Four out of five games are bought for men

The female gamer is in decline, research has found.

Statistics from Kantar Worldpanel show that the boxed games market is proving more popular with males aged 18 to 24, while casual and female gamers are switching over todigital platforms.

Three quarters of games sold in 2008 were bought for males (75 per cent). This rose to 81 per cent last year.

Kantar Worldpanel consumer retail analyst Laurie Krohn said:One of the most prominent user group demographic trends we’ve seen is the loss of female gamers. This can be put down to the decline of Wii which, when it launched, brought in a lot of females.”

However, as Xbox 360 and PS3 have grown in popularity, males who tend to play on these systems have become more vital to the market.

Families still spend the most on games, making up 37 per cent of the annual games spend last year.

Meanwhile, students’ share of the overall games spend rose from nine per cent in 2008 to 12 per cent in 2011.

Kantar says that those aged 18 to 24 have steadily grown in prominence since 2008, overtaking kids 12 and younger and adults aged 25 to 34 as the most important user group.