Casual games industry worth $2.25bn a year

The Casual Game Association has released its 2007 report on the casual games industry.

The report says that the casual games industry is worth $2.25bn and is growing at a rate of 20 per cent each year.

The CGA also says that over 200m people play casual games each month over the internet, and that men make up 48.3 per cent of casual game players, women 51.7 per cent. But the report also added that women account for 74 per cent of paying causal game players.

Other key conclusions from the report are that casual gamers who pay for a subscription and/or are community play from seven to 15 hours online each week and that heaviest play times are from 7pm to 9pm and during lunch from 11am to 2pm. Play sessions, meanwhile, usually last for short increments, from five minutes to 20 minutes although players often play one game after another for multiple hours.

The report also names the six most popular casual games: Solitaire (Microsoft Windows XP), Tetris (Tetris Holding, LLC), Bejeweled (PopCap Games), QQ Games Collection (Tencent China), Diner Dash Franchise (PlayFirst), and Mystery Case Files (Big Fish Games).

"The Casual Games Report offers some of the most interesting insight ever on the industry," the Casual Games Association’s MD Jessica Tams stated. "Already more people play casual games than any other type of video game and the industry continues to grow at a very healthy rate."

The report can be purchased here.