In-game rewards platform ZBD has published a study examining Gen Z’s gaming preferences. The ZBD Gen Z Gamer Study surveyed over 2,000 respondents in the U.S. aged 18-25 that play video games at least one hour per day to understand how they play, socialize and engage with brands.
Games industry companies, consumer brands and advertisers need to understand how to communicate and engage with the most technologically plugged-in generation in history, which demands authenticity and fairness above all.
Key findings of ZBD’s survey of Gen Z gamers:
- 43% say gaming is more about the social interactive experience than the game itself,
- 47% see Bitcoin as real money,
- 28% of Gen Z males own Bitcoin,
- 70% make money through side hustles,
- 67% trust brands more that engage with the creators that they follow,
- 80% say it’s important creators are rewarded fairly for engaging with brands,
- 65% game for more than three hours a day,
- 72% feel like they can be their authentic selves while gaming online.
Gen Z gamers are highly engaged with 65% playing more than three hours daily. The top five most played genres were Casual mobile, FPS, Adventure, RPG and Fighting games.
The majority of the sample (63%) said they worked at least part-time, while 21% said they were students and another 16% were unemployed. Gen Z is using this purchasing power on games, with 53% of survey takers spending at least $20 per month. About three out of ten male players spend over $35 each month.
Gen Z is ambitious and understands that their time is precious. In addition to the 63% that are employed at least part-time, 70% of survey takers said they had some form of side hustle.
ZBD’s platform offers players the opportunity to earn Bitcoin through playing games. Just over half (51%) of ZBD’s survey said they would be interested if their favorite games started offering Bitcoin rewards for playing. Only 22% said they had no interest in Bitcoin rewards.
Bitcoin rewards made ads more appealing to this cohort of gamers. Nearly three in four (74%) of Gen Z gamers said they would be more receptive to ads in games if they received Bitcoin for their time.
