The ideas one may have about video games and those who play them are changing as an increased variety of genres and genders invade the market.
The average game player, which includes computer games as well as console games, is 29, according to the Entertainment Software Association Web site.
The line between who should be playing video games and who should not is becoming thinner, with women now comprising 43 percent of interactive video game players, the ESA Web site said.
In recent years there has been a greater influx of women gamers than in the past, said President of the LSU Student Video Game Alliance, Andrew Horwitz.
The former president of SVGA met his wife while playing video games, Horwitz said. Horwitz, a computer science junior, also said that his own girlfriend is starting to get into playing.
One of the most popular games that appeals to women is “The Sims,” Horwitz said. More than 50 percent of those who play it are women, Horwitz said.
There are currently two women in the SVGA; one is active, Horwitz said.
A recent poll from the ESA showed 26 percent of game players are women 18 or older, while boys 6 to 17 make up 21 percent of game players.
Adults age 50 and older make up 17 percent of gamers. This number is up from 13 percent in 2000, the ESA Web site said.
The largest group of video game players still is men 18 years and older, which comprises 38 percent of all game players, according to the ESA Web site.
This new research shows that “Americans of all generations and genders are making games an important part of their entertainment lives,” said ESA President Douglas Lowenstein in a news release.
The SVGA has been around for two years and has 15 active members, Horwitz said. Most of its members are computer science majors, but there are also members majoring in English, art and computer engineering.
SVGA works with the LSU Center for Applied Information Technology and Learning by helping to set up a lab and facilitate video game making, Horwitz said.
They have made one game, called “ShatterbloX,” and plan to make another this year, Horwitz said.
ShatterbloX is a two-player game that combines elements from both fighting and puzzle games. A player can pick the character, and then battle it out Tetris-style, breaking blocks to build up the power meter that allows the player to unleash a special move on the opponent, Horwitz said.
The game has been submitted to two contests this year, Horwitz said. It was submitted to the Independent Games Festival Student Showcase at the Game Developers Conference but did not get in. The game was also submitted to the New Orleans Media Experience, which will be held this Halloween, Horwitz said.
Gamers spend about seven hours per week playing video games, according to the ESA Web site.
Those playing the games are not the only element of video games becoming more diversified.
Most game players play video games with friends and family, the ESA Web site said. Almost 60 percent of game players play with friends, 33 percent play with siblings and the rest play with either their spouses or parents or by themselves, according to the ESA Web site.
The genres of video games being sold is very competitive. No one genre is the leader in game sales.
Action, sports, racing, strategy, children’s and shooter games all made up around the same percentage of console and computer game sales in 2002, the Web site said.
According to the Web site, 29 percent of game players play three or more genres of games.
Of the games sold in 2002, 55 percent were rated “E” for Everyone, while Mature games (M) made up only 13 percent of games, the ESA Web site said.