Female Players Less Likely To Refer To Themselves As Gamers

Earlier this month, Newzoo uploaded new analytics for female gamer demographics, revealing their likes, dislikes and favourite ways to play.

According to the report, 72 per cent of women worldwide have played games of some sort in the past six months. However, in terms of referring to themselves as ‘gamers’ only 35 per cent of female players do so, compared to 51 per cent of male gamers.

A place to Belong (?)

As female gamers have become a more prominent part of the gaming landscape, there have been instances of sexism and toxicity affecting the representation and involvement of women in the space. According to Newzoo’s polling, in the UK only 39 per cent of female respondents felt that “gaming gives me a sense of belonging”, while in the US this number was slightly higher at around 48 per cent.

And male respondents did not offer a drastically higher impression, with the UK and US reporting 50 per cent and 62 per cent respectively. Indeed, how welcoming the gaming community is to anyone has been a contentious issue since such communities were formed.

Representation in games was also a hot topic. With the UK reporting 43 per cent of respondents agreeing with the statement “I feel like I am well-represented in the games I play”, while the US reported 49 per cent. However, the poll does not specify whether this is in-game with players or with games development, which may offer slightly different impressions.

Mobile Play

In more positive terms, Newzoo also found that the mobile gaming market was the dominant way to play for female gamers. With PC coming in second place. Similarly, male players were polled as using PC platforms the most, with mobile gaming coming second. This is interesting, as it indicates that neither gender favours console gaming over their desktop or smartphone.

The report doesn’t include any information about spending habits on games. A previous report on Esports does indicate that the female demographic of Esports fans spend more than male fans despite forming a smaller section of the audience. How much this might translate to game spending itself is unclear however.

As the gaming industry continues to grapple with issues of representation and toxicity in both business and community, many organisations, such as Women In Games have made an effort to address a lack of knowledge by offering guidance on how to approach the topic.

This article was first published on PocketGamer.biz.

Photo by Afif Kusuma on Unsplash