Hank [BS/MSEE,
MSM $$$, Ph.D. Mgmt] teaches Concept Statement:
What are casual games: Typically they are titles that consumers can learn to play easily. They tend to emphasize fun gameplay rather than realistic graphics. They can range from card games such as poker to old arcade hits such as Pac-Man to puzzle games such as sudoku to simple strategy and mystery titles.
Who’s playing them: In terms of online casual games, it’s mostly women and people older than 35.
How much do they cost? About $20 a game for online titles. Prices are lower for older titles and for games purchased under subscription plans.
What’s the size of the industry: Worldwide, online casual games generated about $932 million in revenue last year, including advertising, individual game sales and game site subscriptions, according to DFC Intelligence, an industry consulting firm. In contrast, U.S. retailers alone sold $7.4 billion worth of packaged game software last year, according to NPD Group.
Who’s developing and distributing casual games: In terms of traffic, top game portals include Yahoo Games, EA’s Pogo.com, MSN Games and WildTangent. Up-and-comers include smaller Bay Area-based companies such as iWin.com and Neoedge Networks’ MostFun.com. Developers include EA, WildTangent, Reflexive Entertainment and Big Fish Games.
Are any of you playing “casual games?”
From here: accessed 8/23/07 0620
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You might think the face of one of the hottest areas in gaming right now is a young male in his 20s who owns the latest supercharged gaming system from Microsoft or Sony - or both. But you’d be wrong.
Instead, the epitome of the new-era gamer is a woman in her late 30s or early 40s who plays on an average PC.
Yes, the video game industry seems to have been turned on its head.
For years, the dominant themes have been faster game machines, increasingly realistic graphics, more immersive play, as well as the old standbys - blood, guts and blowin’ stuff up.
But that picture has begun to look increasingly outdated. While young men dominate the gaming industry as a whole, casual games are one of the fastest-growing parts of the industry and attracting a whole new demographic.
You can find signs of the revolution everywhere. One of the fastest-growing parts of the game industry is centered on so-called casual online games, PC-based titles that users can generally start playing in minutes and usually don’t require the mastery of some combination of multiple buttons to enjoy.
The upheaval has spread to the console market, as sales of Nintendo’s Wii console and DS handheld, both of which stress fun-to-play games over powerful processors or realistic graphics, are far outstripping their supercharged competitors from Microsoft and Sony. Meanwhile, the list of top-selling games for consoles or handhelds are dominated by family and non-traditional titles.
“There’s a huge business to be made” in casual games, said James Lin, a financial analyst with MDB Capital in Santa Monica who has long covered the game industry.
The market for casual games is still a fraction of the total game industry, but it’s growing considerably faster.
The growth is being fueled in part by the rise of broadband Internet access, which has allowed game developers to bypass brick-and-mortar retailers. Intead of a small handful of casual games that consumers might find at their local Wal-Mart or Gamestop, the average online game site - unconstrained by shelf-space concerns - offers hundreds of titles.
But the casual game industry has also grown by reaching consumers that the traditional video game has essentially ignored in recent years: women and older people. Among the consumers who buy casual online games, 74 percent are women, according to the Casual Games Association, an industry trade group. And more than half of the people playing casual online games are older than 35, according to Parks Associates, an industry research and consulting firm.
Game companies have been able to reach these audiences not only by making the games more accessible, but also through emphasizing family-friendly fare. Many of the casual games eschew the graphic violence often found in traditional console titles.
Sandra Richardson, for instance, fits the mold of the new gamer. The 55-year-old Bloomington, Ill., resident started playing online casual games about a year and a half ago when her kids left home.
She’s bought 40 online casual games so far and has become a big fan of the Mystery Case Files series, in which players solve a mystery by finding hidden objects.
“It’s a way for older people who don’t go out anymore to have something to do,” Richardson said. “It helps keep your mind going.”
The casual market differs from the traditional console gaming business not only in who is playing the games, but who is making them. A handful of big publishers and developers dominate the traditional gaming business. In contrast, casual games are being developed by many small, independent companies.
A big part of that has to do with simple economics. While console games can cost tens of millions of dollars to develop, the average cost of casual PC games is in the range of about $150,000 to $500,000 per title. That lower bar makes it easier for smaller companies to participate.
The Bay Area alone hosts casual game companies such as Mountain View-based Neoedge, which runs the MostFun.com game site, and San Francisco-based iWin, which develops games and runs its own online game site.
And while many smaller companies have been leading the charge in casual games, even some of the more traditional companies are starting to pay closer attention to them. Electronic Arts, for instance, recently reorganized around four new divisions, one of which will focus exclusively on making casual games. And earlier this month, EA signed a deal with Hasbro to develop video games based on Hasbro board games such as Monopoly and Scrabble.
To be sure, the industry faces challenges.
Much of the industry is built around a try-before-you-buy model, for instance. That may be a good deal for game players, but it isn’t necessarily great for the developers, considering that consumers only buy about 2 percent of the games they download.
And while the economics are different, the casual game market is much like the traditional one in this respect: Most games don’t make money and developers tend to be dependent on a handful of hot-selling games.
Still, many industry executives and analysts think the games business has a new hit on its hands with casual games.
“We’re definitely bullish on the industry,” said Michael Cai, director of broadband and gaming at industry research firm Parks Associates.
From here: accessed 8/23/07 0621
I agree with this article. Consider simple casino games such as: solitaire, blackjack, roulette, and any slot machines, these are all simple games that have been popular for years. These simple games have sustained the evolution of games because they are appealing and simple for everyone of any sex, race, and age. I feel this is a blueprint for sustaining the test of time for video games. Also, if you want to see simplicity and personalization look at http://www.mygame.com/ here you can put personal head shots of you and your friends in games.
I also agree with this. I know several ladies who sit at their computer during their lunch break and play Spider Solitaire while they eat. Myself, I like to go to Yahoo games and play Collapse or Bingo. Although I do find myself every once in a while in a mood to just go on a rampage in Halo, I prefer the more casual games that keep away from the blood, gore, and violence. These online casual games are the kinds of games that parents wouldn’t mind having their kids play as they promote a more peaceful atmosphere.
Well this $7.8 billion dollar industry was bound to come about sometime. The Baby Boomers are recognizing that computers not only changed the way we life through technology, but also changed the way we relax. Most of the casual games are stress-relievers that allows you to take a break and just play some entertaining games from your childhood. Others are games that boost mental creativity that can switch your brain wave activity to get both sides of brain active. It’s no suprise the Boomers are pioneering this area right now, and it will be interesting to see what the casual gaming industry develops into later down the road.
Mochibot is an example of a companies that was created with the new popularity of casual gaming. They provide a way for people hosting game sites to track which games are making them money, as well as provide tools for marketing of games.
http://mochimedia.com/
Personally, when I have trouble sleeping and have nothing in particular bothering me, I hit the computer and play solitaire, I do not necessarily have fun playing but it keeps me occupied. Older women and people over the age of 35 tend to have more trouble sleeping than I do, or would just rather not worry about other things during the day and this results in them playing games such as solitaire. There have been countless times when I have gone downstairs after a long night of studying and my mom is plugging away at a game of solitaire at three o’clock in the morning. I laugh and think to myself, “How is she able to play that game for hours on end?!” I also agree with Katie in that these games are safe. Not only are they not violent but you are often forced to use your brain. You are not aiming to destroy a target, which I do enjoy at times, but you are using arithmetic and problem solving skills, which makes these games appropriate for children.
I like playing casual games when I am bored because they are easy and entertaining. I used to work at Remax so when I didn’t have any calls I would play them. They are right though about middle aged women playing them, my mom is hooked. She doesn’t have a job and doesn’t know the first thing about computers so she plays games like text twist all day.
Well, I am a hardcore gamer to begin with(I own an Alienware!)! But I can see why the casual gaming industry is growing rapidly.
If you want to play big games, you need a high-performance machine for optimal performance and entertainment which will cost you a lot of money and requires hardware know-how. They also require good playing skills for any enjoyment(I mean, who like to get head-shot a million times?! They will lose interest.). And since modern games involve highly immersive gameplay, there is not much “relaxation” or entertainment. You are instead stressed to play the game by its rules.
This is why many people initially disliked the gaming industry, calling gamers geeks and so on. But casual gaming is rapidly changing that outlook. With ordinary PCs capable of rendering games in a well playable format due to use of macromedia flash player, java and other simple games, many people can play them without worrying about performance lags or other issues. Also these games don’t require advanced gaming skills and usually include simple operations. So they are easily understandable and gameplay becomes more of a casual entertainment. So people from all ages can equally play them and enjoy them. Hell, even I like them!
I am sure you will find this site pretty nice: http://www.addictinggames.com
I’m a pretty hardcore gamer, and like Aditya said, most people get turned off by those types of games because of the time commitment and stress. They don’t want to be bothered to learn 50 new sets of rules to play a game and kill five minutes.
So most of these people are switching to quick easy games, Diner Dash (http://www.mostfun.com/Details.aspx?gameID=NeoDesk_DinerDash&siteId=00999200004&gclid=CLK7m6OqmY4CFQYjWAod_0f-Yg)
and other flash based, easy to produce, easy to play, quick games with no prior investment before the fun starts.
Lots of girls I know, more than males, seem to prefer quick games like this to kill a few minutes over more heavy titles (Bioshock, etc) that my male friends seem to prefer playing.
I am the typical girl who would rather sit and read gossip magazines to pass the time
rather than video games. Nintendo 64 was great when I was younger, but video gaming
has reached a whole new level. The only time I even attempted to play X-Box was when
I had mono and didn’t have the strength to do anything else. My brother put in a
James Bond game and I sat there for two hours trying to figure out how to get in the front
door (it’s sad, I’m aware). Solitaire on the other hand is a lot easier to figure out. Now that
it comes on iPods I would play it for hours on a plane or a long car ride. It’s exactly thrilling
but it passes time. Personally, I have monopoly on my cell phone. It might be a chick thing
but i prefer solitaire or monopoly to a video game any day.
I know a lot of these games entrance their players for hours just trying to get a little further into a level they want to achieve. My cousin and his friends are always playing video games. They are my age and they spend hours and hours just sitting there and watching this screen where they walk around trying to go through different doors that they couldnt 3 hours ago. Honestly I don’t play video games because I think it’s a waste of time (unless its mario carts) when I could be outside playing a real game with real people. I am much more into the outdoor activities and reading than playing video games. Even though my cousins waste hours and hours on games they still love it and wouldnt give it up for anything, I guess it’s just a guy thing.
This proves was how the computer is a innovative and destructive product to television. What did those old woman used to do when they were bored, watch television. Now they have a fun alternative to Television. I feel that this trend will continue as my generation gets older. As we age, we will get sick of action packed games and move on to simpler, more tranquil games.
Please no one get offended, but I find men enjoy violent, competative, and exciting activities more then women (ex. Hockey, Football, Boxing). High Tech Video games are the quinicential violent, competative, and exciting activities. The alternative is casual games which is less violent, competative, and exciting.
The comment about old people not playing compicated games is not entirely true. I know two men age 50 (one is a plummer and one is a teacher) who both play World of Warcraft. This is one of the most complicated and time intensive games out there. It requires you to build your character and play as him to gain experience and collect items. That is what they like, a game when you slowly improve you character and you have very long term goals. Both of them probably spend over two hours a night on the game each (hundreds of hours so far).
Casual Games are often more relaxing than the standard FPS or RPG. Although I dont play casual games as often as the “hardcore” ones, to me its kind of like the classical music of video games, relaxing, calm and so on. Also the games can be simple, but they mostly are still challenging and even if u lose ur ego wont let u quit.
But as long as there are people games will be played.
I guess I would be a casual gamer as well. I too am one of those people who get bored at times and sit online on yahoo games and other free gaming sites to play a fun game of tetris or word racer. Its the old simple games that get me. I’m not so much into graphics and I think companies waste their time making intricate graphics when all people want is a bit of a challenge.
Just goes to show that companies can “one-up” each other as much as they want (ex. Microsoft and Sony in the console market), but if a company is not staying closely tuned to what the people actually want, it doesn’t mean beans.
This news of the rising market of the casual gamer with a large component of 30 and 40 something females surprises me, but it makes sense! Just take a look at my household: my 36 yr. old sister is on my office computer playing games like online yahtzee and others all the time. My mom also enjoys these type of games that you can easily download in a few minutes online.
I would just agree with this article I mean Americans always want simple and they get that with this. The females playing these types of games doesnt surprise me really for the fact that if they are at home and the kids are out it gives them a chance to relax and all. As for the competition factor yeah thats a big one and its one that will always be there for companies always wan to be better than another
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