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Browser Games Edge Out Console Games in Popularity

TMCnet Feature

October 03, 2013

Browser Games Edge Out Console Games in Popularity

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By Steve Anderson
Contributing TMCnet Writer

With a new season of the console wars about to fire up in earnest when Microsoft (News - Alert) and Sony launch the Xbox One and the PlayStation 4 in a few short weeks, it's interesting to take a look and see just where most users are getting that sweet shot of gaming they so crave. But who came out on top? Was it PC gaming? Console gaming? Or something that some users might not have expected?


A new Harris survey, staged by Goo Technologies, suggests that the humble browser game may well have aced out the console gaming market in the United Stated. Goo Technologies took this study to 2,046 adults over the age of 18, conducting the survey online. The survey found that 52 percent favored browser games above any other type of game, and the reasons behind such a move may prove as varied as it is unexpected, with some bringing in multiple reasons.

Forty-nine percent of respondents preferred browser games for the massive cost savings, saying it was less expensive than buying a console. Forty-three percent cited simplicity, not having to download and install software. Thirty-one percent favored not being tied down to just one console, and 26 percent liked the ability to better interact with friends online. Twenty-five percent liked being able to easily switch devices, and 25 percent again liked being mobile, which could be more readily done with browser games. Nineteen percent liked the ability to play at work (many of which would actually do so in the next item covered), and 10 percent like being able to hide gameplay from others in the area.

Preferred locations also varied wildly, with 60 percent favoring playing on the couch, 50 percent on a plane ride, 45 percent in bed, 34 percent on the toilet, another 34 percent on a train and 25 percent, not too surprisingly, would like to play at work.

Considering that many browser games run at no charge through a variety of services like Kongregate, Armor Games, and several others, it's not surprising that users—especially those impacted by a down economy—might turn to the comparatively low-cost solution of browser gaming. Some browser games can be particularly fun and oddly involved; several free-to-play MMO titles can be had there, like “Dead Frontier,” among others.

But this is a development that console game makers may want to take note of; with a growing number of users going mobile—as evidenced by the growing number of mobile devices available for sale—the end result is that the mobile market is starting to take off. Keeping an eye on that market, and developing for that market, may be the kind of move that pays dividends in the long run. Naturally, there's room to quibble here; after all, the survey only talked to just over 2,000 gamers, and that's not exactly an accurate cross-section of the American gaming public.

Still, there's room enough to suggest that simple browser gaming could be a big thing in the near-term future, and working with that market could be a profitable enterprise. It remains to see if it will actually go anywhere, or if Goo Technologies just managed to hit on a strange anomaly, but considering the browser along with the next generation may be a smart idea.




Edited by Alisen Downey


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