More than one-half of US adults play video games, and about one in five play every day or almost every day, according to the Pew Internet & American Life Project.
Age is closely related to gaming: More than four out of five US adults ages 18 to 29 said they were video gamers, while only 23% of respondents 65 and older said the same.
Pew said men were slightly more likely than women to game, and urbanites were more likely to game than those in rural areas. Interestingly, there was no significant
difference in game playing across income groups.
In a sign that gaming is not necessarily an impediment to learning, 57% of respondents
with at least some college education played games, significantly more than high school graduates
(51%) and those who had less than a high school education (40%).
Video game sponsors and in-game advertisers may well wonder how the products are faring in the recession. Although more than one-third of US Internet users surveyed in October by NPD said they would cut back on their video game spending, that was less than some other categories. For instance, one-half of respondents said they would cut back on entertainment overall, while 57% said they would cut back on dining out.
Eating dinner at home on video game night may be increasingly popular in 2009.
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