随着全球一些地区的企业恢复工作，部分体育联赛已开始恢复比赛，但不可否认的是，在春季的大部分时间里，由于消费者就地躲避，电子游戏和电子竞技对媒体消费的影响是巨大的。事实上，尼尔森的最新研究发现，在 COVID-19 大流行封锁期间，全球 82% 的消费者玩了电子游戏并观看了电子游戏内容。
为了说明这一普及水平的重要性，我们可以看看美国的联网设备拥有量，因为这些设备正在推动流媒体大战，让消费者参与到一系列流媒体视频内容中。截至 2020 年 3 月，76% 的美国家庭至少拥有一台联网设备。
The uptick is even more impressive when you consider the wealth of media options available today—all of which saw big engagement spikes while consumers were forced indoors. And without live sports in the mix, some leagues have leveraged esports as a means to keep fans engaged. Examples include the eNASCAR iRacing Pro Invitational Series and NBA 2K tournament. Given the engagement that these events have attracted, it’s possible that esports and video engagement could remain high even when more live sports come back online.
与此同时，视频游戏的参与度也达到了历史新高。根据尼尔森游戏公司视频游戏跟踪（VGT）的数据，自 2020 年 3 月 23 日以来，表示因 COVID-19 大流行而更多玩视频游戏的玩家人数有所增加。增幅最大的是美国（46%），其次是法国（41%）、英国（28%）和德国（23%）。
Much like TV is a barometer for overall media engagement during a crisis, Twitch is a barometer for video game content engagement. And as we saw big increases in TV viewing, Twitch engagement in the U.S. between Jan 1 and March 28 more than doubled, as hours watched grew from 13 million to 31 million. Viewership peaked March 28, with League of Legends, 堡垒之夜, and Counter-Strike: Global Offensive accounting for 33% of total hours watched across the top 50 titles.
The video gaming industry’s creativity has played a big role in keeping consumers dialed into the action. And that has led to some creative collaborations. For example, Epic Games recently collaborated with Houston rapper Travis Scott to organize a unique musical journey in 堡垒之夜 inspired by Travis. Epic Games planned a multi-date tour, with times that were suitable for players from all over the world. Travis attracted millions of people, who all tuned in to the game from April 23-25, in addition to other video streaming platforms such as YouTube and Twitch.
The Nielsen average minute audience (AMA) for the initial Travis concert reached a total of 4.7 million, with roughly half (2.3 million) coming from live viewers. 堡垒之夜 continues to be one of the top games in the world (in terms of revenue and awareness), earning $1.8 billion in 2019.
当数百万人被隔离在家中时，许多人将电竞作为打发时间和娱乐的一种方式。在 18-34 岁的电竞迷中，玩游戏比看比赛更受欢迎（83% 对 29%），三分之一的电竞迷表示，他们观看电竞比赛是对传统电视内容的一种替代。电竞粉丝不仅仅关注他们的游戏，70% 的电竞粉丝认为体育和娱乐公司/实体在与消费者沟通时承认 COVID-19 非常重要。这一比例远高于 52% 的非电竞粉丝。
"消费者正在寻找消磨时间的方式，帮助自己从现实世界中转移注意力。尼尔森体育董事总经理乔恩-斯泰纳（Jon Stainer）说："电子游戏和电子竞技为许多消费者提供了急需的分散注意力的方式。尼尔森体育董事总经理乔恩-斯泰纳（Jon Stainer）表示："自电子竞技大流行以来，该行业经历了巨大的增长，82% 的人在玩电子游戏和观看游戏视频内容。在尼尔森，我们能够提供有影响力的数据和洞察力，说明该行业的发展状况如何，以及消费者如何在这个时期寻找更多的娱乐方式"。
Amid the stress, concerns and hardships affecting the world today, games and esports do bring some light to fans. With the entertainment segment continuing to flourish, it’s clear why gamers are an important audience to market to now and in the future.
