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Mobile gamers have edged out core gamers to become the largest gaming segment in the US, according to new research from NPD.
Overall, the number of people playing games in America fell by some 12m year-on-year to 211.5m, according to the company’s Gamer Segmentation 2012: The New Faces of Gamers report.
Of the six gamer segments in the report only mobile gamers and digital gamers increased in number, with core gamers, family + kid gamers, light PC gamers and avid PC gamers all in decline. The number of mobile gamers was up nine percentage points to 22% – the biggest of all shares – while the number of digital gamers increased four percentage points to 16%.
NPD industry analyst Anita Frazier said that mobile gaming – particularly on smartphones and tablets – had made a “tremendous impact”.
Nevertheless, she explained it is the core gamers who still spend the most on games. “Given the long lifecycles of the current consoles and the increasing installed base of smartphones and tablets, it’s not surprising to see a slight decline in the core gamer segment,” Frazier said.
“It’s the revenue contribution of the core gamer segment that continues to outpace all other segments, and remains vital to the future of the industry.”
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