Social casino games (SCG), for example those played on Facebook and on mobile devices, are one of the most profitable genres of free-to-play games. They are also an example of a convergence trend, where the line between gambling and digital gaming is blurring. Digital games integrate gambling elements, such as loot boxes, while new forms of digital, online and hybrid gambling games use similar immersive elements as those which are employed in video games.
The Finnish Player Barometer 2018, a nationally representative dataset (n = 946), included questions about digital gaming, gambling and SCG. It reveals that 5.9% of Finns play SCG at least occasionally and 2% of Finns play them at least once of month.
But how is SCG playing connected with offline and online gambling and with digital game playing?
Ridge regression analysis was employed to investigate the predictive power of a range of variables regarding the frequency of SCG play. Results show that a higher frequency of SCG play is associated with higher frequency of digital game playing, but with lower frequency of both online and offline gambling. Furthermore, a higher frequency of playing skill based (digital) gambling games is the strongest predictor of SCG playing.
Implications:
Our analysis contribute to understanding better who SCG players, online and offline gamblers and digital game players are and how playing new forms of gaming and gambling are interrelated
