Games at Christmas? Nah, kids would rather have subscriptions and in-game currency
Think you know what your kid wants for Christmas? According to a recent report, not many of them actually want video games.
When you think about video-game-loving kids, you probably think “easy peasy, I’ll get them the newest Mario for Christmas, sorted.” It would make sense, opening up a new Nintendo console and the latest game featuring the moustachioed plumber is a tale as old as time. But as spotted by GamesIndustry.biz, a recent report from the Entertainment Software Association says that US children don’t really care about getting physical video games compared to other game adjacent things.
The survey spoke to 501 children of the ages 10-17, with 59% of girls and 86% of boys saying they plan to ask for video game gifts for the holidays. When it comes to specific asks, the highest ranking request is for game subscriptions at 39% of kids, with game consoles just behind at 38%. After that is game gear or accessories at 32%, and in-game currency at 29%. Meanwhile, only 22% of kids actually asked for physical video games. This one isn’t entirely unsurprising, game purchases are shifting towards digital over physical, but it is a bit surprising that children want things that aren’t actually games over games themselves.