British Survey: Average Gamer Is 35 Years Old

Though the time-honored cliche of getting yelled at by angry 10-year old kids playing the first-person shooter du jour lives on, there’s been a growing suspicion that gamers as a group are getting older. It makes sense too, since late Gen X’ers and Millennials have grown up on video games.

At least in Great Britain, that suspicion has been confirmed. According to a survey of 2,000 Brits commissioned by Pixwoo.com, the average gamer is 35 years old, spends two and a half hours a day playing video games, works full time and makes the equivalent of $34,600 annually.

The hypothetical average gamer is either married or in a steady relationship, owns two different consoles with a library of 18 games, and has five friends in online gaming networks. And while women will no doubt attest to the fact that video games are still marketed more heavily to men, the survey found almost a 50-50 split between males and females who are self-described gamers.

Perhaps the best news for Sony and Microsoft as they launch their new products this fall, over 75 percent of the respondents said they feel they will never stop playing video games. What isn’t clear is if that means gaming in the traditional console and PC sense, or if the definition can be expanded to include mobile, tablet, and other forms of gameplay that might arise in the years to come.

Old stereotypes die hard though, or they wouldn’t become stereotypes in the first place. Just remember the next time some youngster calls you out on your lack of skills (unless you are the youngster!), he or she is in the minority. Gaming is definitely all grown up now.