What's wrong with being a 'gamer'?
The majority of Australians play games, yet the label ‘gamer’ is still a dirty word.
The odds should have been on my side when I went speed dating a few weeks back. I'm not coy about mentioning the fact that I'm a fan of video games. Armed with the latest data — and despite what I’ve been told by friends in the past — that shouldn't be that risky topic.
According to the latest IGEA study into gamers in Australia — released in August 2023— 81% of all Australians play video games. It went on to add that almost half (48%) of women are gamers, up 2% in a year. More recent global data from NewZoo supports this.
But despite this, out of the near 30 dates I did over a two and a half hour period, only one woman in the room expressed any interest in gaming. And even then, that came with the caveat: "Yeah, I game sometimes on my phone, but I wouldn't call myself a gamer."
In the blur of faces, occupations and mutual interests that come as part of any…
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