[casual_games] surprising stats about casual gaming

Mon Jul 10 12:30:37 EDT 2006

I can attest to that. I've been in focus groups where, having asked the
participants what they meant by strategy games, they said "games like
Mahjong Solitaire".

When it comes to genres in casual games, it's a brave new world out there.
We do have some names for genres in casual games, thanks to the portals who
classify them in sections. But there is a discrepancy between user
perception and industry classification, for sure.

Juan

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From: casual_games-bounces at igda.org [mailto:casual_games-bounces at igda.org]
On Behalf Of James Gwertzman
Sent: Sunday, July 09, 2006 2:12 AM
To: IGDA Casual Games SIG Mailing List
Subject: RE: [casual_games] surprising stats about casual gaming

All major casual game portals feature "reviews" of games - usually by other
players, and usually just a few sentences. I'm guessing that when the
typical Trymedia customer saw that question, that's what they thought the
question meant.

Likewise, that's how I interpret the 35% who said they enjoyed strategy
games. We've asked this same questions ourselves, and we have found that
when the typical casual game player says they like "strategy" games they are
not talking about Age of Empires. They are talking about games like.
Bejeweled. It's basically a bogus question --- what exactly is a puzzle
game? Most respondents say Bejeweled is a puzzle game, but really there is
very little about it that's a puzzle.

--------------------
James Gwertzman
Director of Business Development
PopCap Games
+1-206-256-4210 

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From: casual_games-bounces at igda.org [mailto:casual_games-bounces at igda.org]
On Behalf Of Cole, Vladimir
Sent: Sunday, July 09, 2006 12:35 AM
To: IGDA Casual Games SIG Mailing List
Subject: RE: [casual_games] surprising stats about casual gaming

One of that survey's stats in particular made me wish for more information
about exactly who their sample was: "67% 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 "

These reviews aren't of casual games (because reviews of casual games aren't
plentiful, easy to find, or well-trafficked). Therefore (assuming that
respondents didn't simply lie or misunderstand the question), these people
must be reading reviews of "hardcore" games. That would indicate that this
is less a survey of the casual gamer population than of the hardcore gamer
population. 

... or is there a better explanation for that puzzling stat? 

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From: casual_games-bounces at igda.org [mailto:casual_games-bounces at igda.org]
On Behalf Of David Wessman
Sent: Saturday, July 08, 2006 05:17 PM
To: IGDA Casual Games SIG Mailing List
Subject: [casual_games] surprising stats about casual gaming

I don't recall anyone bringing this up here, (but then I don't always have
time to read every single post, so forgive me if it has.)  This article
suggests that a lot of what people think is true about the casual games
market is very wrong.  There are serious implications for anyone developing
or marketing casual games.  Here's the article: 

http://www.gamesindustry.biz/content_page.php?aid=18017 

New survey shatters misconceptions, offers insight to
<http://www.gamesindustry.biz/content_page.php?aid=18017> advertisers

Macrovision has revealed the results of a new worldwide survey of the casual
games market, highlighting numerous misconceptions about its audience and
their consumption habits.

Perhaps the biggest surprise of the survey, which polled 789 consumers who
play casual PC games through Macrovision's Trymedia network, is that 37 per
cent of participants stated that they play nine or more game sessions per
week. 

The length of the gameplay sessions further challenged the preconceived idea
of 'casual' gaming, with 66 per cent playing for at least an hour each time
and 31 per cent spending more than two hours in each gameplay session. 

Loren Hillberg, Macrovision's EVP and general manager of commerce,
commented: "Our survey has determined that mainstream audiences dedicate a
substantial amount of time to gameplay - not just in 15-minute increments as
previously thought." 

Further insight into gaming habits reveals that 73 per cent play at night,
rather than "quick break" sessions during the working day. 55 per cent play
at weekends and 48 per cent play when they have the house to themselves. 

In terms of the demographic for casual games, Macrovision reveals that the
market is dominated by women, with a 71 per cent female audience. 37 per
cent are aged 35-49, and 28 per cent are aged 50-60, with almost 60 per cent
confirming that they have no children under 18 years of age living at home. 

Providing insight for advertisers and marketers, the survey revealed that
the most popular genre is puzzle games (67 per cent), followed by card games
(44 per cent), strategy (35 per cent) and action (34 per cent).

When not indulging in a mammoth casual games session, participants revealed
their favourite hobbies were: pets, travel, arts and crafts,
<http://www.gamesindustry.biz/content_page.php?aid=18017> shopping and
gardening - something
<http://www.gamesindustry.biz/content_page.php?aid=18017> advertising
agencies and publishers alike may wish to take note of.

"Whether advertisers are reaching out to casual or core audiences, we want
them, through the results of our survey, to realize who gamers are, how they
operate and what they like," added Hillberg.

"The survey findings will certainly help them to adjust their advertising
strategies accordingly to ensure maximum penetration to the appropriate
audiences."

The survey also revealed a positive reception to the try-before-you-buy
model, 30 per cent confirming more than 21 game
<http://www.gamesindustry.biz/content_page.php?aid=18017> downloads in the
past year and an astonishing 70 per cent stating that they have purchased a
game after playing it free of charge on the Internet.

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