14 DAY TRIAL // The market analysis firm Nielsen has offered a report on gaming trends in the United States for 2011, revealing that overall gaming time has grown by no less than 7 percent during the 12-month period, despite the less than impressive results posted when it comes to hardware and video game sales.
Nielsen says that the biggest increases in gaming time are linked to new devices, like smartphones and tablets, while the biggest decline has been linked to the Nintendo Wii home console, which has gone down by 22% during one year.
The company also says that increased engagement is one of the biggest trends, with most gamers now playing on more than just one device.
Data from Nielsen says that 56 percent of households in the United States now have a current-generation gaming consoles and that 65% of those who are using them place them in the living room, with another 13 percent of them ready for duty in bedrooms.
The Nintendo Wii has managed to get more hardware in the living room and the figures also reveal that 45% of the consoles are ready to serve as entertainment hubs, suggesting that they are used for more than just video games, a serious increase over the results seen in 2010 for services like downloads and streaming.
Nielsen says that, when compared to 2010, last year has seen almost the same amount of money spent on gaming in all its aspects.
The Xbox 360 has managed to post an increase of 10 percent in its share of the market while the digital space has also grown by 8%. At the same time, the biggest decline was linked to the Nintendo Wii, which has gone down by 10 percent, while used and new packaged retail sales have also seen a fall of 8%.
Nielsen also says that half of all children between 6 and 12 years old play a DS handheld and that 39 percent of households have an iOS-powered device.