Spending on Nintendo Switch 2 Game-Key Cards surged 631% in the U.S. during 2026, offsetting declines in other physical media and boosting total physical media sales by 5%. Major releases like Elden Ring: Tarnished Edition drove adoption, with Switch 2 also leading U.S. hardware sales in units and dollars.
U.S. spending on new physical video games rose 5 percent year-over-year in 2026, driven largely by a 631 percent surge in game-key card sales and the Switch 2 launch, though overall August content spending fell 10 percent due to mobile declines. NBA 2K27 was the top-selling game of August, with notable jumps for Elden Ring and Spider-Man 2 following their respective releases.