Poki web gaming report: 53% of mobile studios plan browser ports within 12 months
Summary
Poki's 2026 State of Web Gaming report surveyed 2,000 players and 400 developers across the US and UK
53% of developers plan to port mobile games to browser within 12 months, vs 41% for PC/console
62% of web gamers downloaded or bought a game after first playing it on the web, rising to 72% among frequent players
27% of web gamers spend over $50/month across the gaming ecosystem, rising to 35% among frequent players
"Developers yet to move on web haven't got it wrong. But they increasingly risk being late to a new movement in games, where revenues are growing, players are staying, and gaming brands are unleashed to new audiences."
01
Browser is becoming the discovery layer mobile publishers lost to app stores
Poki's COO describes walled-garden app stores as "choking" discoverability for established titles
46% of developers already cite discovery as a core benefit of publishing to web
62% of web gamers downloaded or bought a game after first playing it in browser
"In a mature mobile market where launching new games is so uncertain, midsize and large publishers are looking for new pockets of growth for established titles."
02
Web gamers spend like console owners, not casual players
27% of web gamers spend over $50/month on games across the ecosystem, 35% among frequent players
42% own a PlayStation 4 or 5, 27% own Xbox, 27% own Switch or Switch 2
92% rate HTML5 games as high quality, removing the perception barrier that deterred publisher investment
iOS players skew to $11-$100 and $201+ monthly brackets; Android clusters at sub-$10 and $101-$200
03
Mobile-to-browser porting now leads cross-platform intent
53% of mobile developers plan to port to browser within 12 months, vs 41% for PC/console titles
Janssen names audience scale, not Unity porting ease, as the defining driver
Report contributors include Outfit7, HappyLander, Radical Play, and Burny Games
"Cross-platform development has changed from an expensive luxury into something that's often a baseline strategy, with engines making deployment simpler."
04
Web gaming is pulling attention away from social feeds
71% of web gamers say time on web games vs social media is stable (43%) or increasing (28%)
90% play web games while consuming other media, positioning browser as an additive layer
58% choose web games because they are free; 56% cite easy access
Janssen flags Australia and UK under-18 social media bans as a plausible but unconfirmed tailwind
Events
Companies
—
Games
—
Locations
—
COMPILED BY GAMES ATLAS EDITORIAL
RELATED ARTICLES
EXPLORE MORE
Mobile game revenue charts are broken: the AppsFlyer mobile game measurement problem is now an M&A blind spotSony's PlayStation PC port strategy reverses to protect PS5 hardware marginsESA gaming report 2026: 212M US players, but parental co-play and Gen Z IAP reveal the real strategic signalour Insights feed
Comments (0)
No comments yet. Be the first to share your thoughts!