Nielsen Wire » Xbox

Hottest June on Record for Video Gaming

Nielsen Wire — Mon, 10 Aug 2009 14:00:23 +0000

Nielsen video game data released today shows that Video Gamers are playing more this summer than last. Total video game console usage minutes in June 2009 went up 21% from the the previous June. The average console gamer played 768 minutes on consoles during this year’s June reporting month.

Other notable trends from June 2009 show:

Video game consoles are not just being played by kids – just under 50% of gameplay came from adults 18+
Teenagers 12-17 have the largest percent of play, which accounted for 25% of gaming in June
Xbox 360 and PS2 are now neck and neck in terms of minutes played per month, yet June data shows Xbox 360 is the most active console, with the 6-month trend show Xbox 360 with the highest active users

PlayStation consoles tend to be more gender neutral than other consoles. Xbox 360 continues to skew more male and Wii continue to skew more female.

More Americans are playing the newer consoles. Nielsen data shows that current generation consoles, such as Xbox 360, PS3 and Wii, made up 50% of total share of minutes in June 2009, while last generation consoles, such as Xbox, PS2 and Gamecube, made up only 31% of total minutes. Use of older gaming consoles (PS One, Atari 2600, Nintendo 64, Sega Genesis, etc.) made up the 19% balance of usage minutes for the month.

Will E3 Deliver on Gamers’ Expectations?

Nielsen Wire — Mon, 01 Jun 2009 13:30:16 +0000

Anticipation surrounds this year’s E3, one of the largest video game expos, which kicks off this week in Los Angeles. Not only have Sony and Microsoft hinted at major hardware-related announcements, but also details related to upcoming software releases are expected to emerge. Video game enthusiasts started heavily discussing their expectations for E3 several months ago online. This traditionally vocal group of consumers is especially engaged in this year’s E3 – buzz for the month prior to the 2009 expo is up 31% over the comparable time period for E3 2008, which took place July 14 – 17.

With a bevy of announcements expected from press conferences of the major players in the gaming industry, what are gaming enthusiasts discussing prior to the show? Even though most gamers agree that new developments for existing hardware is cool, console enthusiasts are more focused on what the future holds for upcoming games. One week before the conference, upcoming titles were mentioned in just over half of all E3 discussion, while the new PSP Go! and anticipated Xbox 360 motion sensor each garner less than 10% of E3 buzz. Unveilings are expected to occur for a long list of titles, but prior to the expo, games generating the most buzz include Gran Turismo 5 for PS3, Mass Effect 2 and Metal Gear Solid 4 + Oxide for Xbox 360, and Legend of Zelda: Spirit Track for Nintendo DS.

Title	% of Pre-E3 Buzz
Gran Turismo 5 (PS3)	7%
Mass Effect 2 (Xbox 360)	6%
MGS4 + Oxide (Xbox 360)	4%
Legend of Zelda: Spirit Tracks (DS)	3%
God of War III (PS3)	3%

Holiday Blog Buzz Battle: Xbox Bests Wii, Playstation

admin — Thu, 11 Dec 2008 21:54:53 +0000

Microsoft’s Xbox is the most buzzed about game console so far this holiday season, Nielsen Online reported Thursday.

The Xbox 360 garnered the largest share of online buzz between November 1 and December 9, with 41.6% of blog messages mentioning Xbox, Wii or Playstation.

In comparison, Nintendo’s Wii was mentioned in 29.8% of game console blog messages, while Sony’s Playstation ranked third with mentions in 28.6% of gaming-related blog posts.

Among gift-related online buzz, TV-related terms, mentioned in 52.5% of gift-related messages, dominated blogosphere chatter.

DVDs (24.4% share), toys (11.3% share), laptops (8.4% share), and GPS (3.4% share) rounded out the select five gift ideas.

View the press release.