Insights

In today’s competitive market, game developers need every advantage to drive growth and maximize revenue. By tapping into the power of sports cycles, preparing for seasonal surges, targeting high-value regions, syncing with real-world events, and balancing your genre mix, they can turn these proven insights into actionable strategies. 

With brand ad budgets on the rise, now is the time to leverage these data hacks and turn attention into long-term success.

To read the full report and unlock even more insights, download it for free here.