More U.S. consumers are playing videogames now than ever before, even as game consoles are losing their market dominance to online and mobile gaming solutions. More U.S. consumers are playing videogames now than ever before, even as game consoles are losing their market dominance to online and mobile gaming solutions.

Parks Associates' new consumer research project Online Gaming and Digital Distribution, show the number of U.S. consumers who play at least one hour of videogames per month increased from 56 million in 2008 to 135 million in 2011. The majority of these new gamers are "casual gamers," in particular people who play games like FarmVille and Angry Birds on social networks and mobile devices.Three-fourths of U.S. tablet owners play games on the device, including 79% of teen tablet owners, and 57% of smartphone owners play games on it.

Growth in traditionally "hardcore" gaming segments, such as MMORPG gamers, has stagnated for several years. Gaming is a social activity for casual gamers; however, most players prefer asynchronous multiplayer games as opposed to multiplayer games “where everyone plays at the same time.”Parks Associates will present digital-media analysis at CONNECTIONS™ Summit at CES, January 10, Las Vegas.

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