Report - Casual gaming on dedicated portables down 29%

A new report suggests casual gamers are abandoning portable gaming hardware in favour of multi-function devices.

"We do not view the decline of casual handheld gaming as a particular problem for the US publishers, as they have migrated their exposure away from dedicated handheld platforms, and in some cases (particularly EA) have invested significantly in phone and tablet platform game development. However, we do view this trend as a negative one for Sony and especially Nintendo," the report warned.

The report, from analyst group Cowen and Company, is based on surveys of an undisclosed sample size, and found just 37% of respondents played on a dedicated handheld device. 52% played on their phone

"Over the last five years, the penetration of dedicated handheld platforms into survey respondents self-identifying as casual gamers has declined by 29 per cent, with the vast majority of that decline occurring in the last two years. We believe cellphone and smartphone gaming is significantly impacting demand for dedicated handheld devices," it continued.

The report suggested a price cut could attract more casual gamers back to dedicated gaming hardware.

Thanks, GamesIndustry.