LONDON – TECH – When Fallout 4 was released in 2015, it had a major impact on almost all aspects of its fans’ lives. Among others, it caused people calling in sick to school and work to be able to play the game on the day it was released (it was a Tuesday) and the traffic of the leading adult websites experienced a massive drop at the same time – and from the same cause. The biggest video game release since then was last year’s Pokémon GO, which pushed AR games among the top 3 most played mobile genres last year, causing a worldwide fever and taking people from all over the world outside hunting Pokémon. This year, we haven’t seen any such massive game releases – there were quite a few great games released but none had such massive effects on their players. This means that we can take a more objective look at what video games people play – and who is playing them this year.
Social games reign supreme
According to recent statistics, social games – especially those played on mobile – have the largest share of players today. And this without counting the titles you can play at All Jackpots Canadian online casino, which usually don’t show up in these statistics. Last year, casino slots were the fifth most popular mobile game genre – this year, with no Pokémon GO to skew the stats, they will likely be the fourth. Especially in North America, where the superior game variety offered by All Jackpots is not available.
The numbers don’t lie: they show us that 48% of all gamers in the world play social games. The reason is most likely their wide availability – these games can either be played through social networks or on smartphones.
The PC is still king
When it comes to devices, the PC still reigns supreme, with more than half – 56% – of the world’s gamers using it to play. The PC is followed by gaming consoles with 53%, smartphones with 36%, and handheld systems other than smartphones with 17%. Note that the majority of PC and console owners also own a smartphone, and some of them also use a portable console.
When it comes to revenue, though, things are a little different. According to Newzoo’s Global Games Market Report, smartphones and tablets will generate 42% of the world’s gaming revenue this year, followed by consoles (31%), and PCs (27%). By 2020, the analyst expects for smartphones to be responsible for 40% of the total revenue of the gaming business, to which tablets add another 10%, so Android and iOS-powered devices will generate half of the world’s gaming revenue, leaving handheld and fixed consoles, PCs, and browser games to share the rest.
Who plays these games?
According to Big Fish Games, the average gamer is a 35-year-old male – this portrait is generated taking into account all the gaming platforms and all the games played. In total, 59% of the gamers are men, and they are also the ones who purchase the more video games – 60% of them. Then again, things look very different on mobile – here, the most popular genres – puzzle games – are played predominantly by women aged 18 to 54.
While the average PC and console gamer tends to be a younger male, smartphones cover a far wider demographic, reaching people who wouldn’t sit down in front of a PC, not even to play Words with Friends, but will gladly do so on their smartphones.
eSports
eSports is a phenomenon that has been rising for years, reaching 292 million viewers in 2016. The revenues of the global eSports business have more than doubled in the last couple of years, and so did the prize money won by professional players, reaching $93 million in 2016. Who said playing video games is no way to make a living?
The top eSports title in 2016 was DoTA 2, with 118 tournaments and $37 million in prize money paid out, followed by CS: GO, League of Legends, Heroes of the Storm, and Call of Duty: BlackOps III.
The world of video games is constantly shifting. Even one title – see last year’s Pokémon GO craze – can cause massive changed in the rankings of the games played by the masses.
