We all know that mobile games can be quite addictive over periods of time, including popular titles like Angry Birds, Candy Crush Saga and Clash of Clans. However, according to a report from the NPD Group, their growth may be much larger than anyone – analysts or consumers alike – could have predicted.
The report indicates that mobile gamers have increased their time spent playing mobile games over the past two years, playing across such devices as tablets and smartphones. The company notes that the time spent playing in a typical day has managed to rise a whopping 57 percent to over two hours per day over the past year, versus one hour and 20 minutes from 2012.
Some of this is due to the growth of the tablet market in general, with the introduction of new devices from Samsung and Apple. The appeal of the games themselves remains a huge draw, though.
The report also shows that tablet gamers aren’t just the only ones most likely to play games (due to their large displays), but also more likely to pay for games and spend more money than those using smaller devices like smartphones.
“Continued mobile growth will stem from existing customers paying more to play, especially in the free-to-play portion of the market,” said Liam Callahan, industry analyst for the NPD Group. “A positive sign of consumer behavior trending this way is the fact that more than twice the number of app gamers reported making an in-game purchase than they did when we conducted this study two years ago.”
Other numbers from the report indicated some interesting trends as well:
- The average number of playing sessions are at their highest between the ages of six to 44. However, the average number of minutes per session peaks in the tween years, followed by the teenage and early adult years.
- Kids ages two to 12 are actually spending the largest amount of time on devices for gaming versus other activities. They play more games (average of five) and pay for more games (average of three) compared to other audiences. The 25 to 44 age group comes in second when it comes to in-game purchases.
“There’s no denying the important role kids play in driving revenue,” said Callahan. “But it’s the adult gamers who are spending more than kids and teens. This group also tends to be the decision-makers for their young children’s gaming experiences, making them a prime target for developers and marketers alike.”
- In addition, the report finds that one in five players are exclusively mobile-based gamers, regardless of which devices they use. Meanwhile, the remaining four in five spend more of their time playing on mobile than they do other devices, including gaming consoles and PC.
- That’s not to say these have been abandoned, though. Console and computer gamers are playing just as much as they were the year before, with a number of new titles available.
Indeed, gaming continues to thrive in the mobile market, despite rising customer acquisition costs for publishers. It’s likely we’ll see some truly impressive mobile efforts in the months ahead – and, as expected, people will keep paying them.
NPD said the data was derived from an online survey in late November/early December 2014 of over 5500 people of all ages, with adults being asked to act as a surrogate for children under the age of 18 in answering the questions.