From the one billion Tweets gathered in the first half of 2020, the Philippines emerged as 10th in the countries that tweeted the most about gaming. The Asia Pacific (APAC) is the hotspot as Twitter conversations hit a 55% growth; the Philippines grew by 112% in the Philippines for H1 of 2020.

Based on the data gathered, the gaming community, while united in their passion for games, is geographically and culturally diverse. In APAC, 94% of gamers use Twitter weekly or more often; while 62% of gamers are on Twitter constantly or multiple times a day.

“Gaming industry and its conversation growth are gaining momentum over the past few years, and it further amplified because lockdown made people resort to video games to meet their need states such as in socializing, normalising and idling,” said Martyn U’ren, head of Research at Twitter, APAC & MENA.

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Gaming serves as a distraction during lockdowns with 6 out of 10 of Filipino Twitter users said that they played video games to pass the time. Some of the respondents said that it is their “way of finding normalcy or a temporary escape from reality as the pandemic drastically changed the way people live.” Among top gaming titles, Filipinos talked the most about are “Animal Crossing: New Horizons,” “PUBG,” “DotA 2,” “Adopt Me,” and “Final Fantasy” during the first half of 2020.

Likeminded strangers found something to interact and socialize within a game. Filipino gamers on Twitter looked for games that allowed them to interact with other players such as online, social network, or multiplayer games. In April 2020, 38% of Filipino Twitter users shared that they played social games to keep in touch with their friends and family.

Multiplayer

Apart from social or multiplayer games; Adventure and action (33%) are the second top genres that Filipinos like to dive into. Interestingly, male Filipino gamers are heavily invested on playing eSports. 41% of them claimed that playing video games is their long-time hobby, while 30% of Filipino GenZ also shared the same sentiment. L

In Southeast Asia, games with a social aspect are in high demand among people under 18 and up to 34 years old. In the Philippines, 47% of Filipino GenZ gamers played social or multiplayer games in April 2020. This is followed by adventure or action games (37%), and role-playing games (29%). The Millennials, on the other hand, share the same preference in genre but with the addition or casual games such as puzzles or any game that does not require much time or strategies.

Gaming also provides amusement for adults during the lockdown. Filipino Twitter users aged 55 and above shared that they play video games to pass the time (25%) and have fun things to do (19%), though they are not much keen on trying new and advanced games and mostly stick to casual games (20%) and try a bit of adventure and action (11%).

“Gaming is also ever-evolving. Back then we used to have these bulky gaming sets, but nowadays we can play games on our phones,” U’ren said. “With new titles, consoles, upgrades, and trends coming around; we expect the industry and conversations around it will continue to grow for years to come.”