America's 227 million gamers

Plus: Lessons from an immigration board game | Tuesday, July 13, 2021

Open in app View in browser   Presented By OurCrowd   Axios Gaming By Megan Farokhmanesh and Stephen Totilo ·Jul 13, 2021 Megan Farokhmanesh and Stephen Totilo here with Axios Gaming. Let's get started. Today's edition is 1,215 words, a 5-minute read.     1 big thing: America's 227 million gamers Illustration: Sarah Grillo/Axios   The U.S. gaming population is slightly more male and less racially diverse than the country as a whole, but it's also growing, according to new data released today by the industry's leading trade group. Why it matters: The annual Entertainment Software Association survey addressed the question of who plays games in America with an answer that gradually — with notable exceptions — is becoming "most people." The survey of 4,000 Americans age 18 and up considers gaming broadly, looking at players and gaming of all types, from kids to seniors, people playing on tablets, consoles and PCs. (Read the full report.) The ESA says the poll was conducted with a margin of error of 1.55%. More gamers: The ESA pegs the overall gaming population in the U.S. at 227 million, up from 214 million last year. The average age of the American gamer is 31 (80% over 18). Gamers are still mostly men: 45% of gamers identify as female, 55% as male, according to the ESA, which appears to have only offered binary choices. That compares to 51% of Americans identifying as female, according to U.S. Census estimates for 2019, the most recent year available. People of color also appear to be under-represented: 73% of ESA respondents said they are white, 9% Hispanic, 8% Black, and 6% Asian. The Census estimates for America overall are 19% Hispanic, 13% Black and 6% Asian. The difference can be attributed to myriad factors, including gatekeeping, representation, and the class divides that keep gaming, a fairly expensive pastime, out of the hands of many. Just the presence of that breakdown, a first for the ESA's annual reports, is a breakthrough. Of the addition, ESA chief Stanley Pierre-Louis told Axios, "Our report seeks to recognize and quantify the level of engagement by diverse consumers." The impact of COVID seems most apparent in the ESA's numbers about gaming with others: 77% of gamers play with others every week, up from 65% the year prior. 74% of parents play with gamers with their children, up from 55% the year prior. The bottom line: The ESA's findings show a more diverse player base that at least nudges against the stereotype of the gamer as a young white man. "The video game industry is deeply invested in continuing to expand our player base by making games more accessible and reflective of all," Pierre-Louis said, "as evidenced by various diversity efforts across the industry."     2. Xbox's optional seasons "Sea of Thieves." Image: Microsoft   Major Xbox games like "Sea of Thieves" and the next "Halo" may be based around multi-month seasons, but Microsoft isn't keen on forcing developers to make every game that way. Why it matters: Expectations for games after an initial release have shifted, leading to mixed reactions from players who want their games to keep going and those who want an ending. But head of Microsoft Studios Matt Booty told The Guardian that the company doesn't "have any direction or mandate that says every game has to be an ongoing, sustained game." "'Sea of Thieves' has longevity and we're going to have 'Halo' multiplayer start to be based around seasons, but Compulsion Games, our studio in Montreal, weren't told to go build something that's going to have seasons or six pieces of DLC or something." The same goes for even episodic games like Dontnod's "Tell Me Why." "[It] was an important story for us to get out there, but there is no mandate that they've got to go figure out how to do seasons for that game." The big picture: Games with a longer shelf-life through additional content are a growing breed, but that doesn't mean the contained, single-player experience is going extinct. Xbox head Phil Spencer said that Microsoft is "probably building more of those now than we've been in the history of Xbox."     3. Reviews for everyone Illustration: Aïda Amer/Axios   Reviews can help people decide which games to buy, but for some gamers with disabilities crucial questions about accessibility are not being answered by writers. Why it matters: Whether or not a game includes options like alternative control schemes or color-coded systems can be a key factor in some people's abilities to play a game. In response to a Twitter poll asking if people based game purchasing choices on website reviews, AbleGamers COO Steven Spohn said he does not, because "95% of reviews don't list accessibility to help me decide." Accessibility advocate Steve Saylor echoed Spohn's sentiments. "This is something I hope to see change (and participate in) on sites like IGN, Gamespot, Polygon, etc.," he tweeted. "The more we talk about accessibility and include it as part of reviews, the more this will encourage studios to include accessibility as part of the design process."     A message from OurCrowd AI transforms the smartphone into a Sphere of Safety™     Invest today in AI tech revolutionizing safety for individuals and enterprises at OurCrowd. Sfara's connected mobility platform offers unprecedented crash detection, accident management, fleet-driver risk management, and more. Explore Sfara's investment potential at OurCrowd.     4. Lessons from an immigration board game Image: Games for Change   A board game called "Toma El Paso (Make a Move)" is helping college students understand some of the ground-level complexities of U.S. immigration policy. Why it matters: The game is made to be played, first and foremost, by unaccompanied immigrant minors to help them learn how to navigate the U.S detention system. Between the lines: Designer Lien Tran, who made the game in 2014, said it is meant to explain the ways one can exit the system (reunification, foster care or return). Among its lessons: the importance of following-up with caseworkers and "exerting patience." What they're saying: At a talk at the Games for Change conference on Monday, Saint Louis University professor Kate Moran said "Toma El Paso" was eye-opening for her students. (Watch the full talk on YouTube.) "They expressed frustration that even if they did what they were supposed to do, there was no guarantee of a good outcome — at least not quickly." They appreciated its specificity: "The game allows us to talk about something that often gets buried in conversations about high-level law and policy: the way the detention system looks and acts on the ground."     5. Need to know "Ghostwire: Tokyo" is the latest game this year to be delayed, this time into early 2022. "We want to get the game in your hands as soon as possible so you can experience the unforgettable version of a haunted Tokyo that we've been hard at work building," the developer said. "At the same time, we're also focused on protecting the health of everyone at Tango." "Company of Heroes 3" is in development, moving the well-liked PC strategy series to World War II's Italian front. "Nickelodeon All-Star Brawl," a newly-revealed "Smash Bros."-style fighting game featuring Spongebob Squarepants, the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles and more, is slated for a fall release on all consoles. A group of developers whose work includes series such as "Gears of War" and "Company of Heroes" are launching a new Vancouver-based studio called Timbre Games. Former EA dev and "Sims" franchise leader Joe Nickolls will act as studio president. A pirated version of "Resident Evil 8: Village" being distributed online, ironically, makes the game run more smoothly by removing Capcom's anti-piracy measures.     6. Worthy of your attention "Feast and famine": How the pandemic influenced games public relations (Joshua Broadwell, GamesIndustry) "Public relations experts in the industry experienced all these and more, sometimes simultaneously. The increased attention on gaming meant more chances to share projects with larger audiences, but it also brought the very real threat of titles getting lost in the cacophony of digital events. "     7. 'Fess up Anonymous confession account @Fesshole recently had a game developer-related admission that is as clever as it is devious. Screenshot: @fesshole (Twitter)     A message from OurCrowd As connected mobility market booms, this AI tech is leading the way     Invest today in AI tech revolutionizing safety for individuals and enterprises at OurCrowd. Sfara's connected mobility platform offers unprecedented crash detection, accident management, fleet-driver risk management, and more. Explore Sfara's investment potential at OurCrowd.   🎁 Like the newsletter? Refer Axios Gaming to your friends to spread the word and get free stuff in the process. Follow the link here to begin. 🐦 Find us on Twitter: @megan_nicolett / @stephentotilo Today's newsletter: showing (fess)hole. Like this email style and format? Learn more about Axios HQ. It'll help you deliver employee communications more effectively.   Axios thanks our partners for supporting our newsletters. If you're interested in advertising, learn more here. Sponsorship has no influence on editorial content. 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