Sep 26 (newsonjapan.com) - Back in 2016, it was confirmed that Japan had a real love, a national obsession perhaps, with the world of mobile gaming.
An amazing 92% of respondents to a survey analyzing gaming habits stated that they enjoy a daily dose of mobile gaming.
While anyone who has ventured to the streets of Osaka, or has been to the "scramble crossing" in Tokyo will have some idea of the extent to which the world of technology drives Japan forward in incredible ways (even the stunning ancient capital Kyoto has Nintendo offices easily viewable from the area near the train station!), the fact is that Europe is slowly but surely starting to emulate Japan's most prominent gaming habits.
This isn't just confined to trying to understand and replicate the reason why Japanese casino players love jackpot casino games and how this has become a part of modern gaming habits, but also the impact early adopters of gaming technology in Japan have had in other countries.
Let's take a deeper look at this fascinating geographical trend.
A Time-sensitive World
In Japan, the very nature of existence can be busy and non-stop, with few people in the big cities appearing to relax or even to stand still for large stretches of time! However, the Japanese know how to balance a hectic work life with pure entertainment; hence the saturation of the anime craze, which has burst into aspects of entertainment like mobile gaming. Of course, logging onto Facebook and Twitter and catching up with the news has its place in Europe when it comes to relaxation time, but in a similar fashion to Japan, Europeans have started to realize that the immersive world of mobile gaming has fantastic potential for relaxation in short, sharp bursts.Â
While the revenue increase in mobile gaming is being driven to a large extent by Asia (and in this regard the recent decision to expand the legalization of gambling into more areas in Japan could help to further this), Europe is catching up rapidly.
Slowly but Surely: eSports in Europe
One area of gaming where Europe is a long way behind Asia is eSports, although there is no doubting the fact that it is a trend rapidly gaining popularity in the continent, especially since the start of 2017.
Indeed, as globally the world of PC and console gaming is moving towards the professional area, and the world of mobile gaming is fast becoming primarily the realm of the amateur, countries like the UK are starting to embrace the world of video games as a spectator sport - in other words, the realm of eSports.
The eSports trend has embraced and capitalized on the popularity of students 10-15 years ago getting together to watch friends playing video games. Fast forward to now, and these same people are paying to watch eSports events live at arenas around Europe! While this is still in its early stages, the fact that the BBC in the UK has picked up the rights to live eSports games shows that it is close to becoming a truly mainstream spectator sport in Europe after early success across Asia.
Of course, while the Asian Games of 2022 are going to have eSports as a live event, there is little suggestion at the moment that anything similar is going to be happening at Europe's sporting events. Despite this, the fact is that Europe really does seem to be turning a little more Japanese in its gaming habits. It has to be said as well, though, that gaming trends in Japan still have the potential to be influenced by trends and technology being pushed in Europe, meaning that both continents can continue to learn from each other as gamers, ultimately, reap the rewards.
