NPD: Majority of gamers play online

A new NPD report has found that the number of players gaming online – along with the number of hours spent by those players online – has increased significantly.

NPD Group’s Online Gaming 2013 report surveyed over 8,800 US gamers, and found that 72 per cent stated they played games online. That’s up from the 67 per cent reported for the year prior.

The report claimed that the average weekly time spent playing online by these respondents was up 6 per cent, while overall gaming time per week was up 9 per cent. The NPD notes the increase in time online was mirrored across virtually every type of device,” with PC out in front with 68 per cent (down from 72 per cent last year).

Meanwhile, Mobile showed a significant boost from the year prior, grabbing 56 per cent of the applicable online gaming contingent polled.

The report also found that 62 per cent of players preferred to buy physical games, down from 65 per cent last year.

"While many gamers prefer games in the physical format, the increased availability of digital content paired with a greater amount of connected devices has driven an increase in the number of consumers going online to access the content they want," said NPD analyst Liam Callahan.