Gaming retirement: interest in consoles is decreasing in Russia
In the first nine months of 2026, sales of video game consoles in Russia did not increase compared to the same period last year. For comparison, the market has grown by about 8% annually since 2022. According to experts, without the release of GTA VI, scheduled for November 19, sales could have decreased by about 5%. Among the reasons for the stagnation in demand are Russians' desire to save on electronics and their preference for PCs and game consoles. In addition, buyers are deterred by restrictions on the Russian market and account blocking by manufacturers from unfriendly countries.
How is the demand for consoles changing?
The growth of the Russian video game console market has almost stopped. In the first nine months of 2026, about 1.05 million consoles were sold in the country, about the same as in the same period of 2025. This is evidenced by the data of the ICMR analytical company, which is cited in its materials by M.Video". Previously, the retailer recorded annual sales growth, but now demand is supported by the expectation of major game innovations and interest in upcoming releases.
—GTA VI is one of them: fans of the series have been waiting for the sequel for more than 10 years, and for many this is an event for which you can prepare in advance, update your console, and even schedule a day off at work," said the head of the Telecom and Gadgets department at M.Video" Nikita Tolpygin. — At the same time, the interest in the category is not limited to one game.
Over the past nine months, the Russian game console market has reached a plateau: total sales have remained virtually unchanged compared to last year, agrees Eldar Murtazin, a leading analyst at Mobile Research Group. At the same time, the market has grown by about 8% annually since 2022. He also noted that the upcoming premiere of GTA VI, scheduled for November 19, helped to reach the level of 2025: the expectation of the game stimulated sales in September and October. Without this factor, demand, according to his estimates, would be about 5% lower than a year earlier.
— Consoles have gone up in price, and buying devices priced from 60 thousand rubles carries serious risks. Users are afraid of blocking: due to the difficulties with registering subscriptions and creating foreign accounts, as well as the strict anti-fraud policy of the platforms, owners regularly face blocking of both accounts and the consoles themselves, the expert says.
According to him, Russian players increasingly prefer to build productive gaming PCs rather than buy consoles. This allows them to reduce infrastructural and financial risks.
OCS also notes a decrease in demand for consoles. According to the company's estimates, sales in 2026 may be 5-10% lower than in 2025. Over the year, devices have increased in price by an average of 1.5 times, which is why they have become less accessible to the mass consumer. The demand for PlayStation consoles is declining the most. Russians are switching to more affordable solutions, such as Microsoft's Xbox. In addition, consoles are coming to the Russian market in limited quantities.
However, demand for gaming PCs is also decreasing: buyers are deterred by the high cost of such systems, OCS added. Video cards with 8 GB of video memory can no longer cope with modern games, and models with 12 GB are working at the limit of their capabilities. At the same time, more productive video cards with 16 GB of memory cost from 100 thousand rubles. As a result, the budget for a gaming computer can easily exceed 400-500 thousand rubles, the company explained.
For domestic users, games are generally becoming more expensive. This is due both to the pricing policy of foreign publishers and to the increase in commissions of services through which games are resold, said Anton Fomin, head of retail projects at Marvel Distribution.
In the "Connection.ON" among the factors affecting sales, the constantly changing availability of games in the Russian Federation and in Russian is mentioned.
— New ideas from manufacturers to restrict the access of players from our country are becoming an additional argument in favor of the PC. It's not just about the locks themselves, but also about the accumulated uncertainty and irritation of gamers. In addition, not everyone is ready to play in English, and it is relatively easy to install custom Russifiers on a PC, including those with sufficiently high-quality AI voice acting. Of course, its quality varies greatly, but in the first week or two after the release of a major game, there are many options from different authors," the company noted.
What can heat up the market for game consoles
The demand for consoles is constrained by the cost of purchasing the device itself, games and subscriptions, as well as difficulties with payment, according to Leonid Drobyshevich, NTI technology expert. If a person already has a computer suitable for gaming, it is easier to postpone the purchase of a console. An additional factor is the limitations of digital stores, which reduce the attractiveness of consoles, the expert noted.
At the same time, more and more buyers are turning to the secondary market, Avito notes. Sales of used video game consoles increased by 23% over the year. Game Stick devices began to be bought by hand 2.3 times more often, Asus consoles — by 81%, Valve — by 57%, Anbernic — by 31%, Nintendo — by 19%, the company said.
— On average, a console costs 35-40% cheaper than a new one on the retail market. This allows you to purchase a more powerful device or several consoles for different tasks at once, without going beyond the budget," Avito explained.
By the end of the year, interest in consoles is likely to increase, the company predicts. Consoles are traditionally among the most popular New Year's gifts, so many people buy them in advance, during the autumn sales, to save money, they explained.
However, not all market participants are noticing the decline in demand for consoles. According to RWB, in October-November, the average number of orders for game consoles on Wildberries doubled compared to the same period last year. In addition to discounts, the upcoming release of the long-awaited GTA VI could affect sales growth.
"We should not forget about the impact of other expected new products: Sony's Wolverine exclusive and FIFA 2027, the main audience of which is currently using PlayStation," the company noted.
The development of the Steam ecosystem, including the Steam Deck and other devices at the junction of a portable console and a gaming PC, can also support the market, according to Svyaz.ON.
By the end of 2026, console sales may still be higher than current forecasts, OCS believes. Many users are waiting for the release of GTA VI and are ready to purchase a console specifically for this game, the company noted.
If demand remains weak at the end of the year, a moderate decline in sales is possible. However, there is no reason to confidently predict a deep decline yet, Leonid Drobyshevich believes. According to him, the estimate of a 5% decrease excluding GTA VI should be considered only as a scenario: the contribution of one game cannot be directly distinguished from the overall statistics.
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