Survey: Half Of Adults Play Games
We assume many of you out there have parents who still believe that gaming's "just for kids." We in the industry have known for quite some time that this is an archaic belief, but we're all painfully aware of just how out-of-touch (and unwavering) some parents - and anti-game activists - can be. Well, MSNBC may open a few eyes.
According to this article, more than half of adults in this country play video games on a frequent basis, and one in five actually play every day. This information comes from a recent survey released by the Pew Internet & American Life Project; the survey consisted of 2,054 adult participants, and it offered a variety of conclusions. Not surprisingly, while only 23% of adults aged 65 or older were likely to play games, 81% of adults between the ages of 18 and 29 consider gaming a fun pastime. As for teenagers, well...97% of them are into games, which isn't surprising in the slightest these days. Said Amanda Lenhart, senior research specialist at Pew:
"As various people become more accustomed to spending their entertainment time playing games, we will continue to see this spread throughout society. There are people who talk about games as a new genre, a new art form."
The article goes on to talk about the decreasing gender gap - more women are playing games than ever before - as 50% of women and 55% of men say they play video games. Then there's the discrepancy between education levels of gamers and non-gamers: although they're not trying to say games make a person smarter, 57% of those who said they played games in the survey attended college, and only 40% of them have less than a high school education. And although Lenhart said there is "no obvious" reason for this difference, we all know just how obvious it really is. I've discussed it many a time before, and I'll just sum it up simply now: the nerds have grown up. Duh.
12/8/2008 Ben Dutka
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Comments (45 posts)
Troy Powers
Monday, December 08, 2008 @ 11:42:33 AM
WTF?!!?
This whole casual gamer vs. hardcore gamer thing is for the birds. What, do I have to play games a certain amount of hours a week or spend a certain dollar amount every month to be considered cool by other gamers? Get over it.
Sometimes I'm really on it and can spend 40+ hours in a week playing games, sometimes I can go weeks without even looking at my Playstation. A gamer is a gamer is a gamer. Casual or not, be glad those people exist to keep the industry thriving.
Ben Dutka PSXE [Administrator]
Monday, December 08, 2008 @ 1:22:14 PM
Joe_III
Monday, December 08, 2008 @ 1:42:32 PM
It is most certainly not for the birds. Do not tell me that you have the same passion for this industry as I do simply because you play Cooking Mama on your DS or Animal Crossing on your Wii.
Do not tell me because you play WoW you know anything about games, the gaming industry, or any of the multitude of secondary markets involved.
Those who play Flash TD games online or Bejeweled and such are not -- well should not -- be the main focus of this industry. They're not the ones who see life in pixels, bleed polygons, and think a good new year's resolution is 1920x1080.
Casual gamers are a completely different breed. They're the ones who play as a side diversion from their main hobbies, who pick it up because of core gamers, and have little interest in whether a particular game is made or not.
Like most extra-dollar spending industries, it is the ones who have loved the industry the longest and hardest that have caused it to be seen by the mainstream as something worth looking into and trying out.
Troy Powers
Monday, December 08, 2008 @ 3:35:15 PM
And don't presume to know what games I play, or how I play them. I've been here since Atari 2600, kid. If you can't take it back to Frogger and Pitfall Harry, don't come in here crying about your passion and bleeding pixels and polygons. It's all a front to make yourself feel good.
moose88
Monday, December 08, 2008 @ 7:05:19 PM
My point? I consider myself a 'gamer' always have, always will. Other adendums are meaningless to me (and others that graduated college/dropped out to join the rat-race). You wanna be 'hardcore? Cool. But I'll be lining up to get your help for Platinum trophies in U:DF etc. as I have 2 littlies so far and need to spend my nights creating levels for them in LBP - so they have something to do on rainy, summer days.
This has been my first post. You people rock! G'Day to you.
Joe_III
Monday, December 08, 2008 @ 9:59:55 PM
Troy Powers
Monday, December 08, 2008 @ 11:38:44 AM
Reply
ThePoetRazel
Monday, December 08, 2008 @ 12:06:23 PM
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Even so, i hope that it's message is heard by enough people to turn around the ignorance. People need to realise the power of gaming today.
Troy Powers
Monday, December 08, 2008 @ 12:13:49 PM
ThePoetRazel
Monday, December 08, 2008 @ 12:21:42 PM
Troy Powers
Monday, December 08, 2008 @ 12:57:50 PM
ThePoetRazel
Monday, December 08, 2008 @ 1:01:13 PM
Surveys are useful in science to form hypothesis only. They are not basis for theory or fact.
Troy Powers
Monday, December 08, 2008 @ 1:09:25 PM
My point is, in a situation where you cannot perform an actual experiment in a controlled environment to get the data you're seeking, survey data is your ONLY data, thus your BEST data.
Though, I guess you could randomly pop up at people's houses, rush in and see if anyone is playing video games.
ThePoetRazel
Monday, December 08, 2008 @ 1:15:42 PM
Also, the fact that it is the only way to get the information doesn't make it any more accurate. That is why this evidence should be presented as an hypothesis rather than fact.
Ben Dutka PSXE [Administrator]
Monday, December 08, 2008 @ 1:23:48 PM
I'm not saying it's definitive, but it IS indicative.
ThePoetRazel
Monday, December 08, 2008 @ 1:26:35 PM
Troy Powers
Monday, December 08, 2008 @ 1:32:42 PM
Any addition, many will argue that laboratory results are just as flawed if not more flawed when dealing with issues of human behavior because you take the test subject out of their normal environment...but then expect them to perform as they would IN their normal environment.
Look, we could go on like this all day. Bottom line is this: In this situation, a survey (again, if performed well) is the best way to get ANY data on the subject. To say "I'm surprised that you're giving so much credence to a survey," without there being any better evidence is, and without a reason to think the gathering of this evidence was flawed, is a bit cocky. You're basicly assuming that this data has no merit strictly because it's survey data. If survey data was completely without merit, it wouldn't be use (in psychology or otherwise) at all.
And nothing in this article is presented as fact. It's presented exactly as it is. "This is a survey. X% of participants responded this way. X% of participants responded that way."
WorldEndsWithMe
Monday, December 08, 2008 @ 3:02:52 PM
DeadReaper
Monday, December 08, 2008 @ 12:09:23 PM
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ImTheMan
Monday, December 08, 2008 @ 6:46:55 PM
Ultimadream
Monday, December 08, 2008 @ 12:17:32 PM
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Cuetes
Monday, December 08, 2008 @ 12:33:58 PM
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Joe_III
Monday, December 08, 2008 @ 2:01:39 PM
If you don't believe that the majority of people over 25 are casual gamers, you need to read a number of more studies. All 23% of those 65 and over are casual gamers. At least a third of those in the 18-29 bracket are goign to be women playing Nintendogs and such. Not the hardcore.
I was not saying that everyone but me is a casual gamer, but do you really believe that those over 65 are playing R2 or Halo3 or MGS4? I'll believe it when I see it.
But the basic fact is that games have become a normal medium for the most part, like movies and music. That's something I'm happy about.
But if you go and tell one of those 23% that you're a young male and play video games, they'll probably still run screaming from you thinking you're about to shoot up the mall.
I'm only 26 myself, but I spend the GDP of small nations anually on my gaming. I've owned most consoles, and even still played my old Virtual Boy up to a few years ago (wife made me clean out my closets...). All my friends that play are over 30.
I'm not saying a hardcore gamer has to play x number of hours a day/week, or that they have to play particular games (well, some). But there is a huge difference between the hardcore and the casual.
The hardcore gamer will spend 2 weeks going through a 30 second game trailer frame by frame to analyze, dissect, and search for hidden meanings, and then obsess about it for months more. A casual gamer might not even know about the trailer until a few weeks after it comes out, and most likely won't care about the game. A "softcore" gamer will watch the trailer, get excited for a bit, and then move on.
And I personally loathe the trend over the past few years gearing up more towards the casual gamers. Games getting easier. Games getting more digestable stories. Games getting shorter. This is the most despicable of all trends is that devs are making games so that they are easily put down after 15-20 minutes and can be picked up at will later; and only run for 8-12 hours so they don't get too complicated.
Give me some new old games that made me sit in front of the TV until my legs went numb. Give me something that takes forever to beat and I can only save once every 6 hours. Hell, I'd even take a good old Battletoads hovercraft level over half the retarded games that come out these days.
FLYING_APE
Monday, December 08, 2008 @ 2:57:01 PM
WorldEndsWithMe
Monday, December 08, 2008 @ 3:09:45 PM
Ben Dutka PSXE [Administrator]
Monday, December 08, 2008 @ 3:36:59 PM
Troy Powers
Monday, December 08, 2008 @ 3:39:21 PM
Ummmm...no, that's not a hardcore gamer. That's a loser with no life. And it's people like you that make the general public think the two are the same.
Troy Powers
Monday, December 08, 2008 @ 3:49:03 PM
Well, enjoy that, dude. Just remember, it's those "casual" dudes that you're so much better than that pump the majority of the money into the industry allowing devs to make games into huge productions. If it was just you and a few other hardcore gamers, you'd still be playing Q-bert.
Now, if you'll excuse me, I'll take my non-polygon bleeding, non-trailer obsessing ass home and spend an hour or two painting blood on the walls in the Killzone 2 beta. :D
Joe_III
Monday, December 08, 2008 @ 4:21:37 PM
Yeah it was. I must have spent 100 hours on that bugger.
@ Ben
So far Cuetes I think. And maybe Troy. I don't know if he's being retarded or trolling.
@ Troy
I don't know much about indie music/movies, but gaming is a completely different beast because of its interactivity. And yes, hardcore gaming is a completely different culture.
And casual gamers do not reside in that culture. I can't use famous phrases like "The princess is in another castle" or "You are in a maze of twisty passages all alike" and have them understand where I'm coming from.
And yes, it is partly an obsession. But that's ok, it's my free time and I'll spend it how I want. And I will associate myself with others like me. But it's when outside groups label me with incorrect badges that I get irked.
As with Mr. Pretentious Jackass, there is still a stigma around playing video games. While I probably fit most of those stereotypes, I'm happy with that. For me, there is no higher praise than gamer/nerd/geek/hacker because that was how I labeled myself before any of these became cool or popular.
And casual gaming being such a large market is only a recent trend, and only because of broadband immersion.
But can you honestly say that console makers, developers, and publishers could have gotten to where they are now without "us" hardcore gamers?
We're the ones who buy games and pay ridiculous premiums for extra crap like limited edition art books or in game costumes. We're the ones who cause Halo 3 to sell 3 million copies in a week -- well, us and fratboys on that one, I just can't remember MGS4's numbers right now.
Anyways I tire of this rant. Believe in your simple mind that there is no difference between casual and hardcore gamers. And when devs start trending further to dumb, simple, casual games for casual games, sit and play them with your dumb simple mind, while I cry in the corner for a decent contra remake.
The dumbing down of a market to appeal to more people has already happened with TV, music, movies, and even books to some extent. I really don't want it happening to my games.
Troy Powers
Monday, December 08, 2008 @ 6:04:00 PM
You saying, "Oh, I'm so hardcore and I'm above those other gamers," is just something to make you feel big. Probably because in most other areas of your life you feel small. And I'm not even trying to dis you, homeboy. Just calling it like I see it.
When anybody else comes around and uses the term "hardcore" to denote someone who's passionate about the hobby, or spends a certain amount of energy with it, that's fine by me. But when you come in here and try to use the term like, "I'm better than them, and they don't count," well you're just trying to pump up your own ego and I'm gonna call you out every time.
So, don't get irked when people from "outside groups" label you, because it's YOU that's keeping the stereotypes alive. It's people like you that immerse themselves in a hobby to the point where it's friggin' WEIRD and make normal gamers with social skills and lives look bad.
But, at the same time, that explains why you want to be king of the hill in the world where you feel like you belong. Because you don't feel like you belong anywhere else. Hey, that's your issue for you to deal with.
As far as your other comments, can YOU honestly say that console makers, developers, and publishers could have gotten to where they are now without THEM (the casual gamers) hardcore gamers? Again, video gaming is a business and it's about a profit. And without casual gamers, the profit would not be there. The money and interest from huge corporations like Sony and Microsoft would not be there. Trust me, it's not the 5% of gamers who buy special edition games that keep this industry going. It's the other 95%. If Halo 3 sold 3 million copies, how many of those people do you think are your "hardcore" gamers, and how many do you think were people who just though, "Man, that new Halo is gonna be SWEET!"
And don't blame the dumbing down of games on casual gamers. Blame it on your developers. Do you really want casual gamers to stop gaming? What do you think budgets for video games would look like without them?
Dude, and don't start hurling around insults like "simple-minded" until you can make your point BETTER than those so-called simple minds. People only resort to name-calling when they've run out of intelligent things to say.
WorldEndsWithMe
Monday, December 08, 2008 @ 3:13:23 PM
Reply
"There are people who talk about games as a new genre, a new art form." Hmmm, games are new, or are people just being forced to notice?
slayerkillemall
Monday, December 08, 2008 @ 4:06:47 PM
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Joe_III
Monday, December 08, 2008 @ 5:30:06 PM
Most "hardcore" gamers I know are generally smarter, have more in depth knowledge of current events, and know a lot about many subjects.
But, yeah, obsession -- or at least deep passion -- is part of it. can you really call yourself hardcore if you don't care about video games that much?
I mean, you don't have to know every little minutia like Nathan Fillion voice acting Sgt. Reynolds in Halo 3 as a nod to Firefly, or other small things like that.
But there is a level of knowledge and familiarization required to be in this circle.
Ben Dutka PSXE [Administrator]
Monday, December 08, 2008 @ 4:32:51 PM
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As far as I'm concerned, the only requirement for being hardcore is that you have to love games. That's it.
Edit: "The dumbing down of a market to appeal to more people has already happened with TV, music, movies, and even books to some extent. I really don't want it happening to my games."
And I have to agree with this quote from Joe, although I'd like to add that I while I see the downward spiral of other entertainment, I DON'T see it so much in games. They've gotten easier, but I think just about everything else is better.
Last edited by Ben Dutka PSXE on 12/8/2008 4:55:00 PM
Joe_III
Monday, December 08, 2008 @ 5:30:46 PM
Bugzbunny109
Monday, December 08, 2008 @ 5:04:41 PM
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bearbobby
Monday, December 08, 2008 @ 7:59:21 PM
Only if you can beat it in less than 9 minutes. lol! /s
Yeah, there seems to be some confusion between people's definitions of "hardcore" and "casual".
What are those standards? Is it how many years you've been playing video games? Is it having played all the "classics?" Is it knowledge of the gaming industry and trivia relating to influences and homages? Is it the number of times you've beaten a certain game or the time it took to beat it? Do you have to play every game from every genre for every platform?
I'm sorry, but it seems like Joe is "hardcore" for his knowledge, what about his skill? Knowing HOW to block/jump and knowing WHEN are two very different things.
Joe_III
Monday, December 08, 2008 @ 10:01:33 PM
dveisalive
Monday, December 08, 2008 @ 9:37:42 PM
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NetheRealm
Friday, December 12, 2008 @ 6:40:12 AM
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Joe_III
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Monday, December 08, 2008 @ 11:37:46 AM
Sadly, most of these people are casual gamers and, therefore, do not really count. But in the long view, I'm glad that there are more people sharing the love of games in any form.
As for your assumption that college makes people smarter Ben...well, I'll leave my thoughts on that aside.