By Grace C han
Senior Staff Writer
When we think of video and computer gamers we usually picture young adolescent males but a good 40% of gamers are female, and the average age of gamers is 35 years old. In fact, there are more women players over the age of 18 (33% of the game-playing population) than there are male players under the age of 18 (18%). Perhaps this should not come as a surprise as more and more video games are marketed to people of all ages and sex. Games like Diner Dash are targeted more towards women, while games like Wii Fit and Wii Sports are easily enjoyed by the entire family.
That’s not to say that female gamers cannot and do not enjoy games that might seem more traditionally male oriented. Feminists would point out that the term “sex” denotes biological differences between men and women, while the term “gender” denotes differences between men and women imposed by society. We might be able to view this as a closing gender gap; we can no longer make assumptions such as, “female gamers would not be interested in violent games.” Indeed, you might be surprised at how many of your female friends play Halo or Super Smash Brothers.
While many violent and bloody games such as Call of Duty 4 and Grand Theft Auto make up a disproportionate amount of news in the video and computer game industry, only about 15% of the total number of games sold is rated as mature. Games rated for everyone still make up the bulk of sales. This should put to rest some of the worries that people have regarding the possible detrimental psychological effect on children.
The top 10 video games sold in 2007 represent a medley of different types of genres and ratings. From the more violent games such as Halo 3, Call of Duty 4, and Assassin’s Creed, to the family oriented Wii Play, Super Mario Galaxy and Guitar Hero. It is important to note that no one genre or gaming platform has a clear domination of the sales.
The World of Warcraft and The Sims franchise have dominated the top 10 selling computer games of 2007. That goes to show how loyal their players are, or perhaps how addicted their players are. You have all probably had a friend that stays up till the wee hours of the dawn obsessively playing “WoW,” and you have probably noted that at some point, these dedicated gamers have missed class or forfeited studying in the name of gaming greatness.
22% of frequent gamers pay to play online games. Market data shows that there are an increasing number of people willing to pay. This is a lucrative opportunity for many game developers since developing games is a relatively low-cost endeavor. Additionally, if online gaming websites are able to draw a significant number of players, they could charge a hefty amount for advertising.
Computer and video game sales have grown steadily the past decade from averaging 2.6 billion dollars of revenue in 1996, to 9.5 billion dollars of revenue in 2007. Even during this economic downturn, the gaming industry has remained pretty strong while other industries have faced slumps. It is relatively cheaper to buy computer and video games than it is to buy tickets to a sporting event or theme park. Unlike tickets to a sporting event or theme park, these games have the ability to provide utility for a longer period of time. Families might find that these games provide a quicker or more efficient source of entertainment as opposed to driving somewhere.
Great post! I’ll subscribe right now wth my feedreader software!
This is a excellent blog posting and really helpful. I truly appreciate the study you put into it
I recently came across your weblog and have been reading along. I thought I would leave my first comment. I don¡¯t know what to say except that I’ve enjoyed reading. Good weblog. I’ll maintain visiting this blog really often.
I admire the valuable info you offer in your articles. I’ll bookmark your blog and have my kids check up right here often. I am quite sure they will understand lots of new stuff right here than anybody else!
haha,The theme of your blog is very Suit to me, I hope more interflow with you this Burden.
Nice site,i have bookmarked it for later use, thanks.
Credit on behalf of the suggestions and references information’s.
You did a good job.
Your work has always been a great source of inspiration for me. I refer you blog to many of my friends as well.
I do not generally comment on web sites but I needed to drop in and say thanks for making this, I absolutely agree with the fact and with a little luck people today can understand this argument.
Many thanks for the boost!
Behind every successful man, there is a man. And behind every unsuccessful man, there are two.
Great synopsis of commenting and how to very well written and all that link love you just poured out, great post, if this was a forum you would have a sticky on this.
Good information, keep working man. I like your website. Cheers~~~~
Like this vey much ! Two thumbs up for you !
Talking about games, the best game i have ever played is the Worlds Hardest Game . It is great. The objective of the actual video game is to Keep your Red Square away from the Blue Balls on your way to the Green Zone or else you will die and lose.
Just wantd to say thanks for having me by your site. Do you have any thoughts on http://game-script.net for facebook apps and gaming scripts? Thought you might have heard about them and might be able to help me out. Also if you ahve a game or know of a game site I found a site http://topmorpg.com that has many listed you might want to submit your favorite. Its where I find a bunch of games I like to play. Again thanks for the wonderful read.
Splendid article . Will definitely copy it to my blog,surely with author link pointing towards you..Thanks.
Got me in the mood to find the ps3 out straight away, been suspended after the wife was feeling lonesome!
Forgot about this one! Will likely to be loading this up later.
I love my wii. I got one as soon as possible and dont regret it at all. Its so light to use and the software is solid. I use it most every daytime.
I’m really loving the blog, and hope this, as well as the excellent article some other people have written, will help somebody
Very inspirational place of duty.
Iv seen this somewhere before, typing to figure out where it was, nice blog.
You made some good points there. I did a search on the topic and found most people will agree with your blog.
Thank you for the serve!
go figure >_>
Nice blog, would of made the blog bit longer, enjoyed reading it though.
Thank you for the story – I think I’ll added your article to my website.
I’ve been trying to read your blog. Your formating isnt working right using IE6.
I’ve bookmarked this because I found it interesting. I would be very interested to hear more news on this. Thanks!
I really like this game! I believe i should have fun with playing a tiny bit while i get home.
Is that a fact or theory? It was a good read
I like the information that you wrote here. Keep up the good work.
Great information you have there.
: )!!!