In a new extensive breakdown of gaming in the United States, the NPD group declared that over 67% of Americans over the age of two play video games on some device. That figure represents 211.2 million gamers in the country. Of the 211 million, a 59% majority game on both mobile platforms and a PC/console, while 41% stick to one platform alone.
The most popular place to play games is mobile devices by a staggering margin. 90% of all gamers play video games on their smartphones, tablets, or a combination of the two. If a player is going to play on one device, they will likely be playing on mobile, says NPD, as 34% percent of gamers who play on one device tend to pick up a device not specifically manufactured for gaming.
On the flip side of gaming, PC takes the cake in the more traditional gaming scene, as 52% of play on either a desktop computer or a laptop. Consoles take the bronze as the third most popular gaming platform with a respectable 43% of gamers. Handheld gaming finds itself lacking with only nine percent of gamers tending to game on an untethered mobile device that isn’t a phone. It is important to note that the hybrid Nintendo Switch is likely counted as a console and not a handheld, as Nintendo has consistently referred to the platform as a console. The NPD likely followed suit, but it is unclear based on the report alone.
In terms of time, the report states that video games on average take up roughly 16% of an American gamer’s leisure time, which equates to an average of about 12 hours a week. The NPD report also found that video games take up about as much time as any other leisure activity, with internet surfing taking up 18%, listening to music consuming 15%, and social media related antics controlling 13% of a gamer’s leisure time.
