The video game industry’s evolution toward live service models and microtransactions has fundamentally transformed what children want for the holidays. According to new research from the Entertainment Software Association released November 18, 2025, nearly three in five American children (58 percent) plan to ask for video game-related gifts this Christmas, with in-game currency topping the specific requests at 43 percent. This surpasses desires for gaming consoles (39 percent) and even actual video games (37 percent), signaling a generational shift where digital cosmetics and battle passes matter more to kids than the traditional hardware and software that defined gaming for decades. Parents planning to fulfill these wishes face an average spending commitment of 736.83 dollars on video game gifts, as they navigate a marketplace where Robux for Roblox, V-Bucks for Fortnite, FC Coins for EA Sports FC, and Minecraft coins have become the new must-have items replacing action figures and board games.
The Survey Methodology and Top Requests
The Entertainment Software Association surveyed over 700 children between ages 5 and 17 across the United States to understand their holiday gift preferences. The research revealed that video game-related items rank as the third most popular category overall behind money and gift cards (69 percent) and clothes and accessories (63 percent), demonstrating gaming’s continued cultural dominance among young people.
Within the gaming category, the breakdown shows striking preferences. In-game currency leads at 43 percent, followed by gaming consoles at 39 percent, and actual video games at 37 percent. Additional gaming-related requests include accessories, peripherals, and cosmetic items like character skins that don’t affect gameplay mechanics but allow personal expression within virtual spaces.
The gender split shows boys (76 percent) significantly more likely than girls (39 percent) to request video game gifts, though both genders participate in gaming culture at high rates. This gap likely reflects both genuine preference differences and lingering social conditioning about which hobbies are gender-appropriate, despite gaming becoming increasingly mainstream across demographics.
The survey’s age range from 5 to 17 years old encompasses vastly different developmental stages and gaming preferences. A five-year-old requesting Robux for Roblox represents a fundamentally different transaction than a seventeen-year-old wanting V-Bucks for Fortnite, though both fall under the same in-game currency umbrella in the data.
Why In-Game Currency Tops the List
The preference for in-game currency over consoles and games reflects several converging factors reshaping how children engage with entertainment. Many surveyed kids likely already own consoles and play free-to-play games like Fortnite, Roblox, Genshin Impact, and Apex Legends that require no upfront purchase. Since they can access these games without buying anything, their holiday wish lists naturally focus on enhancing existing experiences rather than acquiring new ones.
The social dynamics of online multiplayer games create powerful incentives to purchase cosmetic items. Children don’t just want to play games, they want to be seen within those games by peers and strangers. Wearing the latest exclusive skin, performing the newest emote, or displaying rare cosmetics signals status, taste, and dedication to the game’s community. For kids whose social lives increasingly occur within virtual spaces, these digital items carry real-world social currency.
The psychological design of modern free-to-play games expertly encourages spending. Battle passes create artificial scarcity by time-limiting rewards, forcing players to grind extensively or pay to skip tiers. Limited-time item shops rotate exclusive cosmetics that won’t return for months or ever, triggering FOMO (fear of missing out) that compels impulse purchases. Currency bundles offer poor conversion rates that leave odd amounts remaining in accounts, psychologically pushing additional purchases to avoid waste.
Parents buying in-game currency also face less friction than purchasing physical games or hardware. Gift cards for platform-specific currencies are readily available at grocery stores, gas stations, and online retailers. Digital codes deliver instantly via email without shipping delays or inventory shortages. The convenience factor makes in-game currency purchases easier to complete during busy holiday seasons.
The 736.83 Dollar Spending Figure
Parents planning to buy video game gifts this holiday season intend to spend an average of 736.83 dollars, according to the ESA survey. This substantial figure reflects both the breadth of gaming-related purchases beyond just currency (consoles, accessories, subscriptions, games) and the premium pricing that characterizes modern gaming ecosystems.
To contextualize this number: a PlayStation 5 or Xbox Series X costs around 500 dollars, meaning the average covers a console plus several games or substantial in-game currency. Alternatively, 736 dollars could purchase dozens of full-price games at 60 to 70 dollars each, though kids increasingly prefer a few free-to-play titles supplemented with microtransaction spending.
The figure also suggests many parents are buying for multiple children or combining birthday and holiday spending into one annual gaming budget. Families with two or three kids requesting different consoles, games, and currencies could easily exceed average spending trying to satisfy everyone’s wishes.
Whether parents actually spend that much remains to be seen. Stated intentions in surveys often exceed real behavior as budget constraints, competing priorities, and sticker shock at checkout reduce actual expenditures below planned amounts.
The Cultural Implications
That children prioritize virtual currency over tangible products signals profound shifts in how young people conceptualize value, ownership, and identity. Previous generations treasured physical possessions, physical toys, games, and collectibles that could be held, displayed, and permanently owned. Today’s children increasingly invest in ephemeral digital goods that exist only while game servers remain online and accounts stay active.
This transition raises philosophical questions about what we actually own in digital economies. Purchasing V-Bucks doesn’t grant ownership of anything but rather a revocable license to access cosmetic items within Epic Games’ [finance:Epic Games, Inc.] Fortnite ecosystem. If Epic shuts down Fortnite servers or bans an account, all purchased items vanish instantly with no recourse or compensation.
The trend also reveals gaming’s evolution from product to service. Traditional games were self-contained products purchased once and owned forever. Modern free-to-play games function as ongoing services monetizing players through continuous microtransaction spending. Children requesting in-game currency internalize this service model as normal rather than the exploitation many adult gamers perceive it to be.
From a developmental perspective, children spending formative years in virtual economies where social status derives from purchased cosmetics may develop different relationships with money, status, and material goods than previous generations. Whether this proves beneficial, harmful, or neutral remains unknown as we’re witnessing the first generation growing up entirely immersed in microtransaction-based gaming.
Concerns About Spending Habits
Parents, educators, and child development experts have raised concerns about children as young as five requesting in-game currency for Christmas. The Entertainment Software Association data showing 43 percent of surveyed kids wanting virtual currency suggests widespread normalization of microtransaction spending among demographics with limited financial literacy and impulse control.
Young children struggle understanding that real money converts to virtual currency that purchases digital items with no resale value. The abstraction layers separating dollars from V-Bucks from cosmetic skins obscure the actual costs, making overspending easier than with cash transactions where physical money leaves hands.
Games targeting children employ psychological techniques developed for adult gamblers. Loot boxes offering randomized rewards create variable reward schedules that trigger dopamine responses identical to slot machines. Even cosmetic-only battle passes exploit sunk cost fallacy, where players continue grinding to avoid wasting money already spent on passes they didn’t complete.
The social pressure to own specific cosmetics can lead to bullying and exclusion. Children without rare skins face mockery from peers who equate virtual possessions with personal worth. This creates incentives for kids to pester parents for money to avoid social ostracization within games that claim to be free and accessible to everyone.
The Industry Perspective
From publishers’ viewpoint, children requesting in-game currency validates the free-to-play business model’s success. Rather than selling sixty-dollar games to small audiences, companies distribute free games to massive player bases and monetize through microtransactions that generate higher lifetime values from engaged players.
Epic Games generates billions annually from Fortnite’s cosmetic sales despite charging nothing for gameplay access. Roblox Corporation [finance:Roblox Corporation] built a multibillion-dollar business letting kids create games and purchase virtual items with Robux. EA Sports FC, Genshin Impact, and countless mobile games follow similar models where the game is free but looking cool costs money.
The industry argues this democratizes gaming by removing upfront barriers while letting players choose their spending levels. Children from lower-income families can enjoy identical gameplay as wealthier peers without buying expensive hardware or games, with cosmetic purchases remaining optional rather than mandatory.
However, critics counter that free-to-play games exploit psychological vulnerabilities to maximize spending, particularly among children with developing executive function and impulse control. The ESA survey showing kids prefer currency over games suggests these monetization strategies successfully shaped preferences toward profitable outcomes for publishers.
Parent Strategies for Managing Requests
Parents navigating children’s in-game currency requests face balancing legitimate desires with financial responsibility and healthy gaming habits. Several strategies can help manage these situations constructively rather than through blanket approval or prohibition.
Setting clear budgets for gaming expenses teaches financial literacy while accommodating reasonable requests. Allocating a specific monthly or quarterly amount for in-game purchases gives children agency to prioritize spending within constraints, developing decision-making skills about what items matter most.
Requiring kids to earn currency through chores, grades, or other achievements ties virtual rewards to real-world effort. This creates healthier associations between work and compensation while reducing entitlement attitudes about receiving digital goods simply for asking.
Discussing opportunity costs helps children understand tradeoffs. Explaining that twenty dollars spent on V-Bucks could alternatively buy a discounted game, book, or experience encourages evaluating whether cosmetic skins provide comparable value to alternatives.
Monitoring spending patterns and having honest conversations about marketing tactics builds media literacy. Helping kids recognize how games psychologically manipulate them toward purchases empowers more thoughtful consumption rather than reactive impulse buying.
Frequently Asked Questions
What percentage of US kids want in-game currency for Christmas?
According to the Entertainment Software Association survey, 43 percent of children ages 5-17 want in-game currency as holiday gifts, making it the top gaming-related request ahead of consoles and actual games.
What is in-game currency?
In-game currency refers to virtual money used within video games to purchase cosmetic items, battle passes, and other digital goods. Examples include V-Bucks for Fortnite, Robux for Roblox, and FC Coins for EA Sports FC.
How much are parents spending on gaming gifts?
Parents planning to buy video game gifts intend to spend an average of 736.83 dollars this holiday season, according to the ESA survey of over 700 children.
Why do kids prefer in-game currency over actual games?
Many kids already own consoles and play free-to-play games that don’t require purchasing. They want in-game currency to buy cosmetic items that provide social status within these games they already play daily.
What are the most popular in-game currencies kids want?
The most requested in-game currencies include Robux for Roblox, V-Bucks for Fortnite, FC Coins for EA Sports FC, and Minecraft coins, though specific games vary by age group and platform.
Is in-game currency safe for kids?
While the currency itself is safe, concerns exist about children developing unhealthy spending habits, psychological manipulation through game design, and social pressure to purchase cosmetics to avoid bullying or exclusion.
Can you get refunds on in-game currency?
Refund policies vary by platform and game, but most in-game currency purchases are non-refundable once redeemed. Parents should carefully consider purchases before completing transactions.
Conclusion
The fact that 43 percent of American children prefer in-game currency over consoles or games represents more than a holiday shopping trend. It signals fundamental transformation in how young people relate to entertainment, value, and social connection within increasingly digital lives. Whether this evolution toward virtual economies and ephemeral possessions proves beneficial or harmful for child development remains an open question that won’t be answered for years as this generation matures. For now, parents face the immediate challenge of navigating wishes for Robux and V-Bucks while teaching financial literacy and healthy gaming habits in an industry designed to maximize spending. This Christmas, the hottest gifts aren’t under the tree but downloaded directly onto devices, invisible yet deeply meaningful to kids whose social worlds exist as much in Fortnite and Roblox as in physical classrooms and playgrounds.