The old picture of the “gamer without purchasing power” doesn’t really hold up anymore. Not when luxury buyers are spending real time in mobile games, and not when premium brands are meeting them there with ideas that feel native, not noisy.

Luxury marketers care about two questions. Who exactly are we talking to. And where do we find their attention without diluting the brand. Recent data gives a clean answer. According to the 2024 State of Gaming study from dentsu and GWI, roughly seventy five percent of luxury buyers play games, and more than half of them do it on a smartphone. That’s not a niche. That’s mainstream behavior inside an affluent audience, on a screen they check a dozen times a day. The study also points to an entertainment mix that blends games with streaming, which matters for storytelling that crosses formats without losing tone. You don’t have to guess where the overlap lives anymore. You can plan for it. Dentsu + GWI: 2024 State of Gaming. (dentsu)

There’s more. On the demand side, the U.S. luxury market showed resilience through 2024. YouGov’s US Luxury Shoppers Report tracks a sharp rise in people “in-market” for luxury compared with 2021. The takeaway is simple. Even in a choppy economy, there is a larger base of buyers browsing, considering, and in many cases purchasing. Premium brands are still fighting for the same moments of attention, but the buyer pool hasn’t vanished. It’s grown and shifted channels. YouGov: US Luxury Shoppers Report 2024. (YouGov)

If you work across the Atlantic, the context is also favorable. IAB Europe’s AdEx Benchmark 2024 shows digital taking a bigger share of the media mix across the region, with double-digit growth and programmatic momentum. That shift isn’t just money moving around. It changes what premium inventory looks like in practice. More of it lives in high-quality digital environments where you can buy verified, suitable, well-measured placements, including in mobile gaming. The net effect for luxury is access to better controlled spaces without giving up reach. IAB Europe: AdEx Benchmark 2024. (IAB Europe)

Of course, not every “game integration” feels luxury. That’s the point. The format matters. Rewarded video earns voluntary attention in exchange for an in-game benefit, which is a very different social contract than a forced pre-roll. Interactive ads invite the audience to try before they buy, or better, to experience a brand universe through simple interactions. Intrinsic in-game placements work best when they blend into the environment and respect pacing—and with our Fastcards, that moment extends seamlessly. Fastcards act as elegant landing cards, guiding players through a curated journey of products or content with a single entry point. The experience stays simple, fluid, and premium. The creative rule of thumb is to add to the world, not pull the player out of it. When you do that, attention tends to stick, and memory follows.

Now, who is the “luxury buyer gamer.” In many cases, they’re the same high-intent customer you already know from CRM and retail, just with a different daily rhythm. They might research on desktop, purchase in store, and spend their micro-breaks in a mobile title they love. They care about fit, craft, values, and status signals. They also care about time. Which is why the best performing luxury creative in games respects that time. Quick payoffs. Beautiful detail. A feeling that this brand understands the world they’re in and isn’t trying to shout over it.

Measurement is often the sticking point, especially for brand teams that have earned their place with strict standards. The good news is you don’t need bespoke Frankenmetrics to make gaming work for premium. Treat attention as the leading indicator, and track it with the same rigor you use elsewhere. That includes viewability verification, suitability controls, and lift frameworks that focus on mental availability and intent signals. When you do want hard outcomes, tie them to real steps in the path to purchase. Save to wishlist. Store locator use. Early access sign-ups. Even a quick stylist chat if that suits your model. The trick is to define success that fits a premium journey rather than copy-pasting performance metrics from discount retail.

Creative strategy is where luxury can really have fun, and still be serious. Think story-doing rather than storytelling. Let the player choose a colorway and see it come alive on a character. Translate a house motif into a collectible that unlocks a short visual scene. Or build a small, seasonal world that nods to your runway theme. These do not have to be heavy lifts to be memorable. They do have to feel intentional. And yes, sometimes the smallest touch lands best. A quiet detail seen up close on a phone can feel more intimate than a glossy thirty-second cutdown on a giant screen.

Timing helps too. The first session of the day tends to be more focused, which is a neat place for premium brands to show up. People are fresh. They haven’t been blasted by a dozen other messages yet. If your media plan can weight toward those moments and your creative knows what to do with the attention, recall usually follows. Tiny confession: I wish my morning coffee worked that reliably.

Where does all of this leave a luxury marketer building a plan for the next quarter. With a clearer brief. There is an affluent, game-playing audience reachable on mobile. The ecosystem offers verified, brand-safe inventory and formats that earn attention. The cultural conversation has room for premium expression without feeling out of place. And the measurement backbone looks a lot like what you already use in other digital channels.

How Admazing can help

At Admazing, we understand that luxury thrives where experience meets exclusivity. Mobile gaming has become a new stage for premium storytelling, where affluent buyers actively engage and expect brands to feel seamless in their worlds. That’s why we design curated packages—rewarded video, playables, and intrinsic in-game formats—that protect brand equity while creating memorable interactions. With Admazing Games IQ™ and trusted verification partners like IAS and DoubleVerify, we ensure campaigns run in brand-safe, high-quality environments that mirror the standards of luxury itself. And with FITO™, we help premium brands capture that critical first session, turning curated moments into long-lasting brand preference. For marketers ready to elevate their presence in mobile gaming, Admazing delivers the craft, data, and strategy to move premium categories into the spaces where their buyers are already playing.