Industry News

How much money do gamers REALLY spend?

Published

6 years ago

April 17, 2020

Reading Time: 2 minutes

The art of making money from video games has always been crucial to making them work. From coin-operated arcade games to cartridges and discs for consoles, getting the prices right has been key to make them successful and profitable. Today it’s all about in-game purchases, whether in mobile games or Massively Multiplayer Online (MMO) games like World of Warcraft, League of Legends or Fortnite.

They allow gamers to spend real money on virtual currency, special abilities, clothing, or even virtual vehicles and property and if they get it right, it can be incredibly lucrative. But how much does the average American gamer actually spend while playing MMOs?

The simple answer to that is $229, with the most common responses being between $51 and $100 while over a third of gamers had spent more than $500. As to what makes an average gamer, over 60% of people who responded to the survey were male, while the average age was 32 and the usual gaming time was three to six hours a day.

When it came to how they paid for their in-game purchases, MMO gamers were split closely between debit cards (36.2%) and credit cards (33.8%), with PayPal a distant third place. There was a clear difference between the genders in terms of how much money they spent on average, with male gamers spending $262 while female gamers spent only $177.

One of the most interesting results is what impact age has on how much money is spent by gamers. The peak age for spending is the 35-44 bracket, where disposable income and enthusiasm for gaming are both high, with the over 55s and 18-24s spending the least. The 13-17 age group were high spenders, though their parents wouldn’t need to be told that.

The top ten games for spending features many high profile franchises, as you might expect, with World of Warcraft, Call of Duty, Fortnite, Grand Theft Auto, Final Fantasy and Minecraft all popular. But one question remains – why do they spend the money? 68% told the survey that they made in-game purchases to remain competitive, with a huge 83.8% of the 35-44 age bracket agreeing with that statement. By comparison, the 13-17s largely disagreed, with 79.1% saying they didn’t spend to be competitive.

As MMOs get ever more popular and ever more sophisticated about how they convince gamers to part with their real world money to enhance their in-game experience, it will be fascinating to see how gamer spending evolves. How much do you spend while you’re playing video games?

AI

Blacklyte unveils AI-powered desktop gaming “Teammate” companion

Published

10 hours ago

April 30, 2026

Wladimir P.

blacklyte-unveils-ai-powered-desktop-gaming-“teammate”-companion

Blacklyte has announced the Blacklyte AI Teammate, an AI-powered desktop gaming companion the company says is designed to react to gameplay and provide coaching-style assistance. Blacklyte said the product will be shown in base colors at LVL UP EXPO.

According to the company, the AI Teammate can guide players through levels, provide feedback on playstyle, and suggest alternative moves based on analysis of in-game decisions and potential outcomes. Blacklyte positions the device as a desk-based companion that integrates with its broader lineup of desks, chairs, and accessories.

“We at Blacklyte are excited to bring the Blacklyte AI Teammate to life. By creating this new desktop teammate, we are giving people a new way to connect with games. The Blacklyte AI Teammates are not just another robot; they are true partners who understand gamers, games, and how to get the win.” said Alex Liu, Blacklyte Founder and CEO. “Beyond gaming, the Blacklyte AI Teammate is a true partner who supports, adapts, and upgrades their new owner’s life. They are always there when needed, on the desk, in a game, and beyond.”

On hardware, Blacklyte said the device has a silicone body with a steel core for poseability and an LED face screen intended to display emotions and responses. The company said it connects to PCs through the Blacklyte app available on the Apple and Play Store, with the app supporting controls and firmware updates. Blacklyte also said additional colors and collaborations are planned in the future.

The post Blacklyte unveils AI-powered desktop gaming “Teammate” companion appeared first on Eastern European Gaming | Global iGaming & Tech Intelligence Hub.

Andrew Cardno

Quick Custom Intelligence Launches QCI Metrics

Published

10 hours ago

April 30, 2026

GamingAmericas.com

quick-custom-intelligence-launches-qci-metrics

Quick Custom Intelligence (QCI) a leading provider of casino operational intelligence software, announced the launch of QCI Metrics, a new anonymized data-sharing program that enables gaming and hospitality operators to benchmark performance using yesterday’s operating data—providing timely, actionable insights without exposing customer, financial, or personally identifiable information. This innovative solution extends beyond gaming machine ranking into host performance standardization.

Available through the Chatalytics.com portal and integrated into the QCI Platform, QCI Metrics transforms operational data—including game performance and host effectiveness—into standardized performance indexes.

While traditional benchmarking solutions rely on limited datasets or delayed reporting cycles, QCI Metrics delivers insights based on yesterday’s data—giving operators a timely, continuously updated view of how they are performing against peers across both gaming and player development.

All data shared in QCI Metrics is:

• Aggregated and normalized

• De-identified

• Abstracted at the property level using internal IDs

No transaction-level, player-level, or campaign-level data is ever shared.

“QCI Metrics gives operators the ability to see how they stack up against peers across player development and gaming in near-time, without compromising privacy. It’s a practical, secure way to unlock industry-wide insights,” said Andrew Cardno, Co-Founder and CTO of QCI.

QCI Metrics is designed to help operators quickly identify performance gaps, respond faster to trends, and adopt proven strategies in a highly competitive environment.

The post Quick Custom Intelligence Launches QCI Metrics appeared first on Americas iGaming & Sports Betting News.

Industry News

RAW iGaming unveils RAW Riches: A site-wide progressive jackpot overlay built for scale

Published

1 day ago

April 29, 2026

Wladimir P.

raw-igaming-unveils-raw-riches:-a-site-wide-progressive-jackpot-overlay-built-for-scale

RAW iGaming announces today the launch of RAW Riches, a site-wide progressive jackpot overlay designed to deliver jackpot moments without adding operational complexity.

Launching as part of the RAWVerse ecosystem, RAW Riches introduces a new approach to jackpots, prioritising seamless integration, player engagement, and operator control.

A fully embedded experience

RAW Riches introduces a multi-tier progressive jackpot layer deployable across an operator’s entire portfolio, regardless of game supplier. Unlike traditional jackpot mechanics that require separate integrations or fragmented systems, RAW Riches operates as a fully embedded experience within the operator’s brand, creating a single, unified jackpot.

Tom Wood, CEO of RAW iGaming, said: “The industry built jackpots in silos. We built one that connects everything.

“RAW Riches gives operators a site-wide jackpot running across every entity and every game supplier, configured to their exact needs and brand, all from a single solution.

“We pride ourselves on producing the industry’s most distinctive and disruptive game concepts and RAW Riches is no different.

“This is the kind of product that changes how operators think about jackpots entirely.”

A seamless player experience

Players opt in and continue playing as normal. When triggered, the jackpot experience takes over instantly. Every trigger results in a win, with no losing outcomes, before the player is returned to their original game to continue playing.

Scaleable without complexity

RAW Riches solves one of the industry’s most persistent operational challenges in scaling jackpots across multiple providers, brands, and markets. Key features include: