Well blow me down…
Macrovision Corporation, which operates the Trymedia Network for the digital distribution of PC games, today revealed the results of a new worldwide survey indicating there are common misconceptions about the habits of people who play casual games.
Among the surprises are that those who like mainstream games, such as Diner Dash and MahJong, frequently play more than nine, two or more hour sessions each week. Furthermore, casual gameplay happens most often at night as opposed to during commute hours or other quick break times during the day.
“Our survey has determined that mainstream audiences dedicate a substantial amount of time to gameplay - not just in 15-minute increments as previously thought.” said Loren Hillberg, executive vice president and general manager of Commerce at Macrovision.
The 789 survey participants have played casual games through the company’s www.trygames.com site that offers a catalog of more than 1500 core and casual PC titles. The online survey, which was conducted by Trymedia last week, revealed the following specific results:
Casual game player demographics:
37% are age 35-49.28% are age 50-60
71% female
29% male
58% have no children under age 18 living in their households
Top personal interests/hobbies of casual gamers:
1. Pets
2. Travel
3. Arts & Crafts
4. Shopping
5. Gardening
Casual game play habits:
37% play 9 or more game ‘sessions’ per week
66% say each ‘session’ typically lasts for at least one hour
31% spend more than two hours in each gameplay ‘session’
73% play at night
55% play on weekends
48% play when they have the house to themselves
Top casual game genres:
1. Puzzle (67%)
2. Card (44%)
3. Strategy (35%)
4. Action (34%)
Other Stats
30% have downloaded more than 21 games in the last year67% read game reviews and 46% of those who do feel they are influenced to try or purchase a new game by the reviews they read
84% access the Internet through a home broadband connection
70% have purchased a game after first playing it free of charge on the Internet
Do you think this is what casual gamers get up to? Let us know your thoughts in HEXUS.game-news.
