Gamers seek relaxation, favor mobile devices and watch game streams | Tinuiti

Gamers are playing for relaxation. They’re favoring mobile devices, and many of them are watching game livestreams.

The results come from a survey Tinuiti did of 1,000 daily and weekly gamers between September 14, 2023 and September 21, 2023. Marketers are increasingly looking to reach these gamers, and to do that they’re trying to get more information on what gamers like, according to the performance marketing firm.

When asked what their primary motivation for gaming is, 42% of respondents said they play to relax or unwind, the highest share. The second most common answer was that gamers play to be entertained, which garnered 34% of responses, while just 11% said they play because it’s fun to win.

However, when asked how their personality in the gaming world compared to outside of gaming, 44% of gamers surveyed said they’re more competitive, compared to just 12% who said they’re less competitive. Many respondents also indicated they’re more confident, friendly, curious, impulsive, and ambitious when they play.

GenZ gamers were the most likely to point to the social aspects of gaming as their primary motivation for playing with 12% saying they play to keep up with friends and another 8% saying they play because it’s a good way to meet people. Less than 3% of baby boomer gamers picked either option as their primary motivator.

In describing their personality in the gaming world, 43% of Gen Z gamers said they were friendlier than in their day-to-day life outside of gaming. For older generations, just 32% said the same.

In-game purchases

Nearly 40% of the gamers studied said they’ve purchased in-game currency, and more than 30% said they’ve purchased power-ups like extra lives or boosters. A quarter said they’ve purchased custom skins and/or game apparel.

Respondents who picked a gaming console like PlayStation or Xbox as their primary gaming device were the most likely to have made an in-game purchase, with 86% having done so. Although mobile games are often heavily monetized through in-app purchases, just 58% of gamers who picked mobile as their primary device said they had made an in-game purchase, speaking to the more casual makeup of this subset of gamers overall.

The popularity of in-game purchases ties directly into which types of in-game marketing are most appealing to gamers, with 34% saying they most prefer brand-sponsored free game add-ons like power-ups and custom skins, the most selected response. About 39% of gamers said they’ve purchased a product in the past year that they discovered through in-game marketing.

Tinuiti said brands can tap into these use cases through marketing vehicles like rewarded video ads, which allow gamers to earn in-app rewards by voluntarily watching a video advertisement. By offering power-ups or other add-ons directly to gamers to attract ad views, marketers can offer a good value exchange without detracting from gameplay.

Over one third of gamers studied indicated they watch others play games on streaming platforms like Twitch at least weekly, with 17% saying they do so daily. Less than half said they never watch others stream games, and streaming is now a key channel through which marketers can reach many gamers.

As such, streaming gamers are increasingly becoming like influencers in their ability to put relevant products in front of their audiences. Over 30% of respondents said they’ve purchased a product in the past year based on the recommendation of a streaming gamer.

Streaming gamers are having the greatest influence on younger generations with 45% of Gen Z gamers watching game streams at least weekly, along with 47% of millennial gamers. Just 10% of baby boomer gamers watch streaming gamers weekly, while 74% said they never do.

Similarly, 48% of Gen Z gamers and 44% of millennial gamers said they have purchased a product based on the recommendation of a streaming gamer, while just 14% of baby boomer gamers said they have.

Gamers who said the Xbox was their primary gaming device were the most likely to watch others stream games on platforms like Twitch with 55% doing so weekly or more. This was followed closely by PlayStation gamers at 50%, but well above mobile gamers at 18%.

More than half of respondents indicated they’ve watched esports competitions, with 11% saying they do so daily and 14% tuning in weekly. Esports sponsorships can help brands get in front of this targeted group of consumers.

When asked if they’d purchased a product in the past year that was sponsored or advertised during an esports event, 29% of respondents said they had. That share is likely to grow as the popularity of esports expands.

Brands can also choose to sponsor events like concerts in-game, though the share of gamers who said they’ve attended such experiences was less than half the share who have watched esports competitions. For these events to go well, brands need to provide strong entertainment value and ensure that the target audience is the right fit.

While just 22% of gamers overall said they have attended a sponsored live in-game concert or event, that rate jumps to 32% among Gen Z gamers and 28% for millennial gamers. Young men were the most likely to attend in-game events, with 43% of male Gen Z gamers having done so.

Netflix, which only just launched an ad-supported subscription tier in late 2022, was the most selected option for streaming platforms visited in the past month with 70% of respondents. Prime Video, which in September 2023 announced plans to roll out limited advertisements in TV shows and movies in early 2024, came in second with nearly 60% of respondents.

With many platforms now rolling out content based on video games, such as Max’s ‘The Last of Us’ and Peacock’s ‘Twisted Metal,’ marketers increasingly have the opportunity to market to gaming enthusiasts during highly relevant shows and movies.