'Future of Gaming' Study Reveals the Emotional Rewards That Global Audiences Seek From Video Games

NEW YORK, December 8, 2021 (Newswire.com) - Insights company The Family Room released findings from the latest wave of its Passion Points Study titled "Future of Gaming" which shed light on the near-universal emotional appeal of gaming as a source of happiness and a destination for togetherness. For most consumers, gaming no longer carries couch-potato connotations, but instead embodies an experience where everyone can be themselves.

The following are four key findings from the study: 

1. Villain No More 

Across countries and age cohorts, consumers turn to gaming for fun times with those closest to them, relaxation, and pride in proficiency. Universally, audiences rely on gaming far more for their own emotional needs of self-expression and joy than they do for deeper, more demanding things like character development or long-term goals. 

2. Girls Who Game

When it comes to Gen Z, girls and guys find different emotional rewards from gaming. The emotional connections men make to gaming speak far more to needs of agency, freedom, and exploration. Girls — the more rapidly growing gaming audience — prioritize gaming for the escapist joy, playfulness, and spontaneity it offers them.

3. Ages & Stages of Gaming Content

As for parents, it's safe to say the taboo about kids and gaming is well on its way out the door. Parents value video games for the happiness it brings to their kids, the power those games have to open kids' minds, and the opportunities games present for family bonding. Older parents are more reliant on gaming as a tool for their kids' stress relief and character development, with younger parents prioritizing the childhood innocence and togetherness gaming offers.

4. Generational Divide in the Metaverse

Millennial parents may have an expectation that the unfolding metaverse can satisfy their desires for their kids' exploration and self-discovery, but kids and teens don't share that priority. Exploration and self-discovery are far down the list of emotional gaming connections for both Gen Alpha and Gen Z. Connection, fun, and relaxation are much more relevant emotional drivers of youth gaming. 

"For so long, gaming has held a negative association in the public consciousness, one rife with ideas about wayward souls and rebellious youth," said The Family Room CEO George Carey. "This is no longer the case. Today's video games offer many of the joys that we as humans need most in these turbulent times — togetherness with loved ones, pride in self-sufficiency, and escape from the world's seemingly never-ending stream of stressors."

The data cited in "The Future of Gaming" comes from TFR's Passion Points study, the industry's leading study of consumer sentiment. This wave was fielded in October 2021 among a balanced global sample of 9,683 kids, teens, adults, and parents. Review an excerpt of the study here. 

Source: The Family Room