Revenue growth: games and puzzles to grow faster than the entire toy market in 2026
From January to October 2026, sales of games and puzzles in Germany rose by eight percent. The entire toy market grew by three percent.
Card games (48 percent) as well as family and adult games (38 percent) are among the biggest growth drivers, followed by party games (33 percent). This was reported by the specialist group for game publishers, citing data from the market research institute Circana. As in previous years, the specialist group does not provide specific sales figures.
Hitster and Trading Card Games as sales drivers
“Games & Puzzle has been one of the strongest sales drivers in the year to date. Adult Games in particular grew by over 20 percent in the first three quarters, partly thanks to a music party game. Strategic Trading Cards, which have been growing for years, achieved a 17 percent increase,” explains Joachim Stempfle from Circana.
Trading Card Games, or collectible card games, have long been a sales driver. Take Asmodee, for example: from April to June 2026, the company generated €102.8 million with board games, while Trading Card Games brought in €284.8 million.
The music game is likely to be Hitster. According to Jumbo, more than 1.6 million cards are scanned daily to play music. Jumbo manages the brand and regularly releases new versions. In autumn 2026, for example, Hitster - Flying Mic. Other publishers are trying to capitalise on the trend and are launching their own music games.
“Over the past two decades, cooperative and escape games have dominated the market,” writes the specialist group. Now the focus is shifting to communication games. The “Spiel des Jahres 2026” is also one of them. In Dito!, the aim is to guess the associations of the other players.
“Six years ago, during the Corona pandemic, our industry experienced an unprecedented boom that could not be sustained at that pace. However, the last two years have shown that the trend towards games remains unbroken and that the industry has succeeded in reaching new target groups.”
Herman Hutter, Chairman of the Board, Specialist Group for Game Publishers
Game publishers focus on the book trade
The publishers are optimistic about the future. This is shown by the second “Board Games Index” (BGI). For the BGI, data from members of the specialist group and other companies in the industry were evaluated. 90 percent of the publishers surveyed expect stable, moderate or strong growth in sales for 2026. 81 percent believe the overall market for card, board and party games as well as puzzles will perform similarly. 86 percent anticipate a stable or better Christmas business. The industry generates a large part of its sales before Christmas.
The specialist retail trade remains a key to success. 61 percent of companies see it as an important place to discover and try out games. "The industry is also relying on a new player from the book trade, which, with its branches, could bring card, board and party games as well as puzzles more into consumers’ everyday lives," writes the specialist group.
This refers to Thalia. After taking over the locations of Spielwaren Krömer and Toysino at the beginning of the 2025/26 financial year, the company is expanding its network in the toy trade under the brand “Spielzeit by Thalia”. Currently, 41 stores are part of it.
"The development at Thalia proves that party games fit perfectly into the range of bookshops and have great potential there. However, we are not only observing this development at Thalia. The book trade is increasingly expanding its range beyond books."
Dagmar Becker-Göthel, publisher at arsEdition, in the DVSI interview
Artificial intelligence: Publishers see potential
Despite difficult conditions – such as rising energy costs, higher taxes and consumer restraint – the surveyed publishers continue to invest. 50 percent are focusing on international expansion. The biggest challenges remain bureaucracy and regulation (62 percent) as well as consumer sentiment (57 percent). The new Packaging and Packaging Waste Regulation (PPWR), which has been in force since August 2026, is causing additional costs and bureaucracy. 94 percent of companies criticise that the federal government’s reforms to date are not sufficient to secure long-term growth.
Despite the increasing internationalisation of the industry, regional preferences remain influential. Europe stands for sophisticated game concepts, while North America prefers mass-market offerings. In North America, licensed games (44 percent), party games (28 percent) and Trading Cards (17 percent) dominate. Europe scores with designer, strategy and expert games (61 percent each).
According to the surveyed companies, economic success does not depend solely on innovative ideas. Attractive design (70 percent), simple fun (70 percent) and fair prices (65 percent) also play a central role. Artificial intelligence could also help: 44 percent of publishers see potential in AI-generated tutorials, 33 percent in improved game rules and other innovations in game development.