Newzoo Analysts Have Divided Gamers Into Archetypes

Analytics company Newzoo believes that the division of gamers into hardcore and casual is outdated. The company is proposing a new classification, in which eight types of people are distinguished.

Newzoo is a world leader in analyzing video games, e-sport and mobile games market.

According to Newzoo, the gaming market has grown so much in recent years that the existing methods of gamer classification have lost their sense. The terms "casual" and "hardcore" have become too vague and it is hard to say where one group ends and another begins.

“The last 10 years have seen the games market change dramatically; yet, everybody is still using the same segmentation from a decade ago,” says Peter Warman, CEO of Newzoo. “That doesn’t cut it anymore. All-round entertainment requires an all-round segmentation. This is exactly why we’ve dedicated so much time, expertise, and work to Newzoo’s Gamer Segmentation—a new segmentation for a new breed of diverse game enthusiasts.”

The company proposes a new division into eight types of players to take account of all current trends. The boundaries between the different groups of people are clearly outlined so that it could be formally used by game publishers and in research conducted by other analytics companies.

Gamer types by Newzoo

Newzoo has divided the players into the following archetypes:

The Ultimate Gamer - games are their life's passion, they spend most of their time with them and spends most of their money on this hobby. According to Newzoo, it accounts for 13% of all gamers.
The All-round Enthusiast is a type that is interested in all forms of interaction with games. They play the game by themselves, but they like to watch other people do it. They're 9% of the players.
The Cloud Gamer - they like to play high-quality titles, although they don't like to spend a lot of money on their hobby. They are interested in free-to-play games and buy paid productions at discounts. Rarely invest in new equipment. They account for 19% of all players.
The Conventional Player don't like watching others play - they prefer to do it themselves. They have several platforms and account for 4% of all players.
The Hardware Enthusiast love technological innovations and want their hardware to always work smoothly on the highest details. They constitute 9% of the players.
The Popcorn Gamer - games are not their most important interest. They'd rather watch others play than do it themselves. They account for 13% of all players.
The Backseat Viewer - a retired player who used to play a lot, now prefers to watch e-sport or streamers on the Internet. They account for 6% of all players.
The Time Filler - play only in their spare time when there is nothing better to do. They prefer mobile games. They account for 27% of all players.

Types of gamers according to Newzoo.

Research conducted by Newzoo in 30 key markets shows that men are dominated by the cloud gamer type (21% market share), while women are most likely to be the time filler type (36% market share). If you want to find out which of the eight groups you are, you can do it through a quiz prepared by Newzoo (available only in English).

Player types according to gender.