A new survey has found that over half of gamers prefer to play single-player titles.

According to Midia Research, this game mode is most popular across all platforms – particularly on mobile, with 58% of respondents saying they preferred single-player games.

The data from the survey was collected from Midia Research’s Q1 2024 and Q1 2023 consumer surveys across the US, UK, Australia, Canada, Germany, France, Poland, Turkey, and South Africa.

Research found that older gamers were more drawn to single-player titles, with 74% of gamers aged over 55 choosing to play games solo.

  • JackGreenEarth@lemm.ee
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    1 day ago

    I like casual games, I don’t like the competitiveness or stress of some games, I only really play Minecraft multiplayer, and would play SDV MP too if I had someone to play with, but otherwise singleplayer is more relaxed.

  • qooqie@lemmy.world
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    1 day ago

    Honestly I love multiplayer gamers because I like meeting people. There’s plenty of wholesome lobby games and some more intense games both have their benefits. Most people hate intense lobbies because of people who can’t handle the heat and freak out, but it’s really fun holding the team together or seeing someone do that. Both types of games and lobbies are fun to me. I get why people only want single player games though

  • Donkter@lemmy.world
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    26 minutes ago

    Am I crazy or is 53% not a wild number? For one thing, I play multiplayer games all the time but I much prefer my best single player experience to my best multiplayer experience I would absolutely identify as preferring single player games despite probably playing more multiplayer games.

    For another thing, 53% is pretty low, about half of gamers prefer single player. If anything that number should be higher cause I bet the amount of single player games dwarfs multiplayer games (this also would include single player campaigns in multiplayer games).

  • brap@lemmy.world
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    1 day ago

    Well that graph sums my situation up. Got old, had a kid, don’t have the time nor inclination to get all sweaty playing against those half my age.

    • EatATaco@lemm.ee
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      1 day ago

      That’s basically what happened to me. I still love pvp games, I just don’t have the time. It’s much more conducive to my lifestyle to play a game I can just pause at any moment and switch to something I need to do.

  • Showroom7561@lemmy.ca
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    1 day ago

    “Prefer”… when you’re young, you’ve got time to burn online without distractions.

    Then you get married, have kids, work a demanding job, and you don’t get time for uninterrupted online play.

    Eventually, correspondence chess is the only gaming you have time for! /s

          • asexualchangeling@lemmy.ml
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            57 minutes ago

            Personally speaking I don’t like the alternatives much, between the comfort, the touchpads, the OS, and the community support to list just a handful of reasons, the others really do not interest me

            I’m glad they exist though, it’s nice to have competition in the handheld PC space

  • Aurenkin@sh.itjust.works
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    1 day ago

    For me single player is number one followed by low pressure multiplayer with friends. Can be co op or PvP but the main thing is casual and low stress. Already have enough of that in my real life.

  • Cory@lemmy.world
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    4 hours ago

    I prefer single player over live service. I don’t mind the occasional multiplayer game, but prefer single player story based games.

  • Blackmist@feddit.uk
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    8 hours ago

    That may well be true, but a single player game can only take your money once.

    A multiplayer game will take it over and over again. They’re all just chasing that Fortnite high, aiming to be that game all the sweaty streamers play and their viewers pump money into.

  • Stern@lemmy.world
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    1 day ago

    Understandable if you grew up playing CoD/Halo, or even follow scrubquotes on twitter.

    • brsrklf@jlai.lu
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      1 day ago

      I mean, there were lots of multiplayer games when I grew up, before CoD or Halo, but still.

      Doesn’t change that I dislike most of these.

  • Evotech@lemmy.world
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    9 hours ago

    Particularity on mobile…

    I mean I get that mobile gamers dont wanna play multiplayer. But is this representative outside of mobile too?

  • GingaNinga@lemmy.world
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    1 day ago

    I prefer RPG, interesting narratives and “experiences”. I also used to be really into multiplayer games like halo 3, MW2, battlefield 4/bad company2 and even rainbow 6 siege. Whats turned me off of all that is aggressive monetization and super competitive sweat fests. It feels like all the fun/soul in those “good oll’ days” games just isn’t there anymore. Peak fun for me was maxed out halo 3 custom games and they just don’t make them like that anymore.

    • brygphilomena@lemmy.world
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      1 day ago

      I can’t stand the competitiveness now. Like, I know I suck and I’ll never be good because quick reactions aren’t my jam.

      I still want to play every now and then, but since I play infrequently I really need something with a very simple mechanic. 30 characters to pick from is overwhelming and I can’t learn how to level up and pick a character build during the 10 minute matches and I’m not going to study builds before I play games casually. And I feel bad when I’m trying to learn and I sink the team. Like who wants to be the one that causes a dozen other people to not have fun or get frustrated. Give me counterstrike. You get good guys or bad guys. Then a handful of guns in very specific categories.

      I really like RPGs where I can take my time and learn the game. Where mechanics arent too crazy and where there is only one currency in the game.

      I feel like it’s become too complicated to pick up some games now.

      You’ve got normal gold, then some weird premium gold that you get at a much slower rate. And somehow a third currency that you can only buy.

      There are hundreds of build paths, and somehow within the first 5 levels before you even know the game or whats good you have to make a decision and lock yourself out of half of them.

      Each character has a gimmicky different way to level up or learn moves.

      Then there are mini games, where you have to collect things or others where you now need to level up in a whole different way. And then lock out entire portions of the main game unless you spend a dozen hours playing a mini game that really isn’t that fun.

      But I digress, I really like single player that at this point are pretty easy to get into and start having fun or experience the story right away.

    • Frozengyro@lemmy.world
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      1 day ago

      I think people like a variety of games too. I mostly play solo, and enjoy that, but also have a ton of fun playing with friends and family at times too.

      • taladar@sh.itjust.works
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        1 day ago

        A lot of those multiplayer games aren’t really designed for people who like variety though if you have to compete with people who have played nothing but that game for 1000 hours a year for the last 7 years.