This study, done by Zoi Walker helps show exactly how much time Gen Z plays video games.
How much time do Americans spend playing video games? Gen Xers and Millennials who spent time gaming as children may remember being told it was a waste of time.
Today, there’s a growing consensus that time spent playing video games can build skills such as literacy, problem-solving, and socializing. And, studies or not, Americans’ real-life habits suggest that gaming has become one of life’s irresistible pleasures—even among the Boomers who once questioned its value.
How do we know? We asked. Check out our survey results below for more insights into one of America’s newer national pastimes [Walker, Zoi]
Interesting findings
-68% of Americans play video games regularly, as opposed to “sometimes” or “never.”
-Gen Z clocks the highest percentage of regular gamers (73%).
-The largest share of Americans (46%) spend no more than 1–3 hours gaming in a row, a trend consistent across respondents of all ages.
-Only 4% of Americans regularly play game marathons that run 13 or more hours.
-The largest share of respondents (30%) play 8–12 hours of video games per week.
-The largest share of Gen X gamers were split evenly between 8–12 hours and 1–3 hours per week (26% each).
-Most people across generations (33%) play video games primarily for mental stimulation. Gen Z is a notable exception, with the largest share (31%) saying they play because they’re “obsessed”—it’s one of their favorite pastimes.
-Americans spend more time gaming on mobile devices than on any other console. The majority of people who -play mobile games (57%) like knowing they can entertain themselves anywhere. [Walker, Zoi]
The research from this article outlines how much time Americans spend on video games, what video games are most popular, and what the most common device is. There is a stigma that video games are a waste of time and that playing lots of video games is often correlated with laziness. However, this article states that there’s a growing opinion that video games help in developing literacy, problem-solving, and socializing. Whatever your opinion is the fact of the matter is that video games are becoming a more and more common pass time for Americans. In all honesty, playing a game 6-10 hours straight is probably not the best for you but some people do it. So what can we learn from it? Obviously, this article shows that video games are widely appealing to a large audience. People like games and people like having fun. How can we leverage this to help people learn about finances? What I think is the most telling about this article is that a popular gaming device is mobile gaming. There seems to be a big market for mobile games. Is there a way that financial institutions could break into this market with games that help educate and empower people about their finances?
Walker, Zoi. “How Much Time Do Americans Spend Gaming?: Centurylinkquote.” Find CenturyLink Internet, TV, Phone Services Information, 3 Sept. 2024, www.centurylinkquote.com/resources/time-spent-gaming#:~:text=Today%2C%20there’s%20a%20growing%20consensus,who%20once%20questioned%20its%20value.
