New Australian Research Shows Everyone Plays Games
New research from the Interactive Games and Entertainment Association (IGEA) on games in Australian households shows that 92% of households have at least one device for playing games and that the average age of the Australian gamer has increased from 24 in 2005 to 32 in 2011.
Other topline findings include:
- 47% of gamers are now female and that female representation equal to males among gamers is now imminent
- 75% of gamers are over 18
- 60% of gamers are 36-50
- Nearly 20% of gamers play social games (Facebook)
- 57% of gamers play either daily or every other day
Download the full report.
The rapid increase in the number of people playing games, the average age of the Australian gamer and the fact that almost as many women as men play games can in large part be attributed to the uptake of smartphones and the effect of Facebook. Mobile phones are used to play games in 43% of game households and 1 in 5 gamers plays social games. This is backed up by international research that shows that 52% of women play games on their mobile and that 50% of Facebook users play Facebook games.
The stats go on and on but the bottom line is that playing digital games has become a mainstream form entertainment in Australian households. No longer is it just the teenage son locked in his room playing WOW. Today it's Mum playing FarmVille on Facebook, Dad playing Angry Birds on his phone, the tween daughter playing Stardoll on the PC and all of them playing Wii Sports.
