Gamers: Social, Active and Ready to Spend

We recently wrote about some surprising realities of gaming culture; now another study by IGN Entertainment and Ipsos MediaCT points to some more statistics that challenge the common gamer stereotype. According to their analysis, gamers are just as (if not more) likely to date, play sports and socialize with their friends as non-gamers.  Those who play video games generally earn around $79,000 a year, considerably higher than non-gaming households whose yearly average income sits at $54,000.  Not only do they earn more, the study also shows they’re eager to consume the latest gadgets and at a premium price.

The Are You Game? study used both qualitative and quantitative research methods throughout the Los Angeles area, breaking down video gamers into four categories: “Traditional Core”, “Social Troopers”, “Family 3.0”, and “Weekend Warriors”. While we’re a bit skeptical of the findings – the study having been conducted by one of the largest gaming empires, IGN – their results are worth considering:

Some of the findings below:

55 percent of gamers polled were married, 48 percent have kids, and new gamers – those who have started playing videogames in the past two years—are 32 years old on average

More than 75 percent of videogamers play games with other people either online or in person

More than 47 percent of people living in gaming households saying that videogames were a fun way to interact with other family members

37 percent of gamers said friends and family relied upon them to stay up-to-date about movies, TV shows and the latest entertainment news, compared to only 22 percent for nongamers

39 percent of gamers said that friends and family rely upon them to stay up-to-date about the latest technology

In terms of hard dollars, the average gaming household income ($79,000) is notably higher than that of nongaming households ($54,000), but the value of the gamer as a marketing target can be seen in a variety of ways

Gamers are 13 percent more likely to go out to a movie, 11 percent more likely to play sports, and 9 percent more likely to go out with friends than nongamers

Gamers are twice as likely as nongamers to buy a product featuring new technology even if they are aware that there are still bugs

Gamers are also twice as likely as nongamers to pay a premium for the newest technology on the market

Gamers also consume media in different ways than nongamers, with hardcore gamers  spending five more hours on the Internet, two more hours watching television and two more hours listening to music than nongamers per week

Gamers are twice as likely to go out on dates as nongamers in a given month

[via ArsTechnica]