What's the hottest video game around now? It all depends on who you talk to. Everyone has their favorite - and more and more often, it's not something like Call of Duty or Mario Cart, but instead something tied to, in the words of Obi-Wan Kenobi, "a larger world."
Yes, even as original video game IP continues to cross over into other realms, like Halo on Paramount+, Sonic, and the upcoming Super Mario Brothers animated film, many of the most searched for video games are still tied to bigger universes - like Star Wars, the MCU, and Sony's Spiderverse. But even among these leaders, there is a clear winner.
Star Wars games are the most trending in America, with seven states recording significant recent increases in searches for the franchise.
A study conducted by the online gaming platform Yahtzee Craze analyzed Google Trends to discover the top trending titles that appear alongside searches for "video games" to find which games fans have been Googling in each US state.
| Trending video games franchises in each state by game | |
| Game franchises | Number of states |
| Star Wars | 7 |
| Mario | 5 |
| Pokémon, Spider-Man | 4 |
| Resident Evil, Call of Duty | 3 |
| Warhammer 40,000, The Last of Us, Halo, Madden NFL, FIFA | 2 |
| Red Dead, Among Us, The Elder Scrolls, New World, GTA, Sonic the Hedgehog, Uncharted, Battlefield, The Witcher, Far Cry, Batman, LEGO, Assassin's Creed | 1 |
Star Wars Takes Top Place
" Star Wars " is trending the most, with seven states searching for the games more than any other. That's likely in part due to rumors that a popular character from the Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order, Cal Kestis, may be getting his own series on Disney+. Those states are Nebraska, New Hampshire, New Mexico, North Dakota, and West Virginia, as well as Colorado, where the top search is more specifically for the series " Star Wars Jedi," and Massachusetts, where it is for " LEGO Star Wars."
Mario Keeps Its Edge
Second on the list is " Mario," with five states: Alabama, Delaware, Nevada, Texas, and Wyoming. More specifically, " Mario Bros." has been trending in Alabama and Texas, while " Super Mario Bros." is the highest in Nevada and Wyoming. The Japanese franchise made its debut in 1983 with " Mario Bros." on Nintendo and is still today one of the most played video games in the world. And, again, the franchise is spawning yet another big-screen rendition, this time with Chris Pratt playing the eponymnous plumber, alongside Charlie Day.
| Trending video games franchises in each state by state | |
| State | Most searched game |
| Alabama | Mario Bros. |
| Alaska | Pokémon |
| Arizona | Red Dead |
| Arkansas | Warhammer 40,000 |
| California | The Last of Us |
| Colorado | Star Wars Jedi |
| Connecticut | Spider-Man |
| Delaware | Mario Series |
| Florida | Assassin's Creed |
| Georgia | The Last of Us |
| Hawaii | Pokémon |
| Idaho | Halo |
| Illinois | Spider-Man |
| Indiana | LEGO |
| Iowa | Madden NFL |
| Kansas | FIFA |
| Kentucky | Among US |
| Louisiana | Resident Evil |
| Maine | Halo |
| Maryland | The Elder Scrolls |
| Massachusetts | Lego Star Wars |
| Michigan | FIFA |
| Minnesota | New World |
| Mississippi | GTA |
| Missouri | N/A |
| Montana | Pokémon |
| Nebraska | Star Wars |
| Nevada | Super Mario Bros. |
| New Hampshire | Star Wars |
| New Jersey | Sonic the Hedgehog |
| New Mexico | Star Wars |
| New York | Call of Duty |
| North Carolina | Uncharted |
| North Dakota | Star Wars |
| Ohio | Battlefield |
| Oklahoma | Resident Evil |
| Oregon | Spider-Man |
| Pennsylvania | Spider-Man |
| Rhode Island | Pokémon |
| South Carolina | Call of Duty |
| South Dakota | Warhammer 40,000 |
| Tennessee | The Witcher |
| Texas | Mario Bros. |
| Utah | Far Cry |
| Vermont | Madden NFL |
| Virginia | Batman: Arkham |
| Washington | Resident Evil |
| West Virginia | Star Wars |
| Wisconsin | Call of Duty |
| Wyoming | Super Mario Bros. |
Down At The Bottom
Third place is a tie, with Pokémon and Marvel's Spider-Man trending in four states. The Pokémon franchise takes the crown in Alaska, Hawaii, Montana, and Rhode Island, while Spider-Man trends in Connecticut, Illinois, Oregon, and Pennsylvania.
A spokesperson for Yahtzee Craze commented on the findings: "Video games have never been more popular, and this data reveals an impressively broad range of titles Americans are keen to play. Star Wars is particularly well as the top trending video game search across seven states, but classic franchises like Mario and Pokémon also perform well. Overall it's very encouraging for the video game industry and great for fans with a wide range of popular titles to choose from." - Wealth of Geeks