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Showing results for tags 'xbox'.

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  1. In a year where the world has been plagued by the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic, it's encouraging to see industries that have managed not only to thrive, but to keep us thoroughly entertained. Video game sales hit a record of $10.86 billion in just the first quarter, up a full 9% from an already successful previous year. According to industry analysts, these sales represent comfort and connection being brought to the homes of otherwise distanced and disconnected lives. In that spirit, we chose to survey more than one thousand people who own at least one video game console. We asked them about the various upgrades they intend to make to their gaming experience as well as the types of considerations they make before purchasing. If you're curious to peek into the trends of this ever-expanding industry, keep reading. Primary Console Upgrade Considerations The first part of our study examined general console upgrading habits. The gaming world has been eagerly anticipating the releases of the Xbox Series X and the PlayStation 5, which were released on November 10 and November 12 respectively. So upgrades have likely been on the minds of gamers. Over half (59.1%) of people who already own a gaming console said they intend to upgrade within the little time left in 2020. Given the timing of two big releases right as holiday shopping is starting to kick into high gear, it makes sense that a significant number of gamers are looking to upgrade. While most gamers had at least tried consoles different from their own (82.2%), a plurality of gamers surveyed said they stick to the same console brand every time they upgrade. Just a tiny 2.2% of gamers said they rarely upgrade within the same brand. As for feeling pressure to keep up with the latest consoles, 72.6% of gamers said they felt some pressure to keep up with the newest versions. PlayStation loyalty, however, was perhaps the most pressurized. These gamers were the most likely to say they feel a lot of pressure to keep up. Thinking Through the Upgrade The next part of our study asked gamers about the factors they consider before upgrading their video game consoles. We also analyzed the most common upgrades people are currently considering. The two main factors gamers said they consider before buying a console are availability of games (78.7%) and compatibility of games (65.2%). These factors eclipsed details like special features (40.5%) and mobility (27.2%). Even though those perks may be nice, the ability to play games actually presents a major barrier to purchase for many. More and more often, games are becoming tied to the consoles themselves, which can be frustrating for gamers. Many of Xbox's most popular games, for instance, are Xbox exclusives, meaning they can only be played on that particular console brand. So the console you have may very well dictate what games can be played. It makes sense then, that gamers would have to consider availability and compatibility of games so heavily before buying a console. The most common console upgrade gamers said they were currently planning was to the PlayStation 5. That number, however, may be related to the fact that 39% of the people we surveyed already had PlayStation 4's, a higher percentage than any other gaming console. Instead, 17.5% of gamers chose to upgrade to the Xbox Series X this pandemic season. It's not surprising that the Nintendo Switch was still among the top planned console upgrades among gamers, considering how popular it was early on in the pandemic. Even in the summer, after the first major wave of the virus had died down, people were still having trouble getting their hands on one. Gaming Wish List Whether or not people intended on upgrading, we were interested to see which consoles were most desired among gamers. PlayStation was again the most commonly coveted brand. Specifically, gamers wanted the PS5, which is set to release in mid-November. Pre-orders for the console are already skyrocketing –some analysts call it the No. 1 product this holiday season. The Xbox Series X, another notable release coming this month, was a distant second with only 28.7% of gamers saying they wanted it. Nintendo Switch also was a contender at 25.5%. There are reports that a new version of the Switch could be released in early 2021, so the fact that people are still coveting it now could mean good things for the new version when it's available. Gaming More in a Global Pandemic As we mentioned earlier, the video game industry is having a heyday as people have had to stay home and spend more time indoors this year. Evidently, COVID-19 brought some new people to gaming. More than 22% of respondents reported buying their very first video game console since the onset of the pandemic. As for those who already owned a console, many (44%) did admit to playing more since COVID-19 struck. Xbox owners were the most likely to report as much. Gifting Games Not only are new consoles being released, but the holiday season is upon us. As gamers look toward these gift-giving occasions, we wanted to know what they had on their wish lists as well as their shopping lists. More than a third of the gamers we surveyed (36.4%) said they were going to ask for a new console as a gift this 2020 holiday season. That said, there was a major generosity streak circulating among gamers as well, with an even higher percentage (40.5%) intending to gift a console to someone before the end of the year. The most common gift gamers intended to give was the new PlayStation 5, which is no small gesture. On average, gamers intended to spend $380.40 before the year is over, whether on themselves or others. The two most common gifts (PS4 and PS5) were also the most common brands already owned by gamers. Game On The hype was building for newly released consoles like the PS5 and the Xbox Series X, and gamers were clearly paying attention. Many reported that they’re currently looking to upgrade their own consoles, and a fair number plan to purchase new consoles as gifts this holiday season. And we’re happy to see it – not only the generosity, but the ability to connect and enjoy one another’s company, if only virtually. 2020 is certainly a year where we need that. Methodology We surveyed 1,007 people who currently own a gaming console. Respondents were 54.9% men and 44.5% women. Four respondents were nonbinary, one was transgender, and one respondent chose not to disclose their gender. The average age of respondents was 35.5 with a standard deviation of 10.2. Data about the factors gamers consider before upgrading their consoles was collected through a check-all-that-apply question. Therefore, percentages won’t add to 100. People were asked to report the most they planned to spend on gaming through the end of 2020. The average presented was calculated to exclude outliers. This was done by finding the initial average and standard deviation and multiplying the latter by three. This product was then added to the initial average. Any data point above that sum was then excluded from the calculation. When reporting what consoles they most wanted, even if they didn’t plan to upgrade, people were instructed to choose up to three consoles. Limitations The data we are presenting rely on self-report. There are many issues with self-reported data. These issues include, but are not limited to, the following: selective memory, telescoping, attribution, and exaggeration. Fair Use Statement Gamers demonstrated careful considerations before making upgrades. If you think information like this could help someone making a gaming-related decision, you are welcome to share what you’ve found. Just be sure that you link back to this page and that your purposes are noncommercial.
  2. The humble video game is a fond friend for most adults in the world. It was how we went on adventures to splendid new worlds, learned about our preferences in life – battle lines were drawn over whether to play Halo, FIFA, Final Fantasy or Need for Speed – and more recently determined your career choices in life. In recent years gaming has evolved from something children are allowed to do in order to give their parents a break to a multi-billion Euro industry that creates opportunities for coders, designers, musical score producers and marketing executives. However it is not only corporate entities who are benefiting from gaming as streamers on platforms like Twitch, Facebook and YouTube and eSports professionals, who compete for massive cash prizes, have created a whole new career niche around gaming. The Nerdy History of the First Video Game Any discussions of video games will have older generations wistfully remembering their Atari video game system, which comprised almost solely of Pong, or perhaps the more beloved Nintendo system. The reality, however, is that the first commercially available video game was produced by a physicist named William Higinbotham back in October 1958. As the head of Brookhaven National Laboratory’s instrumentation group, he felt it was his job to ensure their annual open day was exciting for the visitors. He came up with the idea for a tennis game which would allow the event’s guests to have an interactive experience. Using his experience with radar systems Higinbotham conceptualised and built the first tennis video game, Tennis for Two, in less than two weeks. The game was a smash hit with long lines of players, later he would say of the launch title: “It never occurred to me that I was doing anything very exciting. The long line of people I thought was not because this was so great but because all the rest of the things were so dull” Despite being an early adopter of what would one day become one of the world’s largest and most profitable industries Higinbotham never made any money from his game, nor could he since he was a Federal employee and any patents he submitted would have become government property. Early Consoles & Vintage Game Collecting The early 1970s would see standing arcade games become a fixture of shops and arcades where youth would congregate and spend the money they had begged from their parents or earned doing chores but nothing lit a fire under gamers like the chance to own your gaming console. These early consoles presented some challenges of their own: The Magnavox, Nintendo and Atari consoles of the 70s ranged in price from $75 up to $199, in present terms this is from $400 up to $750. By the late 70s, only 15 million households owned a television set in the US, which was a requirement for playing video game consoles. Even then it was only one set which meant gaming had to wait till the family wasn’t using it. If you were lucky enough to get a console and had a television to play it on the average game would cost around $40 which equates to about $140 today. It is worth keeping in mind that the minimum wage in the 1970s was less than $2 per hour, making putting these kinds of entertainment expenses out of reach for the many middle to lower class families. Rather than bury these classic games in the annals of history these fond memories, often of renting the games or playing at a friend’s house, has led to a rabid vintage game collecting market where boxed, or near mint condition, Nintendo, Magnavox, Atari, Coleco Vision and Mattel’s Intellivision systems are bought for a premium. The games themselves are where the real value lies with some really bad games, also knowns as lemons, which sold poorly during their heyday now being worth small fortunes due to scarcity. Here are just some of the crazy price ranges these retro games can ask: Stadium Events (1987) by Bandai – up to $40,000 Air Raid (1984) by Atari – up to $34,000 Gold Nintendo World Championships (1990) – up to $30,000 There are also stories of games which plummeted in value as their scarcity evaporated. One such game is Atari’s E.T. which was a terrible game and sold so poorly that thousands of copies were destroyed. This resulted in the copies which remained reaching prices of up to $37,000 on eBay. However, a 2014 dig discovered nearly 800,000 copies of E.T. in a landfill. The sudden flood of copies onto the market saw the value of the game drop to as low as $5! The eSports Evolution From the 1980s to the present day many original consoles fell away leaving us with the PlayStation, Xbox and Nintendo Switch as the only names in console gaming. These systems are far more complex delivering gorgeous 3D graphics and finger-twisting gameplay with some systems offering the option to live out your favourite new adventure in 4K! It is not only the systems that have evolved but also why people play games. Far from a childish pursuit, the advent of competitive gaming events has given rise to a multi-billion Euro competitive eSports industry comprised of both team and individual competitions. The prize money available to this burgeoning competitive sector is astounding: Dota 2 – prize pool of more than $200 million CS:GO – prize pool of more than $87 million Fortnite – prize pool of more than $84 million League of Legends – prize pool of more than $70 million Starcraft 2 – prize pool of more than $30 million While the competitive scene draws a lot of attention when it comes to making money a lesser-known component of the industry is live streaming. A former MLG National Champion and now Warzone streamer, Nick Mercs, recently crossed the 50,000 subscriber mark on his Twitch channel. Twitch charges a minimum of $4.99 per month per subscription, at the minimum split of 50% this means Nick is earning at least $125,000 per month, this figure excludes in-app advertising by big brands, sponsorships, tips (which are called Bits in the Twitch ecosystem) and the sales of his own MFAM branded merchandise. If gaming isn’t your forte but betting is there is a growing eSports betting market where bookmakers like Betway offer odds on the outcomes of various international gaming events. Whichever way you look at it, eSports is on the rise and the money will follow. Growth of Mobile Gaming When the first mobile phone launched it revolutionised how we communicated around the world, what no one foresaw was that these “phones” would evolve into powerful handheld gaming devices. With improved processing power, massive SSD hard drives and picture-perfect 4K displays the mobile phone has become a global mobile gaming playground worth more than $60 billion! Initially, mobile gaming was limited to popular free to play gaming titles like Candy Crush Saga, which generated revenue, not through game sales but microtransactions which allowed the player to bypass delays and timers to keep them in the game. At its peak, the game was reported to make $1 million a day from these small in-game purchases. The Nintendo owned Pokémon GO augmented reality game rocked the mobile gaming market to its core when it skyrocketed up the charts in 2016. By late 2019 the game had already generated more than $3 billion in revenue from in-app microtransactions boasting more than 147 million active monthly players. Since then all major studios have been working tirelessly on their market capitalisation strategy with eSports titles all offering if not their core game on mobile, then at least a standalone game featuring the characters and lore from their main game, as a way to attract this spend happy market sector. Gaming’s Impact on Casino Game Development Gaming has had an impact on the casino games we enjoy today in terms of technology, design and branded crossovers: ✓Mobile Technology: The online casino game development experts have always been at the cutting edge of any new technology and customer experience requirement. In 2004, long before other markets considered the mobile device a valid gaming platform Microgaming launched the first mobile casino. They would also go on to release the first slot for use with a smartwatch, while the technology never really grabbed mainstream appeal like mobile gaming it showed their commitment to offering players gaming whenever and wherever they wanted it. ✓Design and Gameplay: More recently we saw mobile gaming impact the way in which online slot-type games played out on screen. Puzzle games like Candy Crush and Montezuma which featured exploding symbols and non-standard reels heavily influenced games like Gonzo’s Quest and Finn and the Swirly Spin. Visually there was a move away from a more realistic art style to oversized brightly coloured icons with the inclusion of pops and explosions to emulate the onscreen “excitement” found in so many casual game titles on mobile. ✓Nostalgia Hooks: There are a number of online slots which lean into our nostalgia for retro gaming. Games like Hellcatraz do this purely through their visual design and layout, the faux 16-bit graphics and vertical scale being reminiscent of the 1986 arcade classic Rampage. However, 2020 saw NetEnt release an official Street Fighter II: The World Warrior video slot featuring the full suite of fighters, a reel set emulating the game screen including fighter specific locations, the original soundtrack and in-game sound effects. They even went so far as to include mini-games from the arcade game like vehicle destruction! Celebrating Video Game Day Whether you're an avid gamer or haven't really picked up a controller in years why not join us in celebrating Video Game Day by loading up your favourite game and taking a moment to remember how many great adventures you've had over the years.
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