‘Mobile’ gamers seem to misunderstand the meaning of the term, with more than half of those surveyed in the US and UK opting to play games on their mobile device while at home, even when a home console is available.
A survey by Information Solutions Group for PopCap Games investigated the habits of mobile gamers (i.e. people who had played a mobile game in the past month). Of over 700 players from the US and UK surveyed, more than half admitted that their preferred method of game play at home is their mobile device.
“We already know that people play mobile games ‘on the go,’ but now we are seeing mobile gamers largely favour their mobile devices for home use.” said Dennis Ryan, VP of worldwide publishing at PopCap. “If you add the fact we are seeing a deluge of new gamers coming in through mobile, we believe mobile gaming is invading the last bastion of video game consoles and personal computers: the home.”
Not-so-mobile gaming
Tablet-only players were most keen on playing mobile games at home (57pc), with 78pc playing on the couch and 52pc while watching TV.
In fact, the top five places to play mobile games overall were at home on the couch (69pc), at home in bed (57pc), as a passenger on a journey (63pc), waiting for an appointment (55pc), and while watching television (41pc). Smartphone users were more likely to play in situations where they were left waiting, such as in a queue or at an appointment.
Playing where they shouldn’t
But mobile gamers are playing everywhere, even places they shouldn’t. Respondents confessed to playing mobile games in places of worship, at the cinema, and, worryingly, even when driving.
With 8pc of mobile gamers saying they played while in class and 6pc at work during a meeting or a conference call, we’re not surprised that 1 in 10 reported that they had been late or missed an appointment, class, ride or flight because they were caught up playing a mobile game.
Males under 35 that play daily are most likely to play in unorthodox places, and they are also more likely to spend more money on mobile games. This demographic plans to spend an average of stg£31.55 on games in 2012, while the overall average was stg£18.46.
Mobile gamer image via Shutterstock
