PopCap Games: Typical social gamer is female and forty-three

Over the last couple of years studies have shown how the numbers of women involved in gaming, online and console, have increased. PopCap Games' new research in the U.S. and U.K. shows how games on social networks are also experiencing a rise in audiences of females, mostly from older demographics.

by Helen Leggatt

popcap games logo.jpg Carried out across the U.S. and the U.K., the survey of around 5,000 Internet users found that more than half (55%) of social gamers are women with an average age of 43.

In general, female social gamers tend to stick to playing with friends in their network that they know in real-life. Men, on the other hand, are more inclined than women to play with strangers.

For many, social gaming is not only a fun pastime but a means to keep in touch with their network. It's also a way of bonding between generations with younger generations able to play with their parents and grandparents regardless of geographical location or time restrictions.

When it comes to paying for social gaming, a recent report from Q Interactive found that women aren't prepared to pay to play social games. PopCap's survey found that only a small number (28%) of social gamers had swapped cash for virtual currency.

As well as gender differences, the results uncovered a number of differences between social gamers in the two countries. A larger percentage of British females are social gamers (58%) than in America (54%). Interestingly, U.S. gamers are a decade older, on average, than those in the U.K. who averaged around 38 years of age.

Over a quarter of respondents said they play social games regularly - 95% play at least once a week. Facebook is most definitely the site to go for social gaming - 85% cited the social networking behemoth as their preferred place to play. Games such as Farmville, Bejeweled Blitz, Cafe World and Mafia Wars are the most popular. Just 24% choose to play social games on Myspace.

"While still in its infancy compared to the traditional video game industry, the social games sector represents a huge opportunity to reach hundreds of millions of consumers who historically have not played video games," concludes the report (.pdf).