Howdy, Stranger!
It looks like you're new here. If you want to get involved, click one of these buttons!
Quick Links
Why MMOs are targeting kids
Luv_bug
Member Posts: 120
With cartoonish graphics and simple themepark play, MMOs are just suffering from a much larger problem in society today...
Consuming Kids: Commercialization of Childhood (documentary)
Industry Facts
America's entertainment software industry creates a wide array of computer and video games to meet the demands and tastes of audiences as diverse as our nation's population. Today's gamers include millions of Americans of all ages and backgrounds. In fact, more than two-thirds of all American households play games. This vast audience is fueling the growth of this multi-billion dollar industry and bringing jobs to communities across the nation. Below is a list of the top 10 entertainment software industry facts:
U.S. computer and video game software sales generated $10.5 billion in 2009.
Sixty-seven percent of American households play computer or video games.
The average game player is 34 years old and has been playing games for 12 years.
The average age of the most frequent game purchaser is 40 years old (parent age*-Luv_bug).
Forty percent of all game players are women. In fact, women over the age of 18 represent a significantly greater portion of the game-playing population (33 percent) than boys age 17 or younger (20 percent).
In 2010, 26 percent of Americans over the age of 50 play video games, an increase from nine percent in 1999.
Forty-two percent of heads of households play games on a wireless device, such as a cell phone or PDA, up from 20 percent in 2002.
Eighty-two percent of all games sold in 2009 were rated "E" for Everyone, "T" for Teen, or "E10+" for Everyone 10+. For more information on game ratings, please see www.esrb.org.
Parents who have children under 18 with a gaming console in the home are present when games are purchased or rented 93 percent of the time.
Sixty-four percent of parents believe games are a positive part of their children’s lives.
Despite the older players being the bulk of the players today, the corporations are looking to tomorrow.....
Comments
Forty percent of gamers are women? Are we talking players of major console titles or 3 rounds of tetris between updates on the facebook page?
According to Nick Yee from the Daedelus project its for MMOs too, but I haven't checked it out in a while. Check it out.
Daedulus Project
I don't know why people dis female gamers. My mother plays video games, like... yes, Tetris and facebook games, but she ALSO plays roguelikes.
Both of my sisters play games (And married/are marrying gamers), in a variety of genres.
My wife plays video games, ranging from RPGs to action games, and all sorts of things.
Even my two year old baby girl plays video games. She plays Angry Birds, Sims 3 and can beat some stages in Sonic the Hedgehog. Quite frankly, she's probably a better gamer than you were when you were 2.
My best female friend plays video games, one of my friends married a gold farmer (Okay... so they met in WoW and she's Chinese, but wasn't a gold farmer, but it's just funnier to tease them about that...), another one of them married a person who is probably one of the best Halo players out of our circle of friends.
Of course women play video games. All sorts. I constantly run across them in MMOs. Maybe they're just hiding from you?
cartoonish graphics? what do you call cartoonish graphics?
DCUO could fall in that category but thats how the IP rolls, its comics after all...
but the new MMO releases ahead are:
GW2
SWTOR
RIFT
TERA
TSW
WAR40K
WoD
I dont think any of them have cartoonish kiddy graphics, possibly except TERA and its animu style, buts thats more related to its asian culture...theres 3 things certain in life, death taxes and that you dont release a non-animu game in asia.
Ooo... so much information. Thank you for sharing this; I'll enjoy it.
Wow, Warhammer, Rift, Tera, SWTOR, STO, Free Realms, they all look cartoony to me but its a trend, not a law, so I'm sure there are those that aren't as cartoony. Btw, DCUO is closer to realism graphically than any of those.
Stylized (ie cartoony) graphics tend to age considerably better than realistic graphics, and also tend to use less system resources to look halfway decent.
That's especially pertinent towards MMOs because 1. You want people to play them a long time and 2. You want people to be able to play the game on their toaster.
I mean, ideally, for maximum profit.
Technical progression has an odd effect. People who should least be spending money on it, tend to be its primary consumer. Notice the flat screens, ipods and ipads in the hands of young or lower income individuals. Technical progression would attract throngs of consumers who want to enjoy what little money they have. I have a friend who is, not to get into detail, broke and just purchased a $400 ipad like device called a "Tab" never heard of it. It cost him more than 40% of ALL the money he has in the world. Technical advancement earns a lot more money than it costs to produce, ask Apple.
Games like The sims are very popular with ladies. Modern warfare not so much....
But I think it is great that some MMOs targets kids, getting the next generation into them is important. I do however think it is a bit too high percentage who does it for my taste.
Yup. It's possible that "high-end graphics" games only stay until something prettier comes along.
And yes, it's also possible that hardcore graphics games target hardcore gamers since they're the only ones who can afford excellent PCs (Blade and Soul?).
There are low-spec games that have low requirements and look great though. Aika is a game that has simplified graphics, and low specs (500mb installer, 1.5GB client) and still looks great.
The simplified graphics actually enhanced the main point of the game, which is mass war. You can have hundreds of players on your screen, and it won't lag.
...but anyway, kids today are the main focus of businesses since they're the most impressionable/manipulable. ...and they can use their parent's money (by whining for it).
<TBA>
Wait, you don't think TOR have cartoonish style? It looks a lot like the cartoon "Clone wars" to me.
Rift and GW2 have some anime influences (GW2 somewhat more) but still not that much.
40K is based on figurines, and while many adults play 40K there is a bunch of first grader that paints them in my hobby store every friday so I would say that the art targets both cathegories.
I doubt GW2 targets kids anyways, ANETs style might look somewhat anime influenced but I think a lot of the game will be pretty hard.
Some of the games are kid friendly some way or another, others isn't.
why do people who play games have to give themselves the tag "Gamer". I play games but i dont refer to myself as a gamer because i am much more that that.
/cosign
This phenomenon kinda goes back to the documentary, marketing a product as equaling identity.
I don't mind being called a gamer, or referring to myself as one. It is part of my identity, though that should not be confused with it being my identity.
I am a gamer, a foodie, a bibliophile, a parent, a husband, a comic collector, a forum poster and a gainfully employeed citizen. I am all these things and more, I use whatever title helps explain who I am, when I need to.
I think we both have a different idea of what cartoonish style means
to me it is this:
not this:
I wouldnt call SWTOR realistic style either, but from there to cartoonish (or worse, kiddy) there is a big difference.
I'm going to hazard a guess (re: the initial question) that it's because kids complain less
Seriously, every adult I know adds a 'but' after games they even love, whilst completely raging about games that are ok to poor in quality. Kids tend to just get on with it. Also they do have lots more time than most adults to play
They both look cartoonish to me. As was stated before, look at the new animated Clone Wars program, looks almost the same, There are cartoons targeted to pre-schoolers, there are cartoons targeted to teens, and cartoons targeted to adults(but still attract children), but they all have a certain appearance that is not seeking to approximate detailed reality very well.
The answer to this questions is the same as why the average age of a television watcher is 50 but targets people under 20.
Product loyality.
1. the youth are easier manipulate advertising wise.
2. your consumer patterns are usually determined for the rest of your life during your youth. (aka, once you start buying Coke at a young age you will likely buy it for the rest of your life).
Please do not respond to me, even if I ask you a question, its rhetorical.
Please do not respond to me
I agree they both look cartoonish. One for the 4 year olds and the other for the earily teenagers.
Please do not respond to me, even if I ask you a question, its rhetorical.
Please do not respond to me
umm cause kids like video games?...... call me crazy but i started playing video games as a kid.(use to play the crap out of River Raid as a kid)
like i still find it funny when some one tries to put down a MMO (video game) they say its for kids or full of kids when it seems alot more natural for kids to be playing a video game than a middle aged man /shrug
Average age for MMO player is 34 from multiple places I have read
Please do not respond to me, even if I ask you a question, its rhetorical.
Please do not respond to me
A "foodie" and a "bibliophile"... Uh Yeah! I do like to eat, and I still like to read as well. Still it seems odd to define oneself by those characteristics. Now my sister is a true "Bibliophile"! As in she spends all her time reading (when she isn't teaching... She is a University Professor). And she spends some serious coin on books, which once read are stacked up in her house, pretty much everywhere. She just loves books and always has...
I don't "define myself" by any of those characteristics. And while I like to play computer games, and particularly MMORPGs. I've never considered myself a "gamer" per se. But I can see your point about using "whatever title helps explain who I am, when I need to." I guess I'll have to try and adopt that attitude. So Thanks! :-)
I dont think companies are developing MMO's with kids in mind, more that there making the MMO's that can appeal to larger audiences.
Not saying it works, you only have to look at Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines, to see how trying to appeal to youth and adult audiences really feck up a good movie.
Most kids these days are playing games or watching movies above there age, so really it seems pointless to make games that are more youth friendly.
But you just know that some over protective parent out there might catch something they dont like and then sue the company, and it hits the tabloids, which I guess is part of the reason why.
You're welcome! ... and I'm pretty sure I qualify as a bibliophile. I own hundreds and hundreds of books (Though tens of thousands of comics. <.< )
Reading is fun(damental)!
They're playing the games you're not, because the games you're playing are full of skeezy people who hit on women at the slightest chance.
If they ARE playing those games, many of them are either playing as women, then not saying they're a woman RL (To which people assume they are a male player), or they are playing as a male character to avoid people.
I mean seriously, listen to yourself, you're apparently checking out every single female character and trying to figure out if they're a real female. That sounds pretty creepy if you're a woman who doesn't want to deal with people who only care if they're female or not.