More gamers "pimping" their PCs

Research suggests PC gaming going from strength to strength

22 August 2008 13:40 GMT / By Verity Burns

Recent reseach has shown that over £3.5 million has been spent so far in 2008 by PC gamers investing in things such as mice, keyboards and joysticks.

Sean Fellows, account manager at Gfk said:"Every serious gamer knows the only way to play is on your PC. Gamers are able to purchase graphic and sound cards, controllers and gaming chairs to intensify the satisfaction from gaming - with scope for a lot more whilst consoles remain restricted to the technology they are purchased with."

Controversial. As PC gaming continues to get more popular, so it seems people are pimping their PCs to get a more enjoyable experience.

All the core products for great PC gaming - peripherals, good graphics card and plenty of RAM - have seen increases this year compared to the same period of time in 2007.

Mice have grown by 11%, while keyboards have jumped 27% since last year. This isn't surprising that gamers invest heavily in good peripherals, every millionth of a second counts in this game.
The average keyboard was sold for £37 - a whopping £20 more than a non-gaming keyboard, while on average £22 was spent on non-specialised gaming mice in June, nearly double that spent on its non-gaming equivalent.

As games are becoming more graphically complex (we're talking to you Crysis), PCs have to be upgraded to ensure the maximum performance and experience can be achieved. As a result the research shows there has been a 34% growth in sales of RAM and 15% increase in sales of graphic cards this year, with over £20m being spent on graphics cards alone.

Sean Fellows continued: "Contrary to popular belief PC gaming remains strong despite the introduction of online gaming for consoles. There are some long awaited titles hitting the market in the forthcoming months – and as a result GfK expects to see even more gamers pimping their PCs to get the best gaming experience possible."