I love stats, and so does this guy:

Next Gen: MMOG Player Trends Detailed (Via Slashdot)

Theres a few of these doing the rounds now; The Daedalus Project, The Bartle Test, and this chap’s one, Project Masive, and aside from being obvious Doctorates In Progress, they do offer some quite fascinating ‘Gamers Under The Microscope’ insights. Well, they fascinate me anyway.

I’m not entirely sure how these kinds of microcosmic psychological field trips can then further be applied to the Real World, and I doubt World Peace is something that can come from World of Warcraft, but for better or worse, I do spend an awful lot of time in these microcosims, and it’s never a bad thing to know a little about the people you’re sharing it with.

To the numbers then (lower pg2 of the article):

  • 90% Male – If I have number to back me up, does that mean I’m not a cynic anymore? MMOs are, as I maintain, probably not the place to meet the girl of your dreams. (Or is this just proof that Girl Gamers can't be arsed with surveys?)
  • Ages 18-34, most 27yr olds – This is unexpected, given the conduct of a lot of the people I meet. I guess they only ‘RPing’ 14yr old ADHD sufferers in most cases. You really are what you type though, and I mark presumed age down several notches each time I see a ‘ur’ or ‘any1’. I guess that’s just me though.
  • 40% Partners, 40% Habitual ‘Soloers’ – an interesting breakdown, although, as the article takes some pains to point out, married MMOers aren’t always addicted self-obsessed shirkers keeping a loved-one in an emotionless kind of slavery. I remain to be convinced, opting for the ‘The Game Is My Life, I Need No Other’ camp instead.
  • 80% No Kids – Interesting. I would have thought that sharing time with one's kids would be one reason to be into these games, but perhaps there is something in the idea that an Avatar, much like a cat or dog, could be a surrogate alternative to children? Or is it merely a deliberate choice of one type of life, over another?
  • 70% in guilds – Make that 70% of people just got tired of continually rejecting spam-invites every time they went near a town. I’m starting to dabble with guilds myself, so more on this another time.
  • 70% Moved Game since last survey. 65% Don’t play the previous game at all. – There’s a frightening number for game-devs. We are a migratory herd - enjoy us while we’re still here....ooh Shiney!. It is worth noting that the previous survey seemed to have happened when Everquest 1 was king, perhaps four years ago. I think you'd be hard pressed to find many people contented with that game for that long.
  • Gamestyle Preferences: PvE 50+%, PvP 24%, Non-Combat (Crafting etc) 4%, Community 20% - Just show me the treadmill! My own current bloodlust notwithstanding, I think that’s fair. I do tend to play MMOs to play with the game, rather than the players. There are better avenues for the other types of experience; DIY, Going Down The Pub, Knife Fights on The Old Stone Bridge, etc.
  • 50% Loyalty to one MMO – I’m not sure this is particularly about loyalty so much, as just available time. Speaking from experience, it is hard work to keep two different level-quests going at once, so usually my ‘other’ games are ones that don’t require much time investment – Planetside, Puzzle Pirates. (I keep SWG purely for the occasional social visit, and don’t actually play that one.)

Some interesting numbers there – look out for his detailed analysis in December. I’m sure it’ll be a lot more detailed than mine!