Those findings back up a study from the University of Southern California published last year, which said that women played "more intensely" than their male counterparts. In hourly terms, according to Scientific American the women surveyed played EQII an "average of 29 hours a week, versus 25 for the males."

Hardcore players more than doubled those numbers, with women still in the lead.

But The Journal of Communication says that women tended to lie about (or lowball) their EQII addictions. USC's study said almost the same thing, and we're starting to see a trend here—Everquest II player surveys simply cannot be trusted.

Gal Gamers Geekier Than Guys [Scientific American]

The original "Gaymer" survey was created to "quantify the existence of an invisible minority." Now that we know that they do indeed exist, it's time to find out what they like. Paul Nowak, a masters student at Full Sail, has created the new survey in order to make an in-depth study of what "gaymers" want from their games.

Ideally, I want to learn what exactly it is that gaymers want from their games and how that differs from their heterosexual counterparts. I'll take that information to develop guidelines the industry can use when trying to make gaymer inclusive games that don't become offensive or insulting to any gamer regardless of sexual orientation. If someone had done the same kind of research when the industry was trying to reach out to female gamers, girls wouldn't have had to suffer through the wildly unsuccessful attempts of games like "Mary Kate & Ashley's Winner's Circle" pony racing. I'm hoping to help the industry avoid the same mistakes as it reaches out to gay gamers.

I've gone through the survey myself, seeing as it is open to gamers of all sexual orientations. Aside from the initial question about sexual orientation, it mainly concerns itself with questions about content, genre, and game features, before slipping into more specific questions about homosexual content, using games like Enchanted Arms, Bully, and The Sims as examples.

As for the survey's motivation, I find myself a bit conflicted. I've just never thought of gaming as a pastime that sexual orientation figures into. Nowak makes a valid point about the industry's stumbling first attempts at reaching a female audience, but are homosexual gamers that much different from everyone else that they need to be catered to specifically? I'm not saying they shouldn't be...I suppose I am asking if they really want to be.

New Gaymer Survey [Full Sail via Joystiq - Thanks Alexander]

1. Do you want to play Fallout 3? (any platform)

Yes: 72 percent (12,052 total responses)
No: 20 percent (3,393)
Not sure: 7 percent (1,207)
16,652 total responses.

2. Do you want to play The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion? (any platform)

Yes: 55 percent (8,756 total responses)
No: 36 percent (5,822)
Not sure: 9 percent (1,456)
16,034 total responses.

3. Do you want to play Fable II? (Xbox 360)

Yes: 51 percent (8,218 total responses)
No: 39 percent (6,243)
Not sure: 10 percent (1,565)
16,026 total responses.

Right out of the box we can see Kotaku readers are not hostile to role-playing games. All three here earned majorities with low not-sures, meaning respondents have heard of, considered and reacted to these games, and most like them. It helps, granted, that these are three of the biggest RPG names in console gaming, and that they were western produced. But had any of these come back with a No we'd know there's a serious disposition against this genre.

4. When it is released, do you want to play Final Fantasy XIII? (any platform)

Yes: 64 percent (10,584 total responses)
No: 23 percent (3,772)
Not sure: 13 percent (2,105)
16,461 total responses.

5. Do you want to play Dissidia: Final Fantasy? [PSP]

Yes: 35 percent (5,656 total responses)
No: 51 percent (8,208)
Not sure: 14 percent (2,276)
16,140 total responses.

6. Do you want to play Persona 4? (Shin Megami Tensei: Persona 4, for PS2)

Yes: 37 percent (5,986 total responses)
No: 47 percent (7,498)
Not sure: 16 percent (2,585)
16,069 total responses.

Final Fantasy XII's strong positive is likewise a no-brainer. And while most do not want to play Dissidia or Persona 4, I think their numbers are actually pretty damn strong considering what they have to overcome. Dissidia's a quasi fighter/RPG, and it's on the PSP, which a minority own and barely nobody claimed as their favorite platform. Persona 4 is on a previous-gen console only, and the franchise is fairly representative of the esoteric qualities of a JRPG. And a good third of the readership still wants to play both.

7. Do you want to play EVE Online? (PC)

Yes: 13 percent (2,109 total responses)
No: 73 percent (11,776)
Not sure: 14 percent (2,242)
16,127 total responses.


8. Do you want to play a console MMO?

Yes: 35 percent (5,717 total responses).
No: 46 percent (7,406)
Not sure: 19 percent (3,414)
16,257 total responses.


9. Do you want to play World of Warcraft? (PC)

Yes: 28 percent (4,550 total responses)
No: 65 percent (10,517)
Not sure: 8 percent (1,233)
16,300 total responses.


10. Do you want to play City of Heroes/City of Villains? (PC)

Yes: 15 percent (2,410 total responses)
No: 71 percent (11,400)
Not sure: 14 percent (2,245)
16,055 total responses.

Here's where it gets ugly (and where Mike Fahey silently weeps). Warcraft is a big no, 2-to-1. City of Heroes fares worse, and maybe I should have asked about Champions Online. But with a plurality not diggin' the console MMO concept, I doubt its numbers would have been much different. Finally, for whatever reasons - maybe it's griefing, maybe it's bank runs, maybe it's bank heists, maybe it's the fact the thing is such a huge time suck it has an IRL governing council - practically nobody is interested in EVE Online.

11. What is the biggest barrier to your enjoyment of an RPG?

Boredom associated with mundane tasks: 40 percent (6,369 total responses)
Time commitment: 25 percent (3,907)
Some other reason: 19 percent (3,000)
Unfamiliarity with the game's continuity: 7 percent (1,043)
Singleplayer-only: 5 percent (811)
Lack of action: 5 percent (725)
15,855 total responses.

12. What is the greatest quality of an RPG?

The game's storytelling and plot: 51 percent (9,173 total responses)
Development of your character: 27 percent (4,856)
Focus on choices, rather than reflexes or action: 12 percent (2,201)
Deep replay value: 6 percent (1,138)
Some other reason: 4 percent (674)
18,042 total responses.

Put simply, RPGs are a meaty game experience but the size can be a little intimidating. Mundane tasks and time commitment are your biggest turnoffs, but it can be argued that they're fundamental to a genre that is more about choices and inhabiting a character's life than it is nonstop action. In the strengths, everyone seems to agree the RPG delivers on its storyline promises, and the customization/creation/progression of a character is usually a satisfying experience.

Look for more questions this Saturday, as we continue to flesh out the habits, preferences and trends among the Kotaku Gamer.

Again, you will not see the results of these polls after you vote. They will close tomorrow at 7:30 p.m. U.S. Mountain Time. We will publish the results and an analysis the following Thursday evening.

Thanks again, and here are this week's questions:

Last Saturday's survey covered your attitudes about the latest Batman title, from Rocksteady and Eidos, as well as your platform ownership and favorites. We then asked your feelings on seven titles, some of them shooters, not all of them world-beaters, to derive what it is you do want to play. Here are the questions and results:

1. Based on what you've seen and read, would you stop playing your current game to start playing Batman: Arkham Asylum?

Yes: 66 percent (8,646 responses)
No: 23 percent (3,000)
Undecided: 11 percent (1,394)
13,040 total responses.

2. Based on what you've seen and read, do you plan to purchase Batman: Arkham Asylum?

Yes: 61 percent (7,445 responses)
No: 21 percent (2,625)
Undecided: 18 percent (2,234)
12,304 total responses.

Sometimes you have to ask a question even if you know the answer. Batman: Arkham Asylum has benefited from rave reviews, skillful marketing, and previews that have been very well received. Judging by the comment histories on Batman stories, many of you planned on picking this up the day of release, and these numbers definitely bear that out. But we will be revisiting Batman in later surveys, as it is a singleplayer game, to see what kind of staying power the game has.

On to some questions about Kotaku readers' gaming lifestyles.

3. Which of these platforms do you own and/or play games on? (Check all that apply)

PC: 9,250 total responses
Xbox 360: 8,277
PlayStation 3: 7,634
DS/DSi: 6,814
Wii: 6,492
PS2: 6,460
PSP: 5,104
iPhone/iPod Touch: 3,300
Mac: 1,854
55,185 total responses. Multiple responses allowed.

Unfortunately, our poll service didn't provide a number of unique respondents to this question. So percentages are meaningless here, which is why they weren't included. Nor is the poll service capable of breaking out multiple ownership, i.e. the percentage who own PC and 360 and DS, the percentage who own Mac and PS3, PSP and PS2, etc.

The median total response for this survey was 12,330. If we assume that many individuals responding here, the total breaks down like so: PC is owned by 75 percent of respondents; Xbox 360: owned by 67 percent; PlayStation 3: 62 percent; DS/DSi: 55 percent; Wii: 53 percent; PS2: 52 percent; PSP: 41 percent; iPhone/iPod Touch: 27 percent; Mac: 15 percent. Again, that adds up to more than 100 percent because of multiple ownership.

Just eyeballing the pageviews for high-readership stories around here, this is not much of a surprise. Everyone owns a PC (or a Mac), because everyone had to connect to the Internet to answer this survey. Then comes the two core consoles. The DS's edge over the Wii may be because of its longer production history. The PS2's dead heat with the Wii shows that console's remarkable longevity and users' attachment to it and its deep library of great games.

The survey also implies there are 10 percent who own neither PC nor Mac - likely these are respondents who may own one or the other but have no games for it or do not consider it a gaming platform.

This is all interesting, but here's the question to put a finer point on things:

4. Which platform do you enjoy the most?

Xbox 360: 41 percent (5,033 responses)
PlayStation 3: 32 percent (3,906)
PC: 19 percent (2,359)
DS/DSi: 3 percent (363)
Wii: 2 percent (266)
PS2: 2 percent (257)
PSP: 1 percent (86)
iPhone/iPod Touch: <1 percent (46)
Mac: <1 percent (28)
12,344 total responses.

No multiple choice allowed here. The 360 came away with a decisive plurality, and the PS3 is in a strong second place, well in front of PC games. The totals for the others are so low as to suggest that they - the Wii included - play a predominantly adjunctive role in Kotaku readers' gaming lineup. Except for Apple, which is nonexistent.

5. Do you want to play Madden NFL 10? (any platform)

Yes: 12 percent (1,525 responses)
No: 81 percent (10,017)
Not sure: 7 percent (824)
12,366 total responses.

These next seven questions cover games released this year that, while not game-of-the-year caliber, arrived with tons of hype and/or brand recognition. They touch a diversity of genres too. Despite the fact Madden NFL 10 is probably the best version to date, and has been reviewed very positively, the game tanks here. This is likely a matter of genre preference, and the fact sports gamers are not well represented in the readership.

6. Do you want to play Call of Juarez: Bound in Blood? (any platform)

Yes: 24 percent (3,006 responses)
No: 55 percent (6,849)
Not sure: 21 percent (2,579)
12,434 total responses.

The sequel to Ubisoft's 2007 western gets a pretty strong thumbs-down. This is interesting because we're a shooter-heavy crowd around here, but you're not into this one. Whether that's because of its sub-genre, or that its the sequel (or prequel) to a game that didn't get rave reviews, who's to say.

7. Do you want to play The Conduit? (Wii)

Yes: 16 percent (1,984 responses)
No: 70 percent (8,661)
Not sure: 14 percent (1,741)
12,386 total responses.

Here's a game that got nearly a year's worth of hype or discussion, is also an FPS, and is designed to appeal to Wii core gamers - and you want no part of it. Just because it has a crosshairs and a gun doesn't mean our readers want to play it.

8. Do you want to play Killzone 2? (PS3)

Yes: 52 percent (6,341 responses)
No: 37 percent (4,532)
Not sure: 10 percent (1,268)
12,141 total responses.

The high negative suggests a fanboy effect against the PS3's premier shooter. But Killzone 2 still rates a majority approval, and taken in light of the console ownership data, there are probably a good number of 360 owners who do respect the game's quality. It would be astonishing to see a AAA, 90-rated first-person shooter get a poor score here, five months after release, regardless of its platform.

9. Do you want to play Halo Wars? (Xbox 360)

Yes: 19 percent (2,337 responses)
No: 72 percent (8,821)
Not sure: 9 percent (1,081)
12,239 total responses.

Neither the Halo brand nor the fact this is the biggest-selling console RTS to date makes much of a difference. It's either still an RTS, or it's still Halo, and a supermajority reject it for those reasons

10. Do you want to play Wii Sports Resort? (Wii)

Yes: 38 percent (4,638 responses)
No: 51 percent (6,261)
Not sure: 11 percent (1,299)
12,198 total responses.

The 51 percent negative for Wii Sports Resort sends a pretty strong anti-casual message from the readership. The gameplay variety and motion control aspect seem to do little to overcome our posture that we like our games deep, we like them to have narratives, and we like them to have guns and shooting.

11. Do you want to play Rock Band: Unplugged? (PSP)

Yes: 17 percent (2,150 responses)
No: 73 percent (9,065)
Not sure: 9 percent (1,161)
12,376 total responses.

In our comments, rhythm games' love-hate rep generally revolves around simulated instruments versus playing real ones. (Well that, and Guitar Hero's perceived overexposure). Rock Band: Unplugged has no simulated instrument. On the PSP, it might be a novel way to interact with your music, but as a game, you've said no thanks, quite clearly. The 73 percent negative is also not much of a surprise considering the PSP's earlier numbers (roughly 41 percent owned, 1 percent most enjoyed).

Look for more questions this Saturday at 7:30 p.m., U.S. Mountain time, as we continue to flesh out the habits, preferences and trends among the Kotaku Gamer.

For this poll, we're looking at how you feel about Batman: Arkham Asylum, which is due out on Tuesday. Also, by popular demand, we're surveying what gaming platforms you own - you may check more than one - and then which one you prefer the most. That's necessarily a single choice only, sorry. Finally, there's a spread of games, some exclusive, some multiplatform, for you to deliver a play/no play verdict.

"Do you want to play" now replaces "Is it worth playing," as this poll's basic "approval rating" question. You do not have to own the console if a game is exclusive to one. You are free to interpret the meaning of the question. Do you want to it play it just once? To completion? Do you want to play it with friends only? All of these are valid. It's an all-things-being-equal question.

Again, you will not see the results of these polls after you vote. They will close tomorrow at 7:30 p.m. U.S. Mountain Time. We will publish the results and an analysis the following Thursday evening.

Thanks again, and here are this week's questions.

Our poll covered attitudes about Wolfenstein, which dropped on Tuesday, and then four multiplayer console exclusives from gaming's class of 2007, plus three multiplatform games released around the same time. More than 15,000 of you responded, which is impressive, and I know you'd like to see the results. So here they are:

1. Based on what you've seen and read, would you stop playing your current game to start playing Wolfenstein?

Yes: 23 percent (3,593 responses)
No: 56 percent (8,711)
Undecided: 21 percent (3,357)
15,661 total responses

2. Based on what you've seen and read, do you plan to purchase Wolfenstein?

Yes: 18 percent (2,361 responses)
No: 55 percent (7,233)
Undecided: 27 percent (3,586)
13,180 total responses

There's not that much to say here, other than the Wolfenstein reboot has failed to really capture the imagination. The fact that 56 percent wouldn't put down whatever they're working on now to play it is a very strong negative. And another 55 percent who say they wouldn't buy it means a hard verdict has already been reached, and was likely formed well before the question was asked.

3. Is Super Smash Bros. Brawl (Wii) still worth playing?

Yes: 38 percent (5,201 responses)
No: 40 percent (5,422)
No Opinion: 22 percent (3,000)
13,623 responses

We're going to tweak this type of question this weekend because, as a reader pointed out, "still worth playing" implies that the game was "worth playing" in the first place - a value judgment the respondent may not share. But for now, the general feeling is that Brawl, nearly two years after its release, is played out.

4. Is Team Fortress 2 (PC) still worth playing?

Yes: 65 percent (9,042 responses)
No: 15 percent (2,050)
No opinion: 21 percent (2,896)
13,988 total responses

Valve's commitment to keeping Team Fortress 2 fresh with consistent updates has given the franchise an enviable reputation for quality. It's 15 percent "not worth it" score was the lowest of any title surveyed last weekend, which includes Modern Warfare and BioShock.

5. Is Warhawk (PS3) still worth playing?

Yes: 16 percent (2,313 responses)
No: 37 percent (5,351)
No opinion: 47 percent (6,759)
14,423 total responses

Some might have felt Killzone or Killzone 2 should have been here. Here's the problem. Killzone is on the PS2, is four years old, and lacks the multiplayer scope of shooters in this group. Killzone 2 is barely six months old, and this grouping was calling on games from the class of 2007. The same problems left out Resistance: Fall of Man and Resistance 2, as Res 2 went out last November and moots Resistance, which is a year older than the games in this grouping. So we were left with Warhawk as a kind of imperfect representative of a PS3 exclusive from two years ago, and the shoulder-shrugging 47 percent no opinion shows. It, rightly or wrongly, points up the PS3's most glaring weakness in the release window surveyed: Catalog size, especially in exclusives. We'll revisit Warhawk later, but promise that questions in the meantime will reflect more of what PS3 gamers are playing right now.

6. Is Halo 3 (360) still worth playing?

Yes: 43 percent (6,472 responses)
No: 41 percent (6,069)
No opinion: 16 percent (2,366)
14,906 total responses

In light of one million unique users still playing this game's multiplayer every day, Halo 3's narrow "Yes" plurality can likely be attributed to polarized views about the title's perceived importance, or lack of it, to gaming at large, and its close association with both Microsoft and the Xbox 360. In other words, a fanboy effect. Again, this is an unscientific survey with opt-in respondents coming from a specific readership, so no one expects 100 percent. But we're very opinionated around here, and these numbers seem to reflect more a weariness with the game's exposure than its quality of gameplay.

7. Is Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare (any platform) still worth playing?

Yes: 69 percent (9,197 responses)
No: 19 percent (2,504)
No opinion: 13 percent (1,713)
13,414 responses

Modern Warfare pulling the highest "still worth it" rating is likely a no-brainer to many. But where the full-bore Team Fortress multiplayer experience is only available to PC gamers, Modern Warfare emerges as the multiplatform standard-bearer for multiplayer shooters. How Modern Warfare 2 pushes this number will definitely be worth watching later in the year.

8. Is Assassin's Creed (any platform) still worth playing?

Yes: 34 percent (5,029 responses)
No: 49 percent (7,252)
No opinion: 16 percent (2,425)
14,705 responses

Repetitive gameplay and the pending release of Assassin's Creed II are probably what is dragging down a game that was, generally speaking, still favorably reviewed during the time of its releases.

9. Is BioShock (any platform) still worth playing?

Yes: 69 percent (10,765 responses)
No: 21 percent (3,232)
No opinion: 10 percent (1,573)
15,570 responses

Interestingly, the final question got the second-most total responses, just 100 fewer than the first. It suggests a heavy participation by folks who wanted to vote, scroll down and comment and not spend much time in the middle. But BioShock still tied for the highest positive rating of any of the seven surveyed - even two years later, singleplayer only, and with a sequel on the way soon. The landslide response speaks to the game's depth of experience and enduring impact on games as an art form.

Those were last week's questions; we'll have a new batch of Kotaku Approval Ratings questions for you this Saturday. To all who participated, thanks.

And while this method of feedback is open to spamming, fanboy manipulation and all sorts of other bad behavior, let's put it out there and see what happens. If it proves useless or gets abused, we'll end the feature.

Approval ratings are a concept most closely identified with, of course, politics, and how the governed feel about the job being done by their leaders. I'm not going to ask your opinion of publishers, as nearly everyone has some negative feeling toward them, but rather about games.

Kotaku Approval Ratings will examine, at at least attempt to, your mood about certain games prior to their release, immediately after their release and review, and then periodically thereafter.

Additionally, it will ask for the readership's long-term posture on certain games, exclusive (or with content exclusive) to a single platforms, and some multiplatform games, all of these more than two years old.

Like the question "Do you approve of the job so-and-so is doing," this doesn't ask for anything deeper than a gamer's feeling about a title, either long established, or currently in the news. The results have been hidden from view to discourage voting for a specific result. I'll report the percentages next week when the tracking poll continues.

As certain games enter the news, or as certain trendlines become uninformative, other games will be rotated in and out.

Already then, time for the first Kotaku Approval Ratings polls. These polls will close in 24 hours 7:30 p.m. U.S. Mountain time, tomorrow.

For starters, your feelings about Wolfenstein - the game that is being released this week, not previous versions.

And now, your feelings on some older games:

Thank you! These results will be reported next week, with another set of questions.

In a survey sent out to customers who've signed up for the company newsletter (like myself,) GameStop is shopping around a new free customer rewards program that would see visitors earring points for every dollar spent or game traded, which can then be redeemed for various prizes and special benefits, including "An all-access entry pass into E3 or Comic-Con."

Of course that particular reward is listed in the top tier of benefits, requiring a customer rack up 501+ points. According to the survey information, 10 points will be rewarded for every game, system, or accessory traded in, along with one point for every dollar spent. Points are accumulated throughout the year, depleted once traded in for benefits ranging from coupons and trade discounts to "A life-sized video game character like a Master Chief Statue" or "A free trip (air, hotel, plus the all-access entry pass) to E3 or Comic-Con."

I am guessing there will be some steep stipulations for that trip, and these details could very well change. I can blow through $500 at GameStop in a good month, and that's not even figuring in trades.

Check out the full listing, directly from the survey, below. Note that a 12-month Game Informer subscription is one of the Reward Level 3 benefits, which might lend itself to the new Elite Program included in the survey, which you can see following the first listing.

GET IN THE REWARD GAME WITH GAMESTOP REWARDS

Now you can earn points toward great rewards, just for buying or trading at GameStop. – a little "thanks," from us to you.

It's FREE to join. It's GameStop Rewards. All you have to do is sign up with your email address at your local GameStop and you'll get a membership card so you can immediately start earning points. As a member, you will also get sneak peek previews of new titles delivered to your inbox or mobile device, a 3-day free trial on previously owned games and early access to trailers and other new insider game content.

HOW TO EARN POINTS: Flash your card whenever you make a purchase or trade and you'll earn 10 points for each game or system you trade in and one point per dollar spent on new and previously owned games. Accumulate and spend your points all year long. Choose from a variety of rewards from the GameStop Rewards catalog. Cool, new and exclusive stuff is added every few months!

There will also be bonus and double point earning opportunities throughout the year, which means you reach higher levels - faster.

HOW TO GET REWARDS: Here are examples of point levels and the kind of rewards you can earn. Go online any time to check out the GameStop Rewards catalog, or we'll let you know at least once every few months that GameStop has added new rewards – like exclusive collector's items or rare game-related rewards and experiences that you would expect from GameStop.

REWARD LEVEL 1: 1-100 POINTS

* A coupon for 20% off a strategy guide
* A free beta version of a new game
* A one-time power trade offer – 15% bonus trade-in credit

REWARD LEVEL 2: 101-250 POINTS

* A one-time power trade offer – 20% bonus trade-in credit
* Various opportunities to customize content like a team logo, stadium or Xbox lobby background
* Discount off a collector's edition of a game
* A one-time-use certificate good for a $5 shipping fee with the purchase of any new game

REWARD LEVEL 3: 251-500 POINTS

* A12-month subscription to Game Informer
* A one-time power trade offer – 25% bonus trade-in credit
* Exclusive in-game accessories like a weapon, player or instrument
* An exclusive mini-game
* Access to chat and provide feedback/ideas directly to game developers
* One free previously owned game

REWARD LEVEL 4: 501+ POINTS

* An all-access entry pass into E3 or Comic-Con
* A life-sized video game character like a Master Chief Statue
* One free new game
* A $50 GameStop Gift Card
* A free trip (air, hotel, plus the all-access entry pass) to E3 or Comic-Con

Get more out of gaming at GameStop, because only GameStop brings power to the players.

Along with the free rewards program, GameStop is also looking at redoing its current Edge program as GameStop Elite, giving the normal %10 discount and trade bonus on used titles for a reduced price of $10, without the attached Game Informer subscription.

PRESENTING GAMESTOP ELITE

Now in addition to GameStop Rewards, you can get an extra edge on valuable bonuses and savings when you add a GameStop Elite membership. Just flash your card at the register. It's that easy.

ADD AN ELITE MEMBERSHIP & GET ALL ITS BENEFITS:

* An additional 10% price discount on all your previously owned games and accessories, and strategy guide purchases
* An additional 10% trade-in bonus on all your game and accessory trade-ins

Your Elite membership gives you a full year of savings for only $10. It can more than pay for itself in no time!

Get more out of gaming at GameStop, because only GameStop brings power to the players.

Interesting ideas, but I really wouldn't get your hopes up about that E3 trip. It's never that easy.

Looking through the survey the researcher, Rachel Donahue, seems to be interested in what qualifies a game for being significance, and preferences regarding emulation vs. original console play. Some questions are multiple choice, but others invite longer answers.

The research is conducted in conjunction with the Preserving Virtual Words Project of the Library of Congress. Preservationists are committed to storing and protecting significant works, but being such a new medium, need to build methodology for how best to do that.

At any rate, someone values your opinion and will put it to a serious use, instead of selling you crap or creating games you don't really want. If you have 10 minutes, cruise over and let our community be heard.

Surveys on Record Keeping in the Games Industry [Grand Text Auto]

I mean, 38,000 people? That's a hell of a lot of people/internet gaming nerds. It's a veritbale gaming census. So let's take a look at the highlights of their findings, see what makes 'em/you tick!

Average Age: 26

Boy/Girl Split: 94% Boys, 6% Girls

Internet Usage:
- Cable/DSL: 84.7%
- LAN: 8.0%
- Fios: 3.0%
- WiMax: 0.7%
- 56k Modem: 0.5%
- Other: 3.1%

Average Number of Hours of TV Per Week: 6.1 Hours

Console Ownership:
- PC: 86.3%
- Xbox 360: 54.1%
- Wii: 53.5%
- PS2: 52.7%
- Nintendo DS: 51.5%
- iPhone/iPod: 29.9%
- XBOX: 26.2%
- PS3: 24.5%
- Sony PSP: 20.5%

Average Game Library Collection: 73

Average Gaming Hours/Week: 18

Average Household Income: $66,000

Average Games Purchased/Month: 2

Game Genres Played:
- RPGs: 89.7%
- FPS': 79.0%
- Platformers: 63.3%
- RTS': 59.9%
- Turn Based Strat: 56.0%
- Tabletop/CCG: 40.0%
- Simulations: 37.7%
- Web Based: 37.5%
- Driving/Racing: 31.4%
- 2D Fighters: 29.9%
- Shooters: 29.0%
- 3D Fighters: 28.0%
- Sports Games: 14.7%
- Flight Sims: 10.5%

Fascinating stuff, no? You can see the full breakdown of their findings at the link below, including what phones you use and which gaming websites were the most widely-read.

[Penny Arcade]

Kotaku reader Charlie forwarded us details on the survey, which asks a the participant to rank a suite of currently unavailable features from least to most desirable. Some of the more interesting technical aspects it looks like Sony is looking into are things like touchscreen functionality, built-in GPS features, Bluetooth wireless support and internal data storage.

Most of that we've heard in rumor form at one point or another. Possible features we have heard less conjecture about include services like an "e-comic/book download" via the PlayStation Network and social networking functions for the PSP, including Home support.

The survey asked about possible PSP features including, but not limited to:

• Was smaller, yet retained most of the current PSP's screen size
• Offered social networking functionality on the XMB
• Included a keyboard for easer internet browsing and communication
• Offered Bluetooth wireless support for easy pairing with other devices
• Had a touch screen
• Had an improved screen for more dynamic graphic displays
• Offered the ability to find others near you who want to connect for online gaming
• Offered an e-comic/book download service through the PlayStation Network
• Included a hard drive for memory storage

We're checking in with other sources to see if there's any truth to these feature adds, but expect that much of this fall under speculation.

If only there were some kind of entertainment product on the market that could address these simple, human needs!

Cynicism aside, the survey - into people’s holiday entertainment activities, behaviors and trends - does turn up a few interesting nuggets. On average, those surveyed plan to spend around 16% less on gifts this year and 64% of parents would like to play more games as a shared family activity.

Check after the jump for some more numbers.

XBox 360 Holiday Entertainment Survey 2008

60% plan to stay at or close to home to save money

71% are looking for one gift to bring the family together

89% hunt for gifts that keep on giving

81% of adults in households with children are looking for gifts that provide entertainment in the home

86% of young adults hope for at least one video game

40% of adults will visit movie theaters less than last year

23% plan to watch more films at home

Researchers found that iPhone, DS and PSP owners are playing on their devices much more in the last three months than at any time previously adding that "Among iPhone users specifically, the application with the greatest increase in use over the last three months was playing games."

The survey also found that 92% of Nintendo DS owners play solo, spending an average of 4.6 hours a week in single player games. Just under a quarter of DS owners play multiplayer games - they clearly need to get out more.

Portable Gaming Habits Revealed [EDGE]

The survey also unearthed a few interesting facts, such as the average size of a video game collection (48 titles) and the fact that 11 percent of video game households surveyed have unopened games in their collection. Hit the jump for the full results, and see how game collectors stack up against those filthy DVD collectors.

Video Game and DVD Packaging Not Going Out with the Trash

Few Discs Are Thrown Away or Recycled

ENCINO, CA (October 28, 2008) … Rather than discarding video game and DVD packaging, consumers overwhelmingly store their video games and DVDs in their original cases according to a joint study commissioned by the Content Delivery and Storage Association (CDSA) and the Entertainment Merchants Association (EMA) and conducted by The NPD Group. The study also found that when consumers no longer want to keep a particular video game or DVD ttitle, they rarely throw it away or recycle it, preferring instead to give it away or sell or trade it.

Eighty-nine percent of DVD owners and 88 percent of video game owners store their DVDs and video games in their original cases. Five percent of DVD owners and eight percent of video game owners store their discs in plastic sleeves but save the original cases. Only six percent of DVD owners and five percent of video game owners said they throw away or recycle the cases.

When they no longer want to own a title, 45 percent of DVD owners give the title to someone else, as will 24 percent of game owners. Fifty-four percent of video game owners will trade it in or sell it; the trade/sell rate is 27 percent for DVD owners. Twenty percent of DVD owners and 17 percent of game owners store the discs. Only two percent of DVD owners and four percent of video game owners recycle or throw the product away.

“In packaged home entertainment, consumers view the packaging cases as part of the product and not something to be tossed,” noted Bo Andersen, President and CEO of EMA. “The cases provide product protection, allow easy title identification, and carry the artwork that is integral to the consumer’s association with the title.”

“The issue of DVD cases being considered as packaging versus as a part of the product has been questioned by some in the industry and without consumer research we could not verify our beliefs that consumers consider the DVD case as part of the product,” commented Charles Van Horn, President of CDSA. “When almost 90 percent of DVD consumers state that they store their DVDs in the original case, they have verified that they consider the case a valuable part of the DVD product.”

Other findings in the study included:

* The average DVD household has 114 DVDs in its collection.
* The average video game collection has 48 titles.
* In the average DVD and video game households there is unwrapped product:
o 26% of the surveyed DVD households own some unopened DVDs.
o 11% of the surveyed video game households own some unopened games.

The NPD Group surveyed a pre-identified sample of DVD and video game purchasers who had purchased a DVD or video game in the past 6 months. The report is based on 557 qualified DVD respondents and 562 video game respondents.

As well as the heart-warming finding that 87% of parents regularly play videogames with their children, the survey also looked at how parents perceived their child's development being affected by gaming.

Perhaps surprisingly, the survey conducted by a major games console manufacturer found that many parents noticed improvements in their kids that they attributed directly to gaming!

75% of surveyed parents think that their children's hand/eye coordination has been improved by gaming, while 84% say that PC gaming has boosted their kid's typing skills.

Parents See Benefit of Children Playing Video Games [GameSpy]

A survey by The Pew Research Center has 'revealed' that around ninety seven percent of American children regularly play video games (boys: 99%, girls 94%). Possibly, the other three percent are being punished for something and have had their consoles nailed to a tree.

Its not all stating the bleedin' obvious, over at Pew towers. More revealing was the broad spectrum of games that America's youth are playing.

All genres get a look in, with racing, action, puzzle games and sports being the most popular. More that two thirds of the kids surveyed played online, with games being seen as a social activity rather than the solitary pastime so often portrayed in the media.

Survey: Nearly every kid a video gamer[SF Gate]

Most of the findings in this regard are trivial. Hardcore gamers rated themselves higher for the importance of all the emotions we inquired about (and all these findings were highly statistically significant) – which is to say, Hardcore gamers were more emotionally invested in their play, or at least more likely to rate the importance of any emotional factor in their play higher. Hardcore gamers also rated themselves higher on every aspect of game literacy or player skills in the survey (and these results were even more statistically significant). Finally, Hardcore gamers were more interested in games of challenge, structured play (Caillois’ ludus) and games of escapism (acting out in a virtual world) – all of which broadly validated the findings from the earlier DGD1 survey.

But these results obscure something interesting about the players who self-identified as Casual. Firstly, Casual players still play games very often. 81% of those who self-identified as Hardcore said they played videogames everyday, but 49% of Casual players also said they played everyday. Hardcore players gave themselves high marks in game literacy (more than 95% of Hardcore respondents claiming the top two marks, and about three quarters the very top mark), but Casual players didn’t exactly rate themselves low on this (around 85% of Casual respondents claimed the top two marks, and roughly half the very top mark). So while some of these Casual players might be mass market players, many of them are highly game literate players who play videogames every day. (Incidentally, those who were unable to choose between Hardcore and Casual looked remarkably similar to those who self-identified as Casual).

He goes on to say there is a gap between 'casual games' and the so-called 'casual player'; he ends by asking if there's anyway to redefine our terminology in a way that is useful and usable. I think an 'either/or' split is here to stay, at least for a good long while, if for no other reason than people like clear divides — even if they don't correlate to reality.

Redefining Hardcore & Casual [Only A Game]

Click here to begin the THRILLING survey.