Survey suggests UK has twice as many pocket gamers as Europe

The results of a new survey which takes a look at British pastimes have been released and we in Britain rank highest in Europe in the number of online and console gamers.

The findings from TNS and Gamesindustry.com suggest that gaming has overtaken newspapers and magazines as a leisure activity, and that mobile and social network gaming are the fastest-growing areas of the UK game industry.

“Gaming has rapidly expanded in popularity and now appeals to as wide an audience as TV and the internet," Sears group director at TNS Technology, Stephen Palmer, said.

"In several cases, young and old are even moving away from traditional media and spend their free time playing games instead. The variety of games on offer has drawn in segments of the population that would not ordinarily be associated with gaming, which has turned the traditional view of the ‘gamer’ on its head.”

The survey itself is one of the most comprehensive research projects conducted on UK gamers, based on a population of eight years and older, with access to the internet. Over 36,000 participants took part across six different countries, with around 13,000 completing a full 25-minute interview.

Check out more details on the Today's Gamers survey over on the official page. And keep playing those mobile games – we're proud of you, Britain.