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At Google, we like to help our advertisers gain insight into
the search behavior of their core audiences.
We've analyzed gaming searches from the past three years and
discovered three insights into game search behavior.
Gamers are savvy searchers and use search to research a game
throughout the entire purchase path.
Before a game's launch, they tend to search for the game's
title, trailers, images, and websites.
Searches ramp up around the launch date as gamers seek
information about reviews, purchase, and game play.
Following the launch, we see more searches for expansion
packs and downloadable content.
Gamers are searching more and more for the generic term
video games, demonstrating their growing interest in
discovering, researching, and buying new video games online.
And we're noticing specific game genres have become more
popular in the past two years.
The strongest query growth is coming from sports categories.
For core game genres including role playing, first person
shooter, and strategy games, we're seeing gamers shift from
searching for category and genre terms to searching
directly for the titles of the biggest franchises.
In fact, searches on Google and YouTube for top franchise
game titles grew 25% in 2010.
At Google, we think that our studies of gamers' search
usage provide a unique look at how they research and engage
with video games across the purchase path.
These insights reveal some big opportunities for marketers.
For more on gaming, read our white paper,
Connecting the Click.