96% of heavily engaged US gamers play on mobile - EEDAR
EEDAR head of consumer research Heather Nofziger disputes notion that hardcore audience steers clear of mobile games
There's a lingering misconception in the industry that mobile gaming is for casual, uninvested non-gamers while PCs, consoles, and handhelds are where the "real" gamers spend their time.
In its Gamer Segmentation report, EEDAR surveyed 5,000 US gamers and, using k-means clustering analysis, classified them into 6 separate segments based on their gaming habits, interests and investment across the platforms they play on.
One of the segments identified during the analysis are the Super Gamers - heavily engaged players who game extensively on multiple platforms. The Super Gamer segment represents 13% of the total US gaming market, is 2/3 male (64% male, 36% female) and skews fairly young (average age 25.7, relative to the total market average of 32). For these voracious players, gaming is a major hobby - taking up an average of 26 total hours a week, which is about 23% of their total entertainment time.
Where many segments specialize in a particular platform (or platforms), the Super Gamer audience is likely to spread their gaming time around between platforms. 78% of these gamers play on three or more platforms (possible platforms including mobile, PC, console and handheld), and for most, mobile is one of them - 96% of Super Gamers play games on a smartphone or tablet.
Within this segment, EEDAR found that Super Gamers were as likely to play on mobile as they were on PC.
Despite the high playership (and spend) on mobile, it's critical to note that Super Gamers are using mobile as a supplement to - and not replacement for - HD/PC gaming experiences. When asked to provide their reasons for engaging with mobile, Super Gamers' responses emphasized its convenience and cited its low amount of required attention:
● Can play anywhere
● Device is convenient
● It's cheap or free
● Easy to pick up / put down
● Allows for multitasking
All of this suggests that Super Gamers will turn to the platforms available to them to indulge the gaming urge that strikes at a given moment.
When out and about, or watching TV, they're likely to turn to mobile games for entertainment. When at home, and when the opportunity for a focused play session arises, they'll turn to PC or Console. In situations between these extremes, they are likely to indulge in handheld play.
For more information on EEDAR's Gamer Segmentation report, visit the EEDAR website.