The Digital Australia study, an annual look at the way Australians are playing video games, was released today. It features all the statistics that you might expect from such a survey. Yep, pretty much everyone in Australia is playing video games. Yep, video games aren’t just for kids. Yep, people play video games to stay sharp, healthy and happy.

Every statistic one needs to arm themselves with when dealing with the powers that be is there.

But there are also a few interesting nuggets of information in there for those of us who are already on board with the video games.

For example, did you know that 92% of people play games with other human beings? I mean I suspected that number would be high. I didn’t know it would be that high.

Did you know that 66% of people want more gender diversity in video game characters.

That 65% of people want more age diversity in video game characters.

Did you know that 28% of gamers have shared videos of themselves playing. That’s insane to me, but absolutely a sign of the times.

3135 people from 1234 households were surveyed for the Digital Australia 2018 study.

God bless Jeff Brand and the good folks at Bond University. Their work has been instrumental in providing the numbers that allow the IGEA to represent the games industry at the government level. What’s interesting to me is how these numbers have settled. In 2007 only 79% of households had gaming devices. Now that number is 93% and has been since 2013 — almost as if games have arrived at that point of ubiquity and isn’t going anywhere. Supporting that — the average age of gamers has been steadily increasing ever since this research began. Almost as if we’re all getting older together — with video games.

Read more at https://www.kotaku.com.au/2017/07/how-australians-are-playing-video-games-in-2017/#oJGHYxOoZZPrtPCg.99