I promise I’m only sharing a fraction of the albums that come out and that I listen to (because, yes, I listen to absolutely everything that hits my radar). I keep a daily spreadsheet where I log every release. After listening, I decide—depending on my mood and current tastes—whether or not to write an article about it. That’s the curation side of things. But the other part of my job is to capture the best possible snapshot of the video game music industry throughout the year.
After an absolutely exceptional February, March has broken previous years' records yet again. Since I started seriously collecting VGM data in 2023, this has quite simply been the hottest start to a year ever recorded. You can check out all the updated VGM data on my dashboard.
March 2026 saw no fewer than 120 new albums hit platforms, compared to 90 in 2025. This brings the average number of monthly releases to 93.3 (up 9 points from February’s count). Orchestral music remains the most represented, followed closely by what I call "downtempo"—basically, mellow music that’s great for working. Compared to the same period last year, rock and jazz have dropped off a bit.
Unsurprisingly, Japan remains the world’s top VGM provider, followed closely by the US, while China continues to gain significant market share. I’ve noticed a great increase in diverse sound teams in my count. While my methodology is obviously a work in progress, I’m thrilled to see the share of female and non-binary composers growing in the VGM world. Finally, as we start April, Final Fantasy VII Rebirth remains the longest album released in 2026, with 175 tracks.
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