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So you think you know gaming? NOV 2023

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So you think you know gaming?

Gamers have a bit of a bad rep when it comes to their perception in culture at large, however when you look deeper into who actually plays games and why, a much di erent picture begins to emerge of what is arguably the biggest and most impactful cultural space in the world today. Gamers are not a monolith. Brands which understand the nuances within gaming audiences are the ones best placed to win with them, provided they show up in a way which adds value to gamers. But gaming itself is also continuously changing. The pandemic caused a radical shift in trends within the industry as people found themselves with more time on their hands and less options for entertainment - the impact of which is still shaping gaming today. The emotional needs which audiences turn to gaming to meet are varied and re ect the diversity of gamers as a whole. Gaming is rmly in the cultural mainstream thanks to cross pollination with other areas of culture such as sport, music, TV and lm. Indeed gaming has been responsible for some of the biggest cultural moments of the last few years. This brie ng aims to highlight some of the surprising trends within gaming which are often overlooked or underserved by brands looking to activate in the gaming space.

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The changing face of gaming The demographics of people who play video games in

The changing face of gamers

2023 are far from the stereotype of the typical gamer which culture at large imagines. Despite being often considered a male space, women make up a substantial proportion of gamers globally. In fact women outnumber men when it comes to certain areas within gaming such as mobile gaming. When it comes to console gaming, the Nintendo Switch is the system with the largest proportion of female users - with some sources suggesting that they make up a majority of Switch-owners. While women have been playing video games for as long as there have been video games to play, the near

“Half your potential audience are women.” Mat Piscatella, Executive Director & Video Game Industry Analyst , Circana

demographic parity which currently exists is noteworthy as it is a far cry from the popular perception of the gaming audience. Older people are also an increasingly large part of the gaming audience. The likely reasons for this are twofold: rst, many over 50s have been playing video games all their lives and have simply aged into this segment, second is the COVID 19 pandemic and the massive surge of interest in gaming it ignited. Between 2019 and 2021 the percentage of gamers aged 55-64 grew by 32% according to online survey tool GWI. Gamers are clearly a much more diverse group of people

49% Of US gamers are female. The trend across other markets is similar. (Source: Statista)

than the popular imagination would suggest. Groups such as Black Girl Gamers just go to show how important it is for brands to recognise how diverse gaming audiences actually are in 2023.

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Trying to connect…

Looking for community

One of the main emotional needs met by gaming is that of feeing connected to a wider community. Online multiplayer gaming was one of the methods of socialising which was almost totally una ected by the pandemic and it saw double digit growth in all markets in 2020. But online gaming has its problems, for example half of British women who game have experienced abuse while playing online. It’s perhaps unsurprising then, that following the pandemic, there’s been a resurgence of IRL tabletop gaming as people continue to look for connection in the post pandemic world. The growth of table top gaming highlights this need for o ine communal experiences. Table top gaming is an area often overlooked in favour of console-based gaming by brands looking to engage gaming audiences, but it is a signi cant and growing space. Games such as Ticket to Ride and Catan are hugely popular billion-dollar franchises, while the classic table top role playing game Dungeons and Dragons has steadily grown in popularity to the point where there are an estimated 50 million players today. Meanwhile Games Workshop, creator of the legendary table top war-game Warhammer 40,000

$48.7bn

Multiplayer video-gaming was fun and then dickheads ruined it… I wonder if people started looking for another way to play games where you could see the person you were playing with. Wil Wheaton, Actor, founder and cohost of Table Top

has nearly doubled its revenue since 2019 and has just posted its 7th consecutive year of sales growth. Whether it’s the desire for more genuine human interactions or frustration with the constant drive to push players to online multiplayer gaming from the studios, it’s clear that table top gaming is increasingly

The predicted size of the table top gaming industry by 2028

satisfying that all-important need for connection that gamers feel.

ffl

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Community meets creativity in the sandbox

While Zuckerberg and other tech giants were throwing

From dance battles to demonstrations

all their eggs in the Metaverse basket (but still somehow only o ering us legless avatars and PS1

With a user base that is predominantly under the age of

graphics), gamers around the world looked on thinking

16 – 67% < 16YO, only 14% > YO – it may be surprising

that these digitally connected communities and

that Roblox has played host to massive political

immersive second life environments have already

protests. An innovative and creative use of the game’s

existed for decades, from early online spaces like The

sandbox environment to join together, engage with

Sims to more recent global behemoths like Roblox.

current a airs and express their beliefs, these

Sandbox games of the likes of Minecraft and Roblox are particularly interesting because they are proving to be creative incubators for young people and niche communities around the world, playing host to

gatherings don’t just open our eyes to how political

“Bro turned into “Mario🔴 x Luigi🟢” I can’t even make this up🤣 the opponent gave up💀”

engaged young audiences are, they show us how they are reclaiming digital spaces to participate in movements they might not otherwise be able to IRL.

everything from club nights to political

Elsewhere, the likes of Jersey Club dance battles and

demonstrations. The ways in which these communities

Club Matryoshka, an exclusive club found in a

are using platforms to unite and express themselves

Minecraft server created by musicians in Manila looking

make them both a cultural barometer and new space

for an alternative space to share their work – think

in which to meet, empower and connect with hyper

Berlin’s famous Berghain nightclub but in a 32-bit virtual

targeted niche communities within gaming.

space – show us how creativity ourishes and nds its voice in these spaces, set free from the limitations of physics and empowered by alter-egos that young audiences embrace as a means to liberating self expression.

275k One virtual protest area was visited more than 275,000 times

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Keep it cozy Gamers are often looking for a particular emotional

It’s all about the feels

experience when they game, and these are far more nuanced than mere excitement. Increasingly people are turning to games for calming, relaxing, familiar or aesthetic experiences. This can be seen in the growing popularity of the cozy genre. These are games which make the player feel comforted, warm and safe. There’s little peril or violence and plenty of freedom for the player. Plots often revolve around management of the natural world, personalising physical spaces and building and maintaining relationships. These are games designed to be relaxing such as Animal Crossing, Stardew Valley and Disney Dreamlight Valley.

If it ain’t broke…

Cozy gaming really took o during the pandemic and has

One of the most gratifying aspects of gaming is the

been a highly popular genre within gaming in the years

endless replayability of great games which push

since. Racking up close to a billion views on TikTok, the

boundaries, break formats and set new standards for

cozy gaming trend has also bled into the real world and is

game design. A truly great game remains highly

increasingly in uencing the aesthetics of gaming setups

playable for years - or even decades after release.

and interior design. This nostalgic drive to revisit old favourites has seen The cozy genre stands in stark contrast to the typical

some classic titles gain renewed popularity and cult-

genres of games which come to mind when one thinks

like status, even bringing in new fans younger than the

about the category - highlighting the wide range of

games themselves.

experiences which people who play video games are looking for.

The thriving community built around the 1999 real time strategy game Age of Empires II is a great example of

In cozy games, the barriers come down… it's an easier way to enjoy a fundamentally human feeling.

the power of nostalgia in gaming - the community regularly runs high pro le e-sports competitions backed by big name sponsors such as Red Bull where professional players compete for signi ant cash prizes and AoE2 streamers such as T90O cial get tens of thousands of views per video. The industry has clearly taken note of the value of these ready-made audiences interested in older titles - as

Robert Tatnell solo developer of Hokko Life

shown by the popularity of remastered versions of classic franchises such as Halo or Final Fantasy.

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Wait, it’s all storytelling?

The line between games and other media continues to blur Ultimately the popularity of gaming has everything to do with storytelling. Games provide the perfect canvas for building rich, immersive worlds and creating characters audiences can connect with by literally walking in their shoes. A mistake often made when it comes to gaming IP is thinking of it as somehow di erent to or separate from the wider cultural mainstream. In fact gaming IP is increasingly at the root of mainstream culture in other media. Some of the biggest moments in Film and TV in 2023 were based on gaming IP such the HBO series The Last of Us or The Super Mario Bros. Movie which netted $1.36bn globally, making it the second most successful animated movie of all time in terms of it’s box o ce performance. This just goes to illustrate the increasingly interconnected nature of IP and di erent media channels - a trend which

“O en seen as the pinnacle of gaming storytelling - The Last of Us will be seen by some as an opportunity to showcase how mature the games industry has become and how emotional, complex and moving the stories it tells can be. All this to an audience who may not traditionally engage with games.”

is only likely to continue as competition for audiences’ attention becomes ever more erce.

Ste an Powell, BBC gaming reporter

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So what does this mean for brands?

1. Gamers are increasingly female and older than you might think- brands should make an e ort to be inclusive of anyone who enjoys gaming, rather than defaulting to a stereotypical view of the gaming audience. 2. Gamers are often motivated by a need for community or IRL interaction - brands should keep this in mind when engaging gaming audiences as well as expand their de nition of what they consider to be “gaming” and unlock new engaged audiences in less cluttered spaces such as tabletop gaming. 3. Gaming is often a creative + emotional experience - keep the speci c emotional needs of gaming audience in mind when engaging with them. Recognise, reward and encourage their creativity. Their motivation may be more complex than just a desire for fun or excitement. 4. Nostalgia plays a huge role in the industry - You don’t have to chase the latest releases to be relevant to gaming audiences, many gaming communities are based around games which have been around for a long time. 5. Gaming is a space for storytelling - gaming audiences are primed for immersive storytelling and worldbuilding, and the stories told in games can reach well beyond their fandoms. Think of ways you can add to that story by bringing it to life across channels.

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Brand Experience Agency of the Decade weareamplify.com