Create new account
Forgot password?

NEWS

Study: 73 Per Cent Of UK Citizens Regularly Play Games

Tom Ivan's picture

By Tom Ivan

September 29, 2009

  • Login or register to post comments

See also:

Related Articles:

Britain has more online and console gamers than anywhere else in Europe, according to the 2009 UK National Gamers Survey.

Having surveyed 2,226 UK citizens aged eight and above from June to July 2009, TNS and Gamesindustry.com found that that 73 per cent of respondents regularly played games.

In total, 74 per cent of men older than eight years and with access to the internet indicated that they played games, compared to 71 per cent of women.

Console gaming was found to be the most popular, followed by PC gaming and playing online on game portals. Nevertheless, the study suggests that mobile phones and social networks such as MySpace and Facebook “are the game platforms of the future, although they are yet to properly take hold in the UK”.

Stephen Palmer, group director at TNS Technology, commented: “Gaming has rapidly expanded in popularity and now appeals to as wide an audience as TV and the internet. In several cases, young and old are even moving away from traditional media and spend their free time playing games instead. The variety of games on offer has drawn in segments of the population that would not ordinarily be associated with gaming, which has turned the traditional view of the ‘gamer’ on its head. With the pressure put on media through advertising cuts, gaming is emerging as the forum through which to target consumers of the future.”

AgentCool's picture
On September 30th AgentCool said:

"In several cases, young and old are even moving away from traditional media and spend their free time playing games instead."

To be honest, I'm the exact opposite. I used to spend 15-20 hours per week playing games but now I rarely spend more than 2 or 3 hours a week on the Xbox 360/PS3 as I spend far more time watching films. I think I've reached a stage where the majority of releases no longer excite me because I often feel like I've played them all before. I probably won't even buy Modern Warfare 2 unless there's something seriously original in it because the thought of playing through yet another FPS just doesn't get my pulse racing anymore.

I'm really looking forward to Uncharted 2 and Mass Effect 2 though!

edshot's picture
On September 30th edshot said:

I am so with you one this one. I feel I have become completely jaded with the FPS genre, it doesn't really matter how they dress them up. It also seems that when I speak of my lack of enthusiasm for games like Modern Warefare 2, etc, I am commiting some sort of blasphemy with the gamers around me.

I am more inclined these days to reach the end of a TV series box set such as Deadwood than I am with Killzone 2. I feel as entertainment, TV shows such as 24, Lost, Fringe and the new FastForward, are becoming more competitive for my time, with games that just offer more of the same falling by the wayside.

However, it is games like Uncharted 2, The Last Guardian and the prospect of a Beyond Good & Evil 2 that reassure me I haven't lost my enthusiasm for gaming completely, I'm just become more selective in how I spend my time these days. So much to do and so little time to do it in and all that.

slodriver's picture
On September 30th slodriver said:

I'm also playing much less than I used to. I managed to complete Halo 3 and COD4 earlier in the year and am currently on Killzone2 but once I lose momentum in a game (in particular, going back after a few weeks' break and trying to get familiar with the controls again), that's pretty much it. I find the size of the games don't help, and only managed to get GTA4 and MGS4 15-20% completed before I felt like moving on. Maybe I'll go back to them but the lure of the new is considerable...

edshot's picture
On September 30th edshot said:

I lost momentum with Prototype. I was about a third of the way through, but put it down for a couple of weeks. I found that I couldn't pick it up again because I'd have to relearn the complex control system, also I'd lost enthusiasm for the plot and characters.

Yet I often wonder how I can finish games like inFamous, Uncharted, FEAR2, GTA4 yet have a lack of enthusiasm for similar games? Is it simple controls, captivating story, engaging characters, or a combination of the above that allow one to pick up and put down a game, rather than blaming a specific genre?

StealthBadger's picture
On September 30th StealthBadger said:

I reckon it's just down to timing quite often. I got about half way through MGS4 (having enjoyed all of the previous ones) before having to take an enforced break (work travel), got back, and just didn't fancy it. GTAIV on the other hand, I just couldn't be bothered with. Fable II and Oblivion as well. The real test whether i'm getting over "game obsession" will be FFXIII, having finished all of the previous ones obsessively. GT5 too!