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Although there are millions of online games available 24×7 for the aspirants to play and rejoice, like play Rummy online, Angry Birds, Candy Crush Saga, Criminal case etc., not every game is a cup of coffee for all. The choices and preferences for picking up a particular game vary from individual to individual. In a broader sense, even among the two genders, you can see a drastic difference in their choice. While males prefer a certain genre, females may be abhorrent of the same. Let us now see how both the genders vary in their gaming approach.
How are the genders divided by statistics?
The online gaming is almost equally popular among both the genders not only across India but throughout the world. As per a survey by Forbes, the mobile game which has become a part and parcel of at least 1/3rd of the Indian population; around 40% of men and 35% of women play mobile games at least five days a week. Even among them, as per a popular study by New Zoo 48% and 37% of males play on PC and Console at least once a month and the same ratio is 35 percent and 23 percent in case of women.
General beliefs about the gender behaviour in online gaming:
Traditionally, online gaming was believed to be males’ forte. Many studies still indicate that men play online gaming more than females, although the situation is changing nowadays gradually. The fact that the males start playing online games a bit earlier in their lives than the females gives former an edge over the latter. Similarly, it is believed that men spend more time on online gaming than women. So, naturally, male gamers are bound to be more in comparison to the female gamers.
How females are closing the gap?
Though many factors seem to be favoring males as the dominant force in online gaming, females are slowly and steadily closing the gap. They are able to give their male counterparts a real run for their money because certain factors have turned the tide in their favor. As per New Zoo research, as much as 39% of females are able to discover a new online game through friends and family and 20% through social networks. This figure seems to be comparatively very low in case of males where only 27% of them discover a game through friends and family. Though both males and females seem to be loving strategy-based games, the former does not go beyond a certain genre whereas the latter go after the different variety of games, not leaning on a specific genre. So, nowadays it is a very common sight to see more game downloads by female players. As a matter of fact, a study by the Internet Advertising Bureau has thrown a surprise that 52% of the gaming industry is made up of women. Hence it is important that the developers and marketers working on games, should be actively engaging female gamers.
How males continue to maintain the lead?
Despite the fact that females are statistically improving, men are able to continue with the lead due to some striking factors. The males are generally perceived to be more liberal in playing cash games than the females. So, the spending habit is one of the reasons perhaps for a greater number of males playing online games than the females. Also, the females are known for playing games preferably only through their mobiles whereas males play on PC too.
Some important findings on male and female online gaming:
Specific to India, Mauj mobile has conducted a study regarding the gender factor in online gaming and has come up with the below findings.
- While multi-player gaming behaviour is displayed by 67% of males, it is only 50% the case in females.
- Females spend twice more time on mobile games than men, although they account for only one-third of the mobile users in urban India.
- While teenage gamers are mostly males, they account for just 24% when it comes to the age group of 30 as opposed to female gamers who account for 59%.
Thus, the gender barrier is slowly reducing in online gaming with female gamers gradually outnumbering their male counterparts. One fine example is the female gamers making inroads into a card game like online Indian Rummy, which was once considered as a taboo. The realization came a bit late though that this game is more of a strategy oriented one and since women, in particular, are fond of such genres they have now become regular competitors. Thus, you cannot nowadays find much difference in their approach towards online gaming between the two genders. The only visible difference is that while males prefer action-packed adventure games along with strategy-based games, the female prefers strategy-oriented puzzle games.
