More than four in ten or forty three percent (43%), many parents whose young children play video or computer games never play along with them, according to an Associated Press AOL Games Poll.
While experts debate whether electronic gaming is bad news or a blessing for children and their families, many parents are voicing their preference by never or seldom joining their kids when it’s time to slay cyber scoundrels.
Besides, those who simply don’t play the games with their children, another thirty percent say they spend less than an hour a week doing so. All told, about three in four parents of young gamers never or hardly ever touch the stuff.
Those who game with their children are likelier to be younger, single and part time workers than those who don’t the poll showed.
Overall, the survey highlighted how pervasive – yet age related – interest in electronic gaming is today.
According to the poll, in which only adults were questioned, eighty one percent of children age four to seventeen play computer or video games at least occasionally, compared to thirty eight percent of adults.
Typically, both adult and child gamers play two hours weekly, half play more and half play less, including about three in ten, who play five hours or more each week.
Reflecting the technology’s relatively recent introduction, fifty nine percent of those age eighteen to twenty nine at least sometimes, double the rate for people age fifty to sixty four.
There is little difference among users by race or region, with middle income earners likeliest to indulge.
Even so, despite the publicity given to newer game consoles like the Nintendo Wii, Sony’s Playstation 3 and Microsoft X-box 360, the proportion of adults saying they play electronic games was virtually unchanged from April 2006, when an AP-AOL poll asked the same question.
Casual games like card or board games were the favorite were the favorite of thirty one percent of gamers about twice the number who like action games, the next most popular alternative.
About half of women cited casual games as their favorite, triple the number of men who did so, while twice as many males than females preferred action games.
The poll also found that among gamers:
— Forty four percent said they play over the internet;
— Twenty six percent said they spent nothing on the past time last year;
— Forty six percent spent up to US$ 200 and twelve percent spent US$500 or more, with men usually the biggest spender;
— Price is the chief factor for people purchasing a game console, followed by the availability of games.
