Social Games Spanning Wider Demographics and Capturing More Time

Feb 27

Social Games Spanning Wider Demographics and Capturing More Time

by Irfan Kamal
Category: Digital Influence

According to the most recent numbers from Inside Network’s Appdata, there are currently over 82 million people - or about twice the entire population of California - playing Zynga’s social game Farmville.

Aside from the growing magnitude of the player base for social games like Farmville, a recently released Information Solutions Group / Popcap study also suggests that these games are reaching a broader and more diverse segment of the population than one might expect.

Here are some of the US-specific findings about social game players from the study*:

- average age is 48

- 90% reported the same or increased game play over the past 3 months

- 27% and 25% reported less time spent reading (mag, book, newspaper) and home TV/movie viewing respectively

- 43% of the time, game players log into social networks specifically to play games

- friends’ recommendations are the #1 factor influencing social game selection

- 35% have purchased a virtual gift while playing a social game

- among the specific games studied, Bejeweled Blitz and Farmville were more popular with women; Mafia Wars and Texas Holdem Poker were more popular with men

Here’s a recent Appdata list of the 15 most popular social games.

*the study also surveyed UK players

This entry was posted on Saturday, February 27th, 2010 at 4:17 pm and is filed under Digital Influence. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.

26 COMMENTS
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26 Responses to “Social Games Spanning Wider Demographics and Capturing More Time”

Social Games Spanning Wider Demographics and Capturing More Time | My In Group Hot News Says:
February 28th, 2010 at 2:19 am
[...] here: Social Games Spanning Wider Demographics and Capturing More Time Posted in Uncategorized « Online Business Accounts » hearsayblogs.com Top 5 Favorite [...]
Chuck E Cheese Coupons Says:
March 1st, 2010 at 1:52 pm
It amazes me how these 48 year olds can even find the time to play these social games. I come home after a hard day’s work and I barely have time to cook for myself and eat a decent meal, much less spend time on this. I must be doing something wrong, I better look into my time management!
social games spanning wider demographics and capturing more time « 4sq5sq mosaic Says:
March 11th, 2010 at 11:36 am
[...] Social Games Spanning Wider Demographics and Capturing More Time. [...]
oyun Says:
June 8th, 2010 at 10:22 pm
thanks man!
Peter Durkson Says:
June 16th, 2010 at 10:01 pm
Where can I find some reliable demographic info
i.e. how many peole over 50,60, 70 years of age play social games? Can these segments ever be attracted to social games built just for their needs?
Please reply direct to duroy@earthlink.net
cod black ops Says:
July 25th, 2010 at 5:02 pm
Average age is 40? I think these statistics are pretty much made up.
My Mad Millions Says:
August 16th, 2010 at 1:30 pm
Wow, I still can’t believe that the average age is 48!
50plussam Says:
August 22nd, 2010 at 10:25 am
I wonder why this kind of games are called social games? these are definitely unsocial. socializig means sitting together and not virtual contacts.
reprogramming mind girl Says:
September 15th, 2010 at 6:04 am
Ok so I feel like a victim of marketing because I play Farmville, Mafia Wars, Poker And fashion wars. These games do have a social aspect though. I’ve met a few cool people that I would have NEVER have met if it wasn’t for these Facebook games !
Jedzenie Na Telefon Says:
October 19th, 2010 at 3:54 am
Woman play in Mafia Wars what is going on?
Kell Says:
November 18th, 2010 at 9:36 pm
The average age is 48!!!

I would be interested in more demographics as most 48 year old’s are finding enough time to work and sleep.
Kell Says:
November 18th, 2010 at 9:37 pm
The average age is 48!!!

I would be interested in more demographics as most 48 year old’s I know are finding just enough time to work and sleep.
Dr Sophie Henshaw Says:
November 25th, 2010 at 10:53 pm
I find it amusing that the average age for playing Farmville is 48. I wonder what the social demographics of these people are. I think it’s disappointing that people are spending less time reading though, because the knowledge we can gain from books (not to mention the benefits of not looking at a computer screen) cannot be underestimated.
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December 7th, 2010 at 11:56 pm
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December 30th, 2010 at 7:21 pm
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David Says:
January 13th, 2011 at 7:35 pm
It is mind blogging how much time people are spending on games such as Farmville and Texas Holdem on Facebook. The average age of game players is a surprising statistic. I would have thought a younger group.
EA Sports vs Zynga : the battle for games in smartphone era | ashishb Says:
March 21st, 2011 at 3:25 am
[...] [source] which prefers social games over video games Avg age of player of social games = 48 [source] Avg age of player of video games = 34 [...]
Keezit Says:
March 26th, 2011 at 3:53 pm
I’m sure this is true people including kids spend so much time on video games. They are fun to play and now there is the Minecraft game.
Marcy Says:
March 26th, 2011 at 3:55 pm
Great info on video games Thanks
P90 Workout Says:
April 24th, 2011 at 10:19 pm
I think more importantly is that there is money to be made from these games. THAT is why they are getting so widespread.
buy Flight Simulator Games Says:
May 12th, 2011 at 2:57 pm
It is the whole social networking working for the game providers, who wouldn’t want to play a game the a friend is playing and the whole idea plays on so many levels of human psychology to get connections involved.
How to get a usa mailing address Says:
June 13th, 2011 at 8:48 pm
I am one who adds to the stat’s! I am not the Farmville type but I am the EA Sports baseball type.
Shannon Massella Says:
July 2nd, 2011 at 11:23 pm
Stumbled across from yahoo, and read your great publish
green tea Says:
July 5th, 2011 at 10:28 pm
Social games is getting more adventurous and more exciting now. Like the farmVille every facebook user spends 1 to 2hours of their time just to play this games.lol
Mafia Wars 2: Casual Gaming Upgrade « Digital Meanderings Says:
October 3rd, 2011 at 4:34 pm
[...] not kid ourselves. Most of the people who play most of Zynga’s social media games in their mid to late 40′s. They’re not the “G-rated” 15 or younger [...]