40% of Gamers Are Female...WTF?

The Entertainment Software Association (ESA) reported back from their annual demographics study a couple days ago, and their findings have boggled more than a few minds--including mine. They found that 40% of gamers in the U.S. are female. After the initial reaction of shitting my pants, I was rather bewildered at the claim. Sure, with the influx of casuals games and the ridiculous success of the Wii in the U.S., it would make sense that there would be an increase in female gamers into the sausage-fest that is usually attributed with my favorite hobby. However, the figure looks to be wildly inflated.

Who do you see in the arcades, the trade shows, the online boards, the natural habitat of a gamer? You see males. I can assure you the demographics of those locations won't report back 40% female. In fact, a sighting in a place like this is a rare and usually always surprising find. Obviously, it would seem the ESA's definition of "gamer" in their study was very broad, so broad as to include a good portion of the Bejeweled, Wii Sports, and Cooking Mama crowd. I can't speak for anyone else, but when I think of the term, "gamer" I don't think of anyone who routinely plays the above titles. "Gamer" doesn't even have to be so narrowly defined within the hardcore regions of gaming. I know plenty of people who own a video game console just so they can play their Guitar Hero and Halo without going to a friend's house. Guess what? They're all male! I would include those guys as "gamers" because they do play games on a regular basis, even if they don't play a wide range or number of them. But wait, what about all those people (females) who regularly play Bejeweled, Wii Sports, blah, blah, blah, etc? You're forgetting a key component, the console. Even though those guys I mentioned before only play a few games, they still went out and bought a gaming machine for themselves. And that is how I would define "gamer"--someone who buys a a console (or a PC for that matter) for themselves to play games.

It is a well known fact that a good portion of Wii consoles bought in the U.S. are bought for family entertainment. If the ESA is counting moms doing yoga in Wii Fit as gamers, then I'm more surprised the number isn't larger than 40%. I'm not sure what the ESA is trying to accomplish by skewing their numbers, but as of right now, it just comes off as extremely weird.

In their poll of the day, Gamefaqs sought out to test the accuracy of the ESA's findings. At first glance, the ESA's final tally looks accurate with combined 41.83% saying that they are either a female gamer themselves or live with one that plays regularly or occasionally. However, "occasionally" is the key word. That option had 25.43% of the 41.83% that responded they either are or live with a female "gamer." The poll shows us that the ESA seems to have indeed used a very loose definition for what a female "gamer" should be.

Elite Beat Agents Are GO!!!!

That is all.

Anime on Jeopardy!

I know I've been beating the proverbial anime horse for a prolonged period of time, but this is worth reporting-- an anime category on Jeopardy. It was in the double jeopardy round about three weeks ago. Any hardcore anime fan would have surely answered all of the questions correctly as they were child's play with answers from Pokémon, Sailor Moon, and Princess Mononoke. I was quite shocked when one of the contestants, the one in the champion's position at the time, answered all correctly with the exception of one. The clue he missed was for the movie, "Akira," but he dubiously answered "Akiro." Honest mistake I guess, if you're an uptight smarty-pants adult who doesn't watch any anime. I love Jeopardy even more now.