170°

US kids want games subscriptions and virtual currency more than games this Christmas

A report by the Entertainment Software Association has found that 72% of children in the US want games-related products for Christmas, but only 22% have asked for physical games.

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gamesindustry.biz
phoenixwing154d ago

This is mainly due to roblox popularity

shinoff2183153d ago (Edited 153d ago )

It's all roblox. Kids love that sh. I don't get the appeal but o well. My kids ain't never come up to me hey can you get me gamepass or ps plus for Christmas or say they wanted it cause 1 still believes

badz149153d ago

definitely Roblox!

my kids only ever want to play that! I already told them that if you start asking for money, I won't let them play it anymore so they don't ask for it. BUT I do give them $25 Robux on their birthdays. seems to cheer them up a lot. that's fine by me.

phoenixwing153d ago (Edited 153d ago )

Bad don't feel wrong telling them to stop asking. kids need to learn boundaries.

Gamingsince1981153d ago

I hope you keep an eye on them in roblox, its full of child predators and they don't get banned even when saying really really adult stuff to kids.

badz149153d ago

@Gamingsince1981

yeah, thanks, man. I'm aware. that's why I always told them to turn on the volumes so I could hear what they were playing. always the irresponsible adults ruining it for kids and all of us.

I think Roblox knows this and they want you to pay just so you can host private servers. I think my kids spent most of the Robux I bought them to pay for private servers so they could play with their school friends.

NotoriousWhiz153d ago

Roblox has private servers? I thought only Minecraft had that.

+ Show (1) more replyLast reply 153d ago
-Foxtrot154d ago

Kind of sad how times have changed

I remember circling games I wanted for Christmas in an Argos catalog.

Eonjay153d ago (Edited 153d ago )

This is why I support Sony getting into GaaS. I am not a fan of Fortnite and Roblox but I can see that is where the younger generation is and Sony should be supporting all gamers. It's just good business and if it generates profit so they can keep doing single player and traditional multiplayer I'm all for it.

If they just focus on games for me, they fail... if the only do Gaas they fail. They have to be balanced and meet the market where it is. That is how you stay relevant and profitable.

There is this weird mentality online that tries to convince everyone that only their viewpoint or taste is valid. Low and behold there isn't one group of people who have to be absolutely catered to at all time while everyone else must pound sand. People who play GaaS are not my enemy.

I hope people can get to the end of my comment and truly understand where I'm coming from.

ravens52153d ago

I agree somewhat. Just doesn't have to be more than a couple. 3 or more is unnecessary .

shinoff2183153d ago

I don't mind sony doing gaas games. I won't play them but it seems to much attention may be into it. I don't wanna see that. Maybe roll with two. An rpg And a shooter type and call it a day. That's why I'm glad Jim Ryan is about to be out.

Name Last Name153d ago

Why change what has worked forever and put them where they are? The issue is investors pushing for ever increasing growth for their stocks to increase and be able to cash out.

RedDevils153d ago

Why change? Tell that to blockbuster. You need to adapt to stay relevant, no one say to them to abandon what works, but to experience and innovate new business idea to remain profitable business, if not you are waiting for trouble.

Eonjay153d ago

@Name Last Name

You change and adapt or go extinct. What worked today won't always work tomorrow. If Sony can renew their consumer base by attracting a younger generation of gamers are they supposed to expire when the current base expires? That's so silly and somewhat conceded.

+ Show (2) more repliesLast reply 153d ago
JEECE153d ago

Now I hear people I work with talking about buying Vbucks for their kids/grandkids for birthdays and Christmas. I know everyone always thinks that "kids these days" are stupid and have bad taste, but I can honestly look at the games I played when I was their age and many of them stand the test of time. Are the kids now who keep playing games as adults really going to look back fondly on their favorite Cardi B Fortnite skin from season 6 wave 3? I don't know.

FinalFantasyFanatic153d ago

I can't see it having the same longevity, but i'm not into those games either, the nostalgia factor in 15 or 20 years time will be interesting.

shinoff2183153d ago

Jeece I doubt it. I don't think they'll be able to look at that the same way I do a faxandu, chrono trigger, ff7, ff6 etc

JEECE153d ago

@shinoff2183

Agreed. And while I'll readily admit that I also played some bad games as a kid, it's easier to forget the bad and remember the good when you actually played a variety of games. If you just play one or two games during your entire formative years, I don't know if that's possible.

Then again, I have heard people a bit younger than me who play a variety of games now look back fondly to the time as kids where they really only played Wii sports, so who knows.

-Foxtrot153d ago (Edited 153d ago )

"Are the kids now who keep playing games as adults really going to look back fondly on their favorite Cardi B Fortnite skin from season 6 wave 3?"

Kind of hits the nail on the head here

I know people will say "you guys are just getting old" but the thing is I highly doubt young gamers who played Pac Man, Pong, Space Invaders etc got older and then decided to shit on the games that came out when we were younger like Sonic the Hedgehog, Crash Bandicoot, Wind Waker, Metal Gear Solid 3, GTA etc. They probably loved them and felt they were in the golden age of gaming as they kept evolving.

Like you said, will young gamers today really look back at their games in 15 - 20 years time and say how amazing their skins, MTs and Lootboxes were...doubtful.

+ Show (1) more replyLast reply 153d ago
FinalFantasyFanatic153d ago

I can't even fathom this, I remember browsing the PC shops, Kmart, Target, ect... and sussing out the games I would be interested in and my parents buying me a game for Christmas, and I would play the crap out of the 1 or 2 games I was given.

Angyobangyo153d ago

Get them while they're young so they believe it's the norm.

Chocoburger153d ago (Edited 153d ago )

I've been saying this for so long, micro-trash-actions were designed to indoctrinate younger gamers who easier are to manipulate.

Even if older gamers are against micro-trash-actions, we're going die eventually and the only gamers left will be those who grew up in this era where they have been normalized from the start. This was all planned in advance for long term profits.

Inverno153d ago

Won't ever have kids but if I did, no kid of mine would be allowed to associate with such degeneracy! Raise your kids on NES games folks, the future is in your hands.

-Foxtrot153d ago

I'd do the same if I wanted kids

Raise them on the older games first

There's plenty of great classics to choose from, they'd be cheaper to buy on the store or free to emulate and you can slowly transition them through each generation where they'll appreciate the evolution more.

jznrpg153d ago (Edited 153d ago )

They won’t get it from me.

I told my kids I would buy them one card for Minecraft last year and when their points run out that’s it. I explained to them they will add stupid stuff to get money forever for little things not worth the money they are charging.

They don’t ask as they know it’s pointless to. I told them I’d rather buy them a new game than give them 5$ here and there for stupid skins and stuff.

Roblox is banned in my house.

I don’t have an issue with my kids as I made sure to not let it grow into one but I can see how parents don’t realize some of these games are money pits when their kids start playing them.

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100°

F1 Arcade Opens In Boston

This reminds me of Gameworks and sounds really fun. F1 Arcade (F1Arcade.com/us/), the world’s first premium F1 entertainment experience, today opened its first US location in Boston Seaport.

DefenderOfDoom219h ago(Edited 19h ago)

Cool , only a 20 minute ride for me. I am going to check it out . I hope they have a lot of retro Arcade cabinets. Now that Mary Jane is legal in Massachusetts it would been awesome if they served Edibles at the bar also. I once played music and promoted a EA Madden tournament at a nightclub in Greater Boston in 2003 . Only problem is hardly anybody drank booze because between games most of the crowd would just go out to there car and smoke weed . So it would be awesome if they got a weed license to at least serve Edibles.

Garethvk16h ago

I think they would likely want to stay clear of that until they are more established.

People will tolerate Alcohol but will have a different take on edibles and such as they are trying to push a family friendly atmosphere I am sure.

SonyStyled15h ago

I’m in the metrowest area. I’ll have to check this out too

Garethvk13h ago

Let us know how it is please.
Know

90°

The Epic Games Store Has Two More Freebies this Week

It's time to add two more games to your library for free from the Epic Games Store.

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terminalgamer.com
290°

Microsoft’s Surface and Xbox hardware revenues take a big hit in Q3

Microsoft just posted the third quarter of its 2024 fiscal financial results. The software maker made $61.9 billion in revenue and a net income of $21.9 billion during Q3. Revenue is up 17 percent, and net income has increased by 20 percent.

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theverge.com
darthv725d ago

Xbox content + services up 62% while hardware down 31%... seems about right with the way they tout you don't need the hardware to play. People can play on their phones or smart tv or other means. I don't hardly play on my consoles directly since getting devices like the logitech g-cloud and ps portal. Which is to also say I have been playing more digital than physical because of these devices.

solideagle5d ago

you should apply in MS PR team buddy, I think you will do a great job in my humble opinion :)

Sonic18814d ago

I thought darthv72 and Obscure_Observer already work for Microsoft 🤔

dveio4d ago

MS: "Xbox services and content without AB up 1%, with AB up 62%. Hardware down 31%. In total a loss of 350 mill."

darthv72: "Seems about right."

MS: "Excuse m ..."

darthv72: "I don't hardly play on my consoles directly."

MS:

Lightning774d ago

What he said was facts. How he plays games is no concern of you. Don't get too mad about it.

Cacabunga5d ago

I can tell people like you are an absolute minority..

If service is up means their fans and fanboys accepted this model and subscribed to it. The near future you will see a big decline because the service is saturated.

darthv724d ago

to you it may seem like the minority... but your bubble is shrinking because more and more are following suit. convenience is a hell of a drug and its also why physical sales only amount to 30% of overall game sales. times are changing, you either get with them or you get left behind.

neutralgamer19924d ago

Darth

30% physical sales: yet Phil and xbox division are in a rush go give up on that 30%. they don't have any right to give up any piece of the pie since the control such a little of the pie to begin with

also, the market is clearly speaking that the model Xbox is pushing isn't working right now the keyword being right now. you are right about freedom to play anywhere so i hope they put their games on steam

shinoff21835d ago

But that's been ms for years. When things aren't going their way they try to change the way things are said. For instance console sales are down, they stop telling how many sold instead telling us how many hours spent in halo or headshots. So it makes sense console sales down just say people are playing on more devices then previous. What they won't say is how many xbox players jumped ship to ps5.

Cacabunga4d ago

Hardware sales are so bad that Sony and Nintendo are blowing the sales off the water with their hardware.

If Xbox are losers, others aren’t..
Xbox already tried everything with Xbox live then subscriptions went down so much that they had to find something else. Their fans subscribed then reached saturation rather quickly.

Hardware and exclusive games is where it’s at! Keep gamers excited, announce decent software and people will support you

itsmebryan4d ago

@shin
Well keep it simple Sony 's operating income is down 26% and Microsoft's is up 32%. No MS spin there, just facts. 😉
Cheers

S2Killinit4d ago

MS is after diminishing consoles as a medium. They want to destroy this market because they couldnt win. MS’s vision is to dissolve console gaming.

romulus234d ago

Odd that a company that touts you dont need the hardware to play is already touting another console in the works.

darthv724d ago

They are not reliant on the HW but still want to maintain a presence (no matter how small) is a good thing. It shows commitment to the craft. It reminds me of SNK and how they made games for their own hardware (Neo Geo) while also making them for others because they knew there was a market to do so. They knew they would sell more to others but also sell to their own niche fan base.

TheEroica4d ago (Edited 4d ago )

Perfectly reasonable post down voted by insecure corporation friendly folk.... But not gamers. Real gamer want accessibility and ease of acquisition for all.... Company shills are the only ones still telling us that hardware locking people from games is good for us.

Chevalier4d ago

@Darth

You should stop parroting metrics like an idiot without context.

"Xbox content and services revenue grew 62% in Q3 from a year earlier, “driven by 61 points of net impact” from the purchase of the third-party video game giant, Microsoft said."

61 of the 62% was from their merger so net increase is ONLY 1%

https://www.mesaonline.org/...

itsmebryan3d ago

@chevalier

It looks like made a great purchase. Much better then Sony buying Bungie. 😉
Cheers

+ Show (4) more repliesLast reply 3d ago
purple1015d ago

Xbox hardware revenue tanks to lowest point of Xbox Series generation

Profchaos5d ago

I'm not surprised surface is struggling they aren't relevant anymore

DOMination-4d ago

In the last two years they've started exiting the consumer market altogether. All of the newest Surface products are business models only. They can't seem to work out what they want to do with it.

XBManiac5d ago

Too expensive hardware when others offer the same or more for less? Good work, Green Team.

SimpleDad5d ago (Edited 5d ago )

"Despite some early successes for Xbox games on rival platforms, Xbox hardware is down by a massive 31 percent this quarter."
"Without Activision Blizzard, Microsoft’s overall gaming revenue would have actually declined this quarter."
"Xbox content and services would have only been up a single percent without Activision Blizzard..."
"It looks like next quarter is going to be a similar story for gaming at Microsoft, too."

That is crazy... so A/B/K is carrying the whole Xbox gaming.
Oh and Microsoft will be fine. Windows, Office and Cloud are growing with each pc purchase.

purple1015d ago

Activision: "we gonna need a bigger rucksack/backpack please"

Microsoft: "why's that"

Activision: "to carry yo' weak ass'

Profchaos5d ago (Edited 5d ago )

Top brass have also wanted to start seeing returns on the 100 billion they have put into various Xbox related moves so seeing more multiplatform games is highly likely especially from abk

It's basically saying that PlayStation is the reason Xbox is afloat right now thinks to Ps5 versions of COD

Kornholic5d ago

So basically PS and PC gamers' money is keeping Xbox on life support.

MrDead4d ago

The only growth MS will get out of the console industry is if it supports it's rivals platforms. Xbox is a pointless machine now. I can see them on a big push for live next, and they won't give up on trying to buy Steam.

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