The Mother Lode of Mobile Gaming
While people of any age, gender and lifestyle enjoy video games, women and mothers in particular are the stars of mobile gaming.
This audience (that can be broken down into more specific groups, as we shall see further on) es especially interesting considering 77% of them are in charge of most of the shopping in their household¹.
68% of all mobile gamers are women² and, according to research by Google and Newzoo, 64% of them prefer smartphones and tablets as a gaming device, versus 38% of men³.
What, when and what for
As we have explained before, parents of small children often play along with them. But moms also play on their own in order to relax after a stressful day (51%), have fun (43%), be challenged (33%), pass the time (33%) or be entertained (32%)¹. Their gaming sessions are 25% longer than other players’, and they are distributed along the whole day peaking at 9 PM⁴.
Because they are so busy, they are experts at multitasking: 58% play while they watch TV, 21% while they spend time with their children and 14% while at work. They also play when they are resting at home (50%) and before bed (45%)¹.
What games do they like? A little bit of everything, but women in general favor casual games. Puzzles are the top genre among mothers (51%), especially the match-3 mechanic. They also tend to enjoy trivia (29%), strategy (28%), casino or cards (25%) and adventure games (16%)¹.
Through all stages of life
A report by WildTangent and Interpret⁵ classifies mothers and their behavior as gamers according to the age of their children.
- While expecting: 68% of pregnant women play more than once a day. After the delivery, their gaming time will decrease in one hour a week.
- With babies: Even in this hectic time, 76% play during the day while their children nap, and 55% do so when they get bored.
- With infants: 58% of mothers of children up to 4 years old play to relax when they feel stressed.
- With grown(ish) children: Among those with kids aged 5 to 17, 80% play at least once a week and almost as many love match-3 games. 37% purchase products they saw advertised in mobile games.
Throughout these moments, only 13% avoid Rewarded Videos, 67% watch them willingly, and 93% prefer ads to be a integral part of the game.
In conclusion, the long hours they spend gaming, their role as family purchase deciders and their openness to in-game advertising make mothers a key audience for mobile games, and at the same time, make mobile games an excellent way to communicate with them.
So if you’re unsure what to get her for the next Mother’s Day, consider a good cellphone or additional features for her favorite game. And give the marketing in executives in your life this article, so they can put toghether the best campaign possible for this segment.
