Crispy Gamer News

According to research data from Think Services employment in the video game industry is up 12 percent from just over a year ago. Polling of companies in the United States, the Game Developer Research project found that 44,400 people are currently employed in the game industry - up from 39,700 in 2007. Canadian companies also saw an increase in staffing and number of studios, with total employees up around 17 percent — to 9,500 from 8,100.

In total, the North American game industry increased in size 13 percent, from 47,800 to 53,900 staffers. The numbers also reveal that Canada is becoming an important hot spot for the industry thanks to companies like EA, Ubisoft and many others.

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A new study by the NPD Group entitled “Girl Power: Understanding This Important Consumer Segment,” reveals that girls 2 - 14 years of age are spending more times playing games. This data is a no-brainer given the push by companies like Ubisoft to tap into the girl gamer market. This in and of itself is sad, because Ubisoft and other companies now catering to this demographic should really focus on creating games for age groups rather than pandering to gender.  Kids need more games like Drawn To Life and fewer games based on franchises like Bratz and Barbie. Of course, that’s just my opinion and I could be wrong.

According to NPD industry analyst, Anita Frazier, 50 percent of girls ages 2 - 14 years old still play with traditional gender-focused toys like dolls, arts and crafts and stuffed animals. The study also finds that the increase in the use of virtual worlds and social networking sites are not being properly monetized by publishers.