An Empirical Model A Unique Data Set Actionable Insights

Our motivation model (next slide) Over 400,000 gamers worldwide Our data links game titles/franchises was developed via established have participated in our Gamer with demographic and motivation psychometric techniques, such as Motivation Profile, providing data variables, allowing us to analyze the factor analysis—a statistical on their motivations, demographics, motivations of game audiences to method that identifies how variables and their favorite games. produce data-driven insights. cluster together.

Our Expertise in Gamer Motivation Research For over a decade, Nick Yee and Nic Ducheneaut have been studying the motivations and behavior of gamers. They have over 40 peer- reviewed papers on gaming and virtual worlds. Nick Yee’s paper on the motivations of online gamers has been cited over 1,400 times. 2 Action Social Mastery Achievement Immersion Creativity “Boom!” “Let’s Play Together” “Let Me Think” “I Want More” “Once Upon a Time” “What If?”

Destruction Competition Challenge Completion Fantasy Design Guns. Explosives. Duels. Matches. Practice. High Get All Collectibles. Being someone else, Expression. Chaos. Mayhem. High on Ranking. Difficulty. Challenges. Complete All Missions. somewhere else. Customization.

Excitement Community Strategy Power Story Discovery Fast-Paced. Action. Being on Team. Thinking Ahead. Powerful Character. Elaborate plots. Explore. Tinker. Surprises. Thrills. Chatting. Interacting. Making Decisions. Powerful Equipment. Interesting characters. Experiment.

Find detailed description of each motivation in the appendix at the end of this report. 3 For this player segment analysis, Quantic Foundry analyzed survey data from XXXX gamers from the following game titles and franchises:

• Game Title A • Game Title B • Game Franchise C • Game Franchise D

We conducted cluster analysis on the audience data (both demographic and motivation variables) to identify distinct player segments within the audience.

See the Appendix for details on the clustering method, the data collection, and description of the motivations in our model.

Skirmisher Tactician World Designer

18% 55% 27%

“I enjoy the adrenaline rush of “I am focused on leveling up and “I want a piece of an immersive fast-paced team-based matches.” accumulating power. I like alternate world that I can Motto gameplay where thinking and customize and where I can planning are rewarded.” express myself.”

Almost entirely men in their late A balanced mix of men and Mostly women in their late 30s, Demographic teens and early 20s, with a high women in their mid-20s, most of with a high proportion of casual Sketch proportion of hardcore gamers. whom identify as core gamers gamers. and a few as hardcore gamers.

Primary Competition + Community Power + Strategy Design + Fantasy Motivations

Halo, Call of Duty, Fire Emblem, Animal Crossing, The Sims, Popular Games Apex Legends Pillars of Eternity Harvest Moon 6 Skirmishers enjoy fast-paced, explosive, team-based competition, but they care very little about world-building features.

Skirmishers are action-oriented, social gamers who love the adrenaline rush of gaming, whether it’s the frenetic pacing, explosions, or charging at enemies. They enjoy the immediate, psychological arousal of video games.

While they moderately enjoy power progression and mastering core game skills, they tend to not have the patience for completing tasks/quests and thinking/planning ahead.

Skirmishers find very little appeal in world-building features— e.g., rich lore, stories, interesting NPCs, an interesting world to explore, and customization opportunities. To them, this is all unnecessary fluff in a video game. In their popular games list, we find lots of online shooters that offer the immediacy of guns- blazing matches in fairly generic settings (such as CoD, , Fortnite, and PUBG).

Compared to the other segments, Skirmishers have a moderately lower % of female gamers. 7 • Gender o Male: 92% / Female: 7% / Non-Binary: 2% o Moderately lower % of female gamers than average (13%)

• Age o Median: 26 o Is right around the average (25.6) o Mean: 27.31, SD: 8.15

• Gamer Type o Casual: 3% / Core: 62% / Hardcore: 34% o Slightly higher % of hardcore gamers than average (30%)

• Gaming Frequency o Typical number of days per week where they play games for more than 30 minutes o 0-1 day: 2% o 2-3 days: 17% o 4-5 days: 28% o 6-7 days: 52% o Slightly lower gaming frequency than average

Motivation Profile • Is most interested in Competition (duels, matches, leader boards) and Community (chatting, teamwork). • Is least interested in Story (interesting narrative, characters, lore) and Fantasy (being someone else, somewhere else). 8 Score: The Score is an odds Game Score Game Score ratio calculated by dividing the frequency of each game in this Halo 5: Guardians 17.47 Cuphead 4.31 sample by the baseline frequency. Thus, a QF Score of Call of Duty: WWII 12.05 2 would mean that this Monster Hunter: World 4.28 audience mentions a game as a favorite at twice the baseline Call of Duty: Black Ops 4 10.04 (2016) 4.15 frequency.

Middle-earth: Shadow of War 7.94 Horizon Zero Dawn 4.05 This adjustment is necessary because the same highly popular games tend to be Apex Legends 6.52 Halo 2 3.85 mentioned by every sub-group Tom Clancy's Ghost Recon: (e.g., Skyrim). By accounting for 6.43 Wildlands Battlefield 1 3.65 the baseline popularity, we can filter out this base rate bias and Fortnite 6.18 Clash Royale 3.62 identify the most disproportionately popular PLAYERUNKNOWN'S games within the sub-group. 4.86 BATTLEGROUNDS Super Mario Odyssey 3.57 These games exemplify the Tom Clancy's The Division 4.45 2 3.44 motivations and mechanics that are most appealing for this audience. Halo 3 4.35 Path of Exile 3.43 9

Conversely, we can identify the Game Score Game Score games that are disproportionately unpopular Dragon Age (series) 0.06 Cities: Skylines 0.19 within this audience—i.e., games that are often Dragon Age: Inquisition 0.07 mentioned in the full dataset Batman: Arkham Knight 0.2 that have very low occurrence within this sample. Portal (series) 0.09 Assassin's Creed II 0.21 Thus, a score of 0.5 means this Star Wars: Knights of the Old IV 0.11 0.22 game is mentioned only half as Republic (series) frequently as in the full dataset.

Crusader Kings II 0.16 Super Mario (series) 0.22 These games exemplify the motivations and mechanics that Fire Emblem (series) 0.17 Tetris 0.22 this audience generally stays away from. The Legend of Zelda: Twilight The Sims 4 0.17 0.23 Princess Together with the popular games list, this table is helpful Resident Evil (series) 0.18 XCOM: Enemy Unknown 0.23 in painting a more concrete picture of the design The Witcher (series) 0.18 3 0.24 opportunity space for this audience. II: The Age of 0.19 0.25 Kings 10 In an actual report, we would then provide the audience profile for each of the other player segments. These profiles (like the one for the Duelist) would contain:

• A descriptive sketch of what motivates this segment and how they compare with the other segments.

• The demographic profile

• The motivation profile chart

• The ranked list of games that are disproportionately popular and unpopular within this segment.

Destruction Excitement

Gamers who score high on this Gamers who score high on this component are agents of chaos and component enjoy games that are fast- destruction. They love having many paced, intense, and provide a constant tools at their disposal to blow things up adrenaline rush. They want to be and cause relentless mayhem. They surprised. They want gameplay that is enjoy games with lots of guns and full of action and thrills, and rewards explosives. them for rapid reaction times.

They gravitate towards titles like Call of While this style of gameplay can be Duty and Battlefield. And if they found in first-person shooters like Halo, accidentally find themselves in games it can also be found in games like Street like The Sims, they are the ones who Fighter and Injustice, as well as figure out innovative ways to get their energetic platformers like BIT.TRIP Sims killed. RUNNER.

13 Competition Community

Gamers who score high on this Gamers who score high on Community component enjoy competing with other enjoy socializing and collaborating with players, often in duels, matches, or other people while gaming. They like team-vs-team scenarios. chatting and grouping up with other players. Competitive gameplay can be found in titles like Starcraft, League of Legends, or This might be playing Portal 2 with a the PvP Battlegrounds in World of friend, playing Mario Kart at a party, or Warcraft. But competition isn’t always being part of a large guild/clan in an overtly combative; competitive players online game. They enjoy being part of a may care about being acknowledged as team working towards a common goal. the best healer in a guild, or having a For them, games are an integral part of high ranking/ on a Facebook maintaining their social network. farming game relative to their friends.

14 Challenge Strategy

Gamers who score high on Challenge Gamers who score high on this enjoy playing games that rely heavily component enjoy games that require on skill and ability. They are persistent careful decision-making and planning. and take the time to practice and hone They like to think through their options their gameplay so they can take on the and likely outcomes. These may be most difficult missions and bosses that decisions related to balancing resources the game can offer. and competing goals, managing foreign diplomacy, or finding optimal long-term These gamers play at the highest strategies. difficulty settings and don’t mind failing missions repeatedly in games like Dark They tend to enjoy both the tactical Souls because they know it’s the only combat in games like XCOM or Fire way they’ll master the game. They want Emblem, as well as seeing their gameplay that constantly challenges carefully-devised plans come to fruition them. in games like Civilization, Cities: Skylines, or Europa Universalis. 15 Completion Power

Gamers with high Completion scores Gamers who score high on this want to finish everything the game has component strive for power in the to offer. They try to complete every context of the game world. They want mission, find every collectible, and to become as powerful as possible, discover every hidden location. seeking out the tools and equipment needed to make this happen. For some players, this may mean completing every listed achievement or This may mean maxing stats or unlocking every possible acquiring the most powerful weapons. character/move in a game. For gamers Power and Completion often together, who score high on Design, this may but some players enjoy collecting mean collecting costumes and mounts cosmetic items without caring about in games like World of Warcraft. power, and some players prefer attaining power through strategic optimization rather than grinding.

16 Fantasy Story

Gamers who score high on Fantasy Gamers who score high on Story want want their gaming experiences to allow games with elaborate storylines and a them to become someone else, cast of multidimensional characters somewhere else. They enjoy the sense with interesting back-stories and of being immersed in an alter ego in a personalities. believable alternate world, and enjoy They take the time to delve into the exploring a game world just for the back-stories of characters in games sake of exploring it. like Dragon Age and Mass Effect, and These gamers enjoy games like Skyrim, enjoy the elaborate and thoughtful Fallout, and Mass Effect for their fully narratives in games like The Last of imagined alternate settings. Us and BioShock. Gamers who score low on Story tend to find dialogue and descriptions to be distracting and skip through them if possible.

17 Discovery Design

Gamers who score high on Discovery Gamers who score high on this are constantly asking “What if?” For component want to actively express them, game worlds are fascinating their individuality in the game worlds contraptions to open up and tinker they find themselves in. with. In games like Mass Effect, they put a lot In an MMO, they might swim out to the of time and effort in the character edge of the ocean to see what happens. creation process. In city-building games In , they might experiment or space strategy games, they take the with whether crafting outcomes differ time to design and customize exactly by the time of day or proximity to how their city or spaceships look. To zombies. They “play” games in the this end, they prefer games that broadest sense of the word, often in provide the tools and assets necessary ways not intended or imagined by the to make this possible and easy to do. game’s developers.

18

The motivation factors in our model are spectrums. In the same way that Introverts don’t have “less personality” than Extraverts, scoring low on a motivation doesn’t necessarily mean these gamers don’t have equally strong preferences The following charts provide additional details on each motivation: • What does scoring low on each motivation mean? • What are the anchors on both ends of each motivation spectrum? • What are examples of games that have high and low scores for each motivation?

Low High

Games Game Preferences Preferences Examples Motivation Examples

Independence Teamwork Lego Harry Potter, Destiny, Battlefield, Single-player. Grouping up. Chatting. Hatoful Boyfriend, Community Final Fantasy XIV, Soloable quests. Social interaction. Farm Heroes Saga Shared Experience Rainbow Six Siege, Be in full control. Collaboration.

Non-Adversarial League of Legends, High Conflict Myst, Gone Home, Non-competitive. DotA 2, Adversarial. Dragon Age II, Competition No rankings/duels Call of Duty, Arenas. Duels. Matches. Lego Dimensions Social Comparison against human players. CS:GO Leaderboards. Rankings.

Calm Thrilling Civilization, Myst, CS:GO, Turn-based. Can be paused. Fast-paced. Action-based. Master of Orion II, Excitement Call of Duty, Relaxed. Predictable. Surprising. Europa Universalis Novelty Super Smash Bros. Melee Low visual stimulation. Adrenaline rush.

Enduring Chaotic Professor Layton, Myst, Halo, Idyllic. Serene. Evergreen. Guns. Explosions. Mayhem. Animal Crossing, Destruction Call of Duty, Destiny 2, No weapons/gore. Carnage. Gore. Harvest Moon Entropy Battlefield Typically G/PG content. Destructible environments. Low High

Games Game Preferences Preferences Examples Motivation Examples

Self-Driven Task-Oriented RimWorld, Victoria II, Dragon Nest, Aura Kingdom, Decide what to do myself. Complete tasks/quests. Kerbal Space Program, Completion Lego Dimensions, Sandbox/open gameplay. Collect stars/trophies and Cities: Skylines Source of Goals Final Fantasy Self-directed goals. collectibles.

Flat Progression Progression-Based Night in the Woods, World of Warcraft, Fully-developed characters Start weak and grind. The Longest Journey, Ico, Power League of Legends, Diablo III, from the start. Level up character/stats. 80 Days, Her Story Growth Summoners War Static. Level playing field. Upgrade weapons/spells.

Spontaneous Contemplative The Sims, StarCraft II, Crusader Kings II, Reactive gameplay. Think. Plan. Complex decisions. Disney Emoji Blitz, Strategy Europa Universalis IV, Low cognitive load. Long-term strategies. Mario Kart Wii, Covet Fashion Decision Complexity Stellaris, Eve Online Short time horizons. Consider consequences.

Easy Fun Skill-Based Oxenfree, Stardew Valley, Super Smash Bros. Melee, Quick to learn. Low skill barrier. Steep learning curve. The Longest Journey, Challenge DotA, osu!, Straightforward mechanics. Complex moves/rules. Animal Crossing Skill Improvement Street Fighter V No skill-based gates. Difficult missions, bosses. Low High

Games Game Preferences Preferences Examples Motivation Examples

Generic/Abstract Deep Lore Counter-Strike, Street Fighter, Fantasy Mass Effect, Dragon Age, Generic or abstract setting. Rich world lore/history. Candy Crush Saga, Star Wars: KOTOR, 2D/retro graphics. Suspending Compelling alternate world. World of Tanks Fallout Minimal world-building/lore. Disbelief Visually immersive world.

Open-Ended Scripted Drama Factorio, SimCity, Mass Effect, No overarching narrative. Story Elaborate narrative arc. Transport Tycoon, Dragon Age, Basic/stock NPCs. Web of Large cast of characters with Quake III Arena Life is Strange, Persona 4 Blank canvas to build on. Human Drama motive/personality.

Practical Curious FIFA, , Riven, Fully-exposed rulesets. Explore world. Find hidden Call of Duty, Discovery Fallout, Minimal unknown variables and secrets/treasures. Experiment Mahjong, Scrabble The Unknowns Legend of Zelda possible interactions. with objects. Tinker.

Curated Customizable Braid, Spelunky, Guild Wars 2, The Sims, Fixed, but often highly stylized Design Express individuality. Super Meat Boy, The Elder Scrolls Online, avatar. None or few Expressing Customize avatar/house. Super Mario Galaxy 2 Animal Crossing customization opportunities. Individuality Lots of skins/accessories. Literature Review Underlying inventory items were generated based on a literature review of models and frameworks used in academia and industry. These include: • Intuition/Observational models (e.g., Bartle’s Player Types) • Theory-driven models (e.g., PENS based on Self-Determination Theory) • Factor analytic models (e.g., Sherry’s Uses & Gratifications Model).

Factor Analysis Factor analysis provides an empirical method for understanding how gaming preferences cluster together—which motivations are related and which motivations are relatively independent.

Data Collection & Model Iteration We created an online app that allows gamers to take a 5-minute survey and receive a personalized motivation profile. We used factor analysis to iterate on inventory items until stable factors emerged and multiple high-loading inventory items were identified for each factor.

Validity The assessment tool used for these motivations has high internal reliability (Cronbach’s Alpha of .75 or higher), high test-retest reliability (r = .73), and correlates moderately well with theoretically- aligned personality traits on the Big 5 (a standardized personality assessment model used broadly in psychology research). See slide “Scale Validity/Reliability” for details. 23 400,000+ gamers (unique IP addresses) • Gender: 80% Male / 19% Female / 1% Non-Binary • Age: Median = 25, Range = 13-80 • Gamer Type: Casual 11% / Core 68% / Hardcore 21%

Gamers recruited via Gamer Motivation Profile • Participants took a 5-minute survey to receive a customized report of their gaming motivations, and then could share their profile via social media. • No other incentive (financial or otherwise) was provided to respondents. • ~80% of our gamers were recruited via social media sharing of the gaming motivation profiles.

Geographic distribution • United States (125k), Canada (14.8k), United Kingdom (13.9k), Brazil (9.4k), (8.5k), Italy (7.2k), Poland (6.8k), Indonesia (6.6k), (5.8k), Philippines (5k), Germany (4.9k), (4.4k), France (3.6k), Singapore (3.6k), Netherlands (3.1k), Spain (2.4k), Turkey (2.3k), Malaysia (2.2k), Russia (2.2k), Chile (2.0k), (1.9k) …