Published on March 10th, 2021 | by Bibhuranjan

Online Gaming is the New Offline…And It’s Here to Stay

Online gaming has long been a growing phenomenon, but the past 12 months have seen it rise to completely new levels. More and more people have turned to apps especially and there looks to be no turning back, creating an entirely “new normal” when it comes to socialising and enjoying our downtime.

While the continued rise of gaming online in 2020 is no surprise, the demographics it has reached out to perhaps is, allowing online games and apps to leave console gaming for dust and even force itself ahead of offline pastimes.

How Online Games Have Cornered the Market

With many pastimes unable to be enjoyed offline, games providers have really been able to capture the imagination of a wealth of generations. Smartphones have been the catalyst to moving that industry forward, with over three billion smartphone owners in the world today. That’s three billion people that can potentially play your game. No need to buy a console, no need to spend significant sums of money on game. It’s a more willing audience, and one that many are tapping into.

Gambling brands have been a prime example of this. Think of bingo and the target demographic of bingo halls across the country. They aim themselves more towards and older female audience, but the ease of playing bingo online makes it a game that has been taken up drastically. In fact, some brands saw players increase by around a third at points during 2020. It’s a similar story elsewhere too. You’ll find a variety of online scratch cards available with apps these days too, and that’s not to mention the poker rooms, casinos, and more that can be found through your smartphones too.

A large part of the success in those has been down to bringing familiarity to users and allowing them to continue with their hobbies via a different means. We’ve also seen a huge rise in puzzle games too, with the likes of sudoku, crosswords, and board games all welcoming more and more downloads from the App Store.

What Next?

And there doesn’t seem to be any sign of that slowing down either, certainly during the colder months as we move into spring. Players of all generations and interests are now seemingly hooked on online and mobile gaming. Of course, a big test will be how apps manage to retain their players once life begins to return to normal.

What we will likely find though is a change in how apps are used rather than ditching them. That could well come in terms of timings as people return to work, with commuters ditching the newspaper in favour of a game of bingo or a puzzle, while naturally there will be quieter times for apps during the traditional 9am to 5pm working hours.

It will be interesting to see just how much online and mobile gaming retains players over the coming months, but one thing is for sure, it shows no real signs of slowing down at present and the revolution is certainly continuing.

Image by ExplorerBob from Pixabay

Tags: gambling, online scratch cards

About the Author

Bibhuranjan Editorial Officer, technofaq.org I'm an avid tech enthusiast at heart. I like to mug up on new and exciting developments on science and tech and have a deep love for PC gaming. Other hobbies include writing blog posts, music and DIY projects.