Games have become consumers’ best friends during the pandemic. This relationship was especially boosted by the change from the physical office to the home office, according to the survey “Consumo Online no Brasil”, carried out by Edelman at the request of PayPal, which also reports that 9 out of 10 Brazilians bought a game to pass the time. at home during the period of health crisis.
The survey analyzed responses from 1,000 people, all online consumers, between 18 and 55 years old, from all regions of the country and social classes.
In comparison with the pre-pandemic scenario, the growth in the number of Brazilians who bought games online in 2021 was more than 7 percentage points – or 56%.
Also according to the study, 84% of Brazilians claim that they did not buy more bonds in the period due to lack of money.
Games, pure entertainment
The main reason given by the study for the increase in the number of people who consumed games during the pandemic was the need to create a more playful environment at home, both for adults and children, who started to live together almost 24 hours a day.
“The gaming vertical is one of the ones that most benefit from digital wallets, especially because the age group is younger and more familiar with this payment option”, explains Leonardo Sertã, PayPal’s head of market development for America Latin. “About 42.5% of those surveyed by PayPal use e-wallets to buy online games or video games, mainly because of the convenience and security of this type of electronic platform.”
For 84.7% of respondents, paying electronically for games is a much more satisfying experience than in physical stores. Online payments became a daily practice for 78% of respondents and, for 91.4% of respondents, the fact of paying online is even more interesting considering that the method allows better tracking of daily and weekly expenses.
Before the health crisis began, in March 2020, around 50% of Brazilian repeat online shoppers paid for online games daily, weekly or biweekly; during the 20 months of the pandemic that followed, this rate reached 57%. Of this universe of respondents, 89.5% say they will remain faithful to this form of consumption.
Payment options
Credit cards are the main means of online payment for games (79.3%) – a rate that does not change by gender. Then come debit cards (43.6%), preferred by men (45.1%). In third place, very close, are digital wallets (with 42.4%).
According to the study, those who use digital wallets to pay for online games tend to do so more often (85% of cases). In this vertical, the percentage of men and women who shop online using a digital wallet always or almost always is practically the same (around 84.5%).
