New video game releases of 2/13-2/19
Indie Jeff's Weekly Pick: Gunpoint
Daily Filter: Mass Effect 3, Alan Wake's American Nightmare
Blizzard files opposition to Valve's Dota trademark
Twisted Metal promotion blows up Sweet Tooth's truck
Demon's Souls 'underestimated' by Sony
Shack PSA: Skyrim PS3 players should create new manual save
Star Trek to be co-published by Namco Bandai in 2013
MobyGames Classic: Syndicate community stories
Steam hack exposed 2004-2008 transactions
1 in 5 Casual Gamers Have Disability, Survey Says
by Chris Faylor, Jun 11, 2008 8:43am PDTMore than 20% of those that play casual games like Peggle and Bejeweled have some sort of "physical, mental or developmental disability," according to an Information Solutions Group survey commissioned by casual game developer PopCap Games.
The survey encompassed a total of 13,296 casual gamers--a market that, mostly driven by web-based applications, is estimated to have between 300 and 400 million players worldwide. The latest U.S. Census states 15.1% of the American population is disabled.
Depression, ADD / ADHA and Rheumatoid Arthritis / Osteoarthritis respectively ranked as the most common types of mental, developmental and physical conditions. Only 26% of disabled casual gamers were said to play traditional video games.
The study notes that those with disabilities typically play casual games more frequently and longer than the non-disabled, and find the benefits to include stress release, mood lifting, and "distraction from issues related to disability."
"Games like Bejeweled and Peggle, with simple controls that are also mentally challenging and engaging are ideal for me, because my mind moves as quickly as the next guy's but I type with a mouth-stick," noted 58-year-old Gary Robinson, who is described as having "severe physical disabilities."
"In some ways, games like these are the greatest thing that's appeared on the computer scene for people like me," he added.
A breakdown of the most common medical conditions and perceived benefits follows:
- Most Common Disabilities
- Physical (46% Overall)
- Rheumatoid Arthritis/Osteoarthritis (14%)
- Fibromyalgia (11%)
- Multiple Sclerosis (7%)
- Mental (29% Overall)
- Moderate/Severe Depression (41%)
- Bipolar Disorder (16%)
- Anxiety Disorder (15%)
- Developmental/Learning (25% Overall)
- ADD/ADHD (46%)
- Autism (15%)
- Dyslexia (11%)
- Physical
- Stress relief (84%)
- Distraction from issues related to disability (73%)
- Mental
- Stress relief (87%)
- Mood-lifting (78%)
- Developmental/Learning
- Improved concentration (79%)
- Improved coordination/manual dexterity (73%)
Most Common Perceived Benefits
Comments
When I was in my teens I had the upper body strength and endurance to play games which required insane joystick skills (remember the decathalon olympic type games?). I used to be able to handle a steering wheel and flight stick through my 20's and early 30's. I always played racing games and flight sims. So basically I've lost some ability to play games the way they're really meant to be played, but it doesn't stop me from trying... although keyboard + trackball generally sucks for the above mentioned.
Lately I bought a new mouse, only to find out that I dont have the arm / wrist strength anymore to use a gamer mouse. After playing a few rounds of TF2 with my new mouse, I couldn't lift my arm. I felt like a pitcher who just threw 150 pitches, my arm was dead, so I went back to my trusty trackball for FPS / RPG's / and RTS games. Which there are plenty to keep my gamers plate full.
I do play casual games, but not to escape from my disability. I play them to relax. Because at the end of a stress filled day of eating crit rockets, I try to unwind before bed. I also play them because I still physically can and alot of them are pure simple fun. Like alot of the old school video games.
Thread Truncated. Click to see all 10 replies.
Also it would be great to go onto a developer's forum, ask if the controls could be altered to allow me, someone with one working hand, to play without 5 people not get what I'm asking and say how I was planing to use my other hand to jerk off to the game.
Thread Truncated. Click to see all 6 replies.
Thread Truncated. Click to see all 3 replies.
Thread Truncated. Click to see all 7 replies.
Thread Truncated. Click to see all 6 replies.
Thread Truncated. Click to see all 2 replies.
When I heard that women over the age of 30 made up a huge % of casual gamers, my first assumption was that most of those ladies would look just like that.
In 20 years she'll be so fat that she uses a scooter, which will make her even more "disabled".