Right now, gaming is everywhere. Be it mobile games, esports, console play or streaming, gaming is now firmly part of the cultural zeitgeist and shows no sign of slowing in a world where connectivity is increasingly driven by virtual experiences.
But when you picture a gamer, who do you see? Chances are the first image that comes to mind is of a young, headset-wearing male playing on a console in his parents’ basement. It’s a stereotype that isn’t only outdated, but which doesn’t reveal the full spectrum of the gaming audience today.
There are over 2.7 billion gamers globally, a huge number but one which only hints at the depth and diversity of the gamer audience. In fact, making up a significant proportion of gamers is an unexpected audience group – moms.
Historically, women gamers, and especially moms, have been written out of the narrative around gaming. The discourse around women and gaming has typically focused on mobile phones. This behaviour, deemed casual gaming, has given the sense that women were not real “gamers”. Images in the media reinforce the idea that moms are a particular kind of player, usually women playing casual games in their downtime. In these stories, their gaming was a novelty, and they certainly were not considered to be part of the broader gaming community.
To better understand this growing audience, Activision Blizzard Media, in partnership with independent research agency Alter Agents, conducted a quantitative research study among 25-54-year-old women who have at least one child at home under the age of 18. Our work in this space revealed a distinct set of insights for this audience that extends across the gaming vertical, as well as their sphere of influence, unique behaviours and habits.
What we found was that gamer moms account for the majority of all moms. Over two-thirds of moms play video games, yet of this group, only 48 percent of mom gamers actually describe themselves as gamers.
The growth of mobile gaming plays a key part in this story. It has increased the accessibility of gaming for women, lowering the barrier to entry by removing the need to purchase additional hardware to play and making it easy to discover new titles. The research found that over 90 percent of gamer moms play mobile games at least weekly, and about 74 percent play mobile games daily.
However, focusing exclusively on mobile gaming doesn’t give the full picture. Gamer moms are not only playing on their phones, with the majority of gamers playing on mobile and at least one other platform (console or PC). What’s more, they’re spending many hours each week playing games, including big Triple-A action2 and MMORPG3 titles.
Just as there is no typical ‘gamer’, there is no typical ‘gamer mom.’ The segment consists of a rich kaleidoscope of women with different motivations and preferences for games. While some moms, particularly those who only play on mobile, see gaming as a mostly solitary activity which they enjoy playing on their phone, others view it as a social activity that helps them stay close to their family and friends. Moms who play across multiple platforms are connected to other players inside and outside of their homes.
Beyond their gaming passions, this content-hungry audience consumes more entertainment and engages more with social media than non-gamer moms. Among gamer moms, it’s those that play across a variety of platforms that are the biggest content consumers. Their social media content consumption is 30% higher than non-gamer moms. And they’re not only using major social media platforms more often but also posting more content. Video is the biggest driver of engagement within their two most used social platforms: YouTube and Facebook.
More gamer moms believe entertainment improves their mood compared to non-gamer moms. This sentiment only increases when looking at moms who play across multiple platforms, who have even more positive attitudes about entertainment and gaming. These moms report being entertained, happy, excited, and competitive, when it comes to gaming, with some also feeling creative, smart, and powerful when they game. Gaming for these moms is more than just a hobby; it is something that enriches and adds value to their lives day-to-day.
The joy that gamer moms get from entertainment goes beyond the individual experience. Gamer moms believe entertainment technology is bringing people closer together, more so than their non-gaming counterparts. This feeling of connection extends into the family. Gamer moms outpace non-gamer moms in their hopefulness for their children’s future and they are also more likely to feel they can easily relate to their children. Gaming is a connective tissue in their relationships with their kids – the more they game, the more they can relate to their children.
The stereotype that women, and especially moms, don’t play video games couldn’t be further from the truth. Women don’t just play video games; they love them. And as this research shows, they see gaming as an important part of their life, one which brings them value and joy.
