Do you want to know what’s next for the gaming industry? Join gaming executives to discuss emerging areas of the industry at GamesBeat Summit Next in October. Register today.
Newzoo has released its latest report on the gaming world, this report is about the behavior of gamers from generations Z and Alpha. According to the report’s findings, the youngest generations are very much into games, but not always playing them.
The report is titled “Gen Z and Gen Alpha: the future of gaming.” Newzoo defines “game enthusiast” as someone who engages in games, either through playing or watching. This means that not all playtime equals actually playing a game – it may mean seeing someone else play a game on Twitch or YouTube.
Newzoo’s report pulls information from 75,930 respondents from 36 countries. It defines Gen Z as those born between 1995-2009, and Gen Alpha as those born in 2010 or later. Not all of those respondents were the Gens Z or Alpha, as Newzoo also uses general internet population statistics for comparison.
How much do the kids like video games?
Both Gens apparently prefer game content over other forms of media, with 88% of Gen Zs and 92% of Gen Alphas reporting playing games. They both seem to favor mobile as a platform (69% and 73%, respectively, say they’ve played a mobile game in the last six months), but the console has a slight edge for Gen Alpha.
About 70% of respondents of both generations indicate that they have watched game content. The appetite for esports isn’t huge – about 33% across both generations). However, both generations report viewing game content to see what and how to play, or to see what high-level gameplay looks like.
It’s worth noting that, in general, both generations seem to have fairly different entertainment needs. On Newzoo’s percentage of time spent on leisure activities, Gen Z’s gaming and game-adjacent activities were associated with “listening to music/radio/podcasts” at 17%. For Gen Alpha, gaming takes up 21%, but the other options for streaming content, watching TV broadcasts and social networking are completely behind them at 18%. So while gaming is an important part of the lives of both generations, it is certainly not dominant.
The social and monetary aspects of gaming
According to the report, one of the most important aspects of games for these younger gamers is the social aspect. When asked what is the most attractive feature of games for them, 30% of Gen Z mentioned “multiplayer and social aspects” more than any other answer. 28% of Gen Alpha responded the same way, linking that option to “game theme or setting.” The most popular response for Gen Alpha was “open world exploration” at 31%.
Newzoo’s report also includes a section on payment habits. It claims Gens Z and Alpha are more likely to spend money on games, though it compares their numbers to the entire internet population rather than millennial- or Boomer-specific stats. Supposedly they spent mostly on mobile, and both reported that their main reasons were to unlock content or to personalize their in-game characters and items.
One downside to this information is that, because of their youth, Gen Alpha gamers almost certainly don’t spend their own money on games. Newzoo later clarified to GamesBeat that the parents of the Gen Alpha gamers (who are all said to be pre-teens) answered the pay questions, as the ones who actually have the wallet. So the result for Gen Alpha could reflect less what they want, and more what their parents allow them to do.
The GamesBeat credo when talking about the game industry, is ‘where passion and business meet’. What does this mean? We want to tell you how important news is to you — not just as a decision maker in a game studio, but also as a game fan. Whether you’re reading our articles, listening to our podcasts, or watching our videos, GamesBeat helps you learn and have fun with the industry. Discover our briefings.
