Google Discover is becoming a lifeline for game distributors against the backdrop of a general decline in search traffic. According to the analysis carried out by the media company Raptive of 197 online games sites (including Reset Era, Insider Gaming and Bulbapedia) between the fourth quarter of 2025 and the first quarter of 2026, Google Discover traffic in the game media increased by 138 per cent between early 2025 and the end of the year.
With the overall decline in content search traffic, small websites are increasingly using Google Discover (a personalized, AI-driven content stream provided in Google Mobile Home Pages and Applications) to attract new users. The data provided by Raptive’s exclusive source to GamesBeat show that the attraction of Google Discover traffic has been particularly effective in the past year for games-related sites. In an interview with GamesBeat, Tom Critchlow, Executive Vice President of Raptive User Growth, said: “The fundamental difference between Discover and search is that it is based on interests and topics, not on keywords. We have a number of websites on our platform that often talk about the Mandarin. You don’t have to go to Google to search for the Best Wonder Card this month, but if you see that card in the information stream, you might still be interested in the subject.” The Raptive study coincided with Google Discover, where the first core update to Discover was launched in Google last month. After last month ‘ s update, the 20 per cent surge in Discover traffic on the Raptive network has undoubtedly been a positive signal, as reports of a significant drop in Google Discover in the second half of 2025. Tom Critchlow stated that it appeared that most of the benefits from recent updates were the “long tail” small websites on Raptive.
Game websites tend to rely more on Google Discover traffic than other content categories. In the Raptive network, about 50 per cent of all technology and game traffic comes from Google Discover, compared to 15 per cent for home-based horticulture and 35 per cent for artistic creative sites. The only category where Google Discover has a higher percentage of traffic is news and current affairs, with 76 per cent of current traffic coming from Google Discover.
Tom Critchlow stated that “discover engine optimization” was unlikely to be a mature practice in the short term, but that the website could benefit from optimizing effective and ineffective practices in the same way as SEO. He noted that many websites usually had less content on weekends, which were precisely the time when Discover had the most use and hits. The website can obtain additional Discover traffic by focusing on a core theme in a disaggregated area. Tom Critchlow says, “Take it as an optimised channel. Frankly, this is not a way of thinking for popular distributors, who have been stuck in the “black box” mindset. But in practice, there are many ways to optimize.”
