There is no denying how popular mobile gaming has become. Indeed, statistics by NewZoo show that mobile gaming now accounts for more than 50% of all gaming revenue. This equates to roughly $70.3 billion in 2018 alone, with the figure set to increase year-on-year. The major change in the popularity of mobile gaming is essentially how we like to game now.

Whereas before gaming could be a past time or escape at home, gaming is now considered to be more a facet of life, rather than something that is done deliberately. Indeed, smartphones and social media culture make it acceptable to be constantly checking phones or going on them for short bursts, and gaming has followed this trend.

Source: Pixabay

Hyper Casual Gaming

The latest gaming trend has to do with the way we engage with our titles of choice. Hyper casual gaming involves playing a repetitive and often addictive game that involves basic gameplay that enhances each level as the player’s ability does. Think Angry Birds or Temple Run, but with less intensive levels. For instance, Hole.io is a hypercasual game that revolves around you playing as a sinkhole trying to swallow everything in your path. The game takes on the immersive nature that attracts players, while also being easy to drop in and out of. Other hypercasual games include Candy Crush Saga, Paint Hit, Dodgeball Duel and Terrainium.

Smartphones for Everything

Another signifier that our love for mobile gaming is growing is the fact that mobile entertainment in general is on the increase. Netflix, Spotify, Hayu et al. are all available as apps for smartphones and are perfectly expected to be used when we’re on the go for a quick fix. Even other sectors of entertainment, such as casino gaming, are seeing the value of offering a mobile version, as CasinoWings shows us through the range of casino gaming options that are available on a smartphone in response to wanting to do things on the go. The changing idea of the smartphone means that we can rely on it to do almost anything and it has become an ingrained and useful tool in our daily lives, which makes sense to then be used as a gaming platform.

Source: Pixabay

Mobile Gaming Accessibility

One of the major reasons that games are pumped into the mobile gaming category is because they take less time to develop, are cheaper, and have more likelihood of being adopted by more people. Console games involve a greater outlay of capital by the gamer, so are held to an extremely high standard. By contrast, mobile gaming is broader and appeals to a wider range of gamers, including those who probably wouldn’t consider themselves to be gamers. Mobile gaming isn’t seen by some as a form of gaming, but as a form of using a phone to passing the time.

The major benefit of mobile gaming is that while console gaming’s function is to provide a gaming experience, mobile gaming is a way of passing the time. The distinction means it’s open to more people, which in turn means that more money is afforded to it. Mobile gaming is likely to see an increase – and will likely attract even bigger audiences as it does.