Real Games, a division of Real Networks, conducted a survey of casual gamers. The casual gamers were asked questions about watching their weight and trying to stop smoking. Two of the biggest vices we deal with on a daily basis.

Out of the 2,784 survey respondents 59% of the respondents reported they used casual games as a distraction from snacking. Instead of snacking when they were bored, they played casual games and it stopped them from over indulging in food.

There was a similar conclusion with the smokers. Out of the 1,324 survey respondents that reported being smokers and wanting to quit, 42% used casual games as a distraction from smoking. The respondents reported they would play casual games after work or before bed, during a time where they would normally be smoking.

Some of the respondents intentionally used casual games to stop their bad habits. The results make sense, people are looking to replace one bad habit with another habit and this time the replacing habit was a good habit instead of a bad one. Anything that can distract you from your bad habits, such as smoking and overeating is a good thing.

Thanks WebWire

PopCap published a study, the PopCap Break Report 2008, that found a 10 minute e-break is beneficial during the work day and companies should not ban this practice. An e-break is 10 minutes of the day where the employee can do anything they want, basically. They can visit face book, play online casual games or catch up on personal email. The 10 minute e-break was found to help rejuvenate employees and boost employee morale.

The problem is there is a fine line between a 10 minute break and spending 2 or more hours on an e-break. 10 minutes is not going to hurt company productivity and the breaks benefit the employee so it is a win win situation. The win win situation does not seem to matter to most employers, because they have been banning social networking sites in the work place. Many employers don’t want to take the risk that employees will stop playing after 10 minutes.

“Work days are becoming longer, workloads are becoming more demanding, and UK bosses are introducing internet bans to help combat alleged productivity losses and inappropriate use of workplace resources,” said Dr Chamorro-Premuzic.

“Yet bosses are missing a trick by introducing e-bans. Allowing workers more freedom at the PC can benefit morale and boost company profits.

“In addition to allowing their mind to switch off from their work worries, employers can foster a more trusting and enjoyable environment.”

The study was conducted in the UK under supervision of Dr Tomas Chamorro-Premuzic, a psychologist at Goldsmiths University.

Thanks Vnunet

RealNetworks conducted a survey of 1,500 players on RealNetworks and discovered that 90% of the respondents did not mind advertisements in their games as long as the games were free to play. The ads were placed in the beginning and ends of the games and in the middle during a natural game break.  The survey also uncovered that 34% of the players actually clicked on the ads to find out more about the product being advertised.

An even more surprising fact is one third of the players surveyed enjoyed watching video advertisements. The reasons they liked watching the ads ranged from interest in the products being advertised or needing/wanting a short break from the game. Half of the people surveyed wanted to see ads about other entertainment mediums, such as movies or music. 30% of the other respondents were interested in seeing skin care advertisements.

Given the last statement, it comes as no surprise that 80% of the people surveyed were women and 65% of the 81% were women in the 35-64 age range. RealNetworks refers to this age range as the “core” casual games demographic.

RealGames senior director of new media Chris Houtzer said, “We have been evolving our customer sales model based on user’s feedback since we created in-game streaming video advertising in the PC casual games space in 2006. The right mix of advertising in our games gives us greater flexibility in providing advanced game-play options for our customers, sharing in incremental revenue with game developers, and delivering a competitive ROI for advertisers.”

Given the results of the study, it comes as no surprise to find out RealNetworks is going to offer more ad supported games.

Thanks Gamasutra

PopCap Games conducted a survey regarding adult’s approval of children/grandchildren playing video games. The survey showed some interesting results. Seventy two percent of the respondents that play casual games say they will not allow their grandchildren or children to play hardcore games. All of the respondents said they allow their children/grandchildren to play casual games and eighty percent play the casual games with their children/grandchildren.

The survey uncovered a surprising result that had somewhat of a sexist nature. Forty eight percent of the respondents said they forbid their fourteen year old or older children from playing hardcore games, but sixty percent said they forbid their girls from playing hardcore games verses only thirty seven percent that forbid boys from playing hardcore games.

Dr. Carl Arinoldo, a Stony Brook, New York-based psychologist of 25 years, expert on parent-child relationships and author of the new book Essentials of Smart Parenting, says “Overall, boys do tend to be more active and aggressive than girls, and their choices for play activities are no different. It is generally considered more acceptable for boys to engage in more action-oriented and even somewhat violent activities (such as contact sports) than it is for girls. In addition, parents often tend to be somewhat more protective of their daughters in what they do than they are of their sons, allowing for a bit more independence and leeway for the boys. This is somewhat outdated thinking, but obviously a perspective shared by many parents even today. But most experts agree that exposing children and adolescents to graphically explicit content of a sexual or extremely violent nature should be avoided, and this applies to both genders.”

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