Entertainment media research firm Interpret released today its new report, “Games and Girls: Video Gaming’s Ignored Audience”, which finds that while the female audience in gaming has grown, games tailored to their needs and preferences continue to go missing.
Market representation for women has grown to 50 percent overall, with console use rising significantly in the past two years. 21 percent use Microsoft’s Xbox 360 and 16 percent play on the PlayStation 3, up from 17 and 12 percent respectively in 2009. 44 percent of female players prefer genres other than casual, music, and exercise games, despite the stereotype.
"Women not only exhibit different gaming behaviors than men, but also express attitudes about gaming that are dissimilar to those of their male counterparts," said Courtney Johnson, analyst for Intrepret. "For instance, they are much more likely to prefer to play solo than men, and play games for less competitive and more narrative- and character-driven reasons. It remains to be seen whether developers and marketers will effectively invest in understanding and exploiting the undertapped female gaming market."
There’s money out there to be found developers! More on the report can be found here.
