Playing video games has been at a steady rate since 2014 with a slight increase in the latest study reaching 40%. Daily gaming rate has witnessed a spike in 2021-2022 after a continuous drop between 2014 and 2018. The number of nationals who play video games has continued to increase after the drop in 2016 with 2 in 5 nationals playing video games in 2021-2022.
Figure 27: Frequency of Gaming
Despite the general increase in the number of nationals playing video games, countries like Saudi, Tunisia, and UAE witnessed a drop in the number of their respective nationals who play video games. Saudi Arabia witnessed the steepest decline with almost 2 in 5 nationals playing, a 34-percentage-points drop. Qataris and Egyptians are the most to play video games. Interestingly, Egyptians spend more time playing videos games on a weekly basis than any other nationals, while Qataris are the least.
Phones reign across the region as the medium used by most nationals to play games in 2021-2022, followed by the internet. this general rule applies to most countries with Saudis and Emiratis being the only exception who use consoles as the second most popular medium for gaming after smartphones. Qataris are the most to play games on phones, internet and consoles.