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Darren Waters

Gamers are social too

  • Darren Waters
  • 28 May 08, 12:06 GMT

A large piece of research into European gaming habits has been .

It doesn't say very much to be honest - but there is one message that it keeps hammering home: gamers are not anti-social outcasts.

Wii Fit playerAccording to the survey of 6,000 gamers across Europe most play games because they are fun to play, while 55% do it to relax and de-stress.

47% watch TV, 46% surf the net, 46% spend time with friends and family and only 40% of gamers actually play games - for between six and 14 hours week.

Amazingly, 58% of European gamers actually go shopping at least once a month, if they have a few hours spare.

Over a third of gamers do some exercise outdoors - sorry Wii Fit owners - or play sport, at least once a month.

And a third of gamers actually go to a party or go dancing at least once a month.

So don't worry - video games aren't turning us into trigger-happy obsessives.

What wonderfully rounded people us gamers are.

You can download some key facts (as a PDF) .

Comments

  • Comment number 1.

    games are no longer an activity for geeks. I took rock band to a friends over the weekend and people who'd never even seen an xbox couldn't get off it. It's a great way to have fun and relax

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  • Comment number 2.

    the facade that 'gamers' just sit in their room with the curtains closed on PS2 or whatever has been slowly eroding. I think this has to do with the community based gaming people now - its easier for some people to talk over the internet (rise of MSN/MySpace/FaceBook), and so when they do, they can forge "e-friends" that live near them and then "socialise" in "real life" - no small part down to the fact that aswell as gamers becoming more social, gaming has become more social, aswell as the games consoles themselves.

    Complain about this comment (Comment number 2)

  • Comment number 3.

    We run a large community of Flight Sim Gamers. We have built a massive community of young and old members.

    We run a website and community forum and we see hundreds of people everyday from more than 90 countries and they are only here to learn and fly. No Guns, Bombs, or anything along those lines, just respect and professionalism is all that we will accept. This is a new venture and it seems to be working very well and we hope to grow and become something extraordinary.....

    We believe that community gaming is a great way to meet people from different walks of life, and it also gives others the confidence to show their true colours and be themselves. We have players aged 14 to 80 and everyone gets on really well.

    We all use Microsoft Flight Sim X or 2004 and we fly over 400 Routes Worldwide.
    Are we geeks? No, we are just a group of people who enjoy the same thing, and we are growing fast.
    Please feel free to visit us and join our community..

    Happy Gaming!

    Complain about this comment (Comment number 3)

 

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