A study of gamers

Rhinotones

I am putting forward a challenge directly to the staff of mmorpg.com

At your disposal is the most valued resource available to all MMORPG developers, subscribers. Looking at your members as I type it sits at a staggering 2.4+ million registered subscribers to this site and including guests, 2000 people who are currently logged in reading articles/forums etc.

I was myself just in one of these forums discussing gamers who felt burnt out, unhappy or just plain getting too old to deal with some of the rubbish faced when playing some MMOs. This could be from the levelling systems to the community at large. This led to me responding and during my response an epiphany of sorts which has brought me here now.

My Question.

Would  mmorpg.com ever conducted a survey/study on mmorpg gamers?

I don't mean creating a poll or 2, I'm talking about engaging the services of professionals experienced in compiling a study/survey to create an in depth report on what gamers are looking for in a game and much more. Finding out what the average gamer in their 30's looks for compared to someone in their teens or 20's or 40's.

From the forums and articles we do tend to get a broad overview of what's in vogue, going out of fashion or a debatable hot topic but this is at the readers interpretation. Also through these forums we sometimes hear from a vocal minority who can skew a readers perception into believing that their way is the thinking of the majority. Conducting a professional survey (possibly even annually) may provide clear answers to what gamers really want to see in their games and provide game developers a massive tool for designing a game to reach the maximum target market.

One topic to rear its head from time to time in the forums is how guys of around my age are consistently dissatisfied with today's MMOs. Is there a market out there large enough to develop a MMO that could target these players? Remember, this market is growing daily as the generation X crowd aren't getting any younger and more creep into the 40's. 

I envisage it could be conducted confidentially/anonymously for any subscriber of mmorpg.com wishing to participate and could draw thousands of gamers participating to give an accurate picture if the right questions are asked. Because you represent such a broad spectrum of the mmorpg community, done correctly your report could hold a lot of weight.

Maybe some basic findings could be shared with mmorpg.com subscribers as a thank you for participating whilst game developers might pay a fee for the full report, your call.