Strategy games in decline?

[Josephus]

Besides the RTS craze in the 1990s I cannot really think of a time that gamers ever really were interested in strategy games. It has always been a niche product.

Yes, but you're missing the point. Even if it's a niche product, interest is waning among those niche fans.

But across its 1.7 million surveys, Quantic Foundry found that two thirds of strategy fans worldwide (except China, where gamers "have a very different gaming motivation profile") have lost interest in this element of video games. "67% of gamers today care less about strategic thinking and planning when playing games than the average gamer back in June 2015," the report reads.

[Tamas]

Besides the RTS craze in the 1990s I cannot really think of a time that gamers ever really were interested in strategy games. It has always been a niche product.

Yes, but you're missing the point. Even if it's a niche product, interest is waning among those niche fans.

But across its 1.7 million surveys, Quantic Foundry found that two thirds of strategy fans worldwide (except China, where gamers "have a very different gaming motivation profile") have lost interest in this element of video games. "67% of gamers today care less about strategic thinking and planning when playing games than the average gamer back in June 2015," the report reads.

But we cannot conclude that from this article or survey. I know the article does but they are wrong. It is entirely possible that self-reported motivations have shifted but that, in seeming absence of any other data, doesn't prove that actual playing time of strategy games decreased.

For example, what if gamers are better able to engage with strategy games on a more emotional level nowadays, falling more into the other survey categories? That would produce these results in the survey.

It's bogus. This survey is about WHY people are playing games not WHAT they are playing. Even in my own motivation, long term planning is far from being the main one for playing strategy games.

[The Minsky Moment]

The article itself is not that clearly written.

However, it links to the survey company and they give a decent explanation of their methods as well as their survey (which takes only a few minutes to go through). It's like those political categorization surveys but for games. https://quanticfoundry.com/2024/05/21/strategy-decline/

They claim to have 9 years of data.  However, I didn't see sampling demos etc. So one can't say how much change is impacted by changes in the composition of the sample. (I'm sure they have that data and it may be there, I just didn't catch it)

Speaking for myself, while strategy is still a preferred category, the emergence of handhelds like Steam Deck has definitely impacted what I play.  It makes it much easier and more attractive to do casual doses of roguelikes like Hades or Metroidvania type games, that 9 years ago I rarely would have played.  So my profile may have changed, but not because social media is rotting my brain (I hope) but because evolution in hardware has made certain kinds of games more approachable.

[The Minsky Moment]

For example, what if gamers are better able to engage with strategy games on a more emotional level nowadays, falling more into the other survey categories? That would produce these results in the survey.

For example, competing motivation include things like immersion and discovery. In the last decade, have my expectations changed in that regard for things like Paradox titles?  Possibly - if the title makes a trade off by streamlining some planning complexities in return for more period immersion, that's something I'd probably view as a positive.  It doesn't necessarily mean abandoning strategy for Candy Crush.

[Zanza]

Out of interest I checked the Steam figures on which games are played.

https://steamdb.info/charts/

The first strategy game I noticed (but don't know all games) was Hearts of Iron at #28,then Civ6 at #34. So strategy games seem similarly popular as Euro Truck Simulator and Farming Simulator. 

Top hundred games had like ten strategy games.

[Syt]

I mean DOTA2 is on #2. I'd argue that's probably a game thriving on strategic planning, i.e. knowing what character to play, which items to buy when, how to level up your character efficiently, understanding other characters and how to synergize/counter them ... Started Valley is also up there. Yes, more casual and chill than other titles, but surely one that thrives on planning our your farm and daily activities.

I tried filtering by Strategy tag, but CSGO is still on 1 then. Not saying it doesn't involve strategy or planning but it's not what I would call a "core" strategy title.

[Tamas]

I mean DOTA2 is on #2. I'd argue that's probably a game thriving on strategic planning, i.e. knowing what character to play, which items to buy when, how to level up your character efficiently, understanding other characters and how to synergize/counter them ... Started Valley is also up there. Yes, more casual and chill than other titles, but surely one that thrives on planning our your farm and daily activities.

I tried filtering by Strategy tag, but CSGO is still on 1 then. Not saying it doesn't involve strategy or planning but it's not what I would call a "core" strategy title.

Good points.

[crazy canuck]

The article itself is not that clearly written.

However, it links to the survey company and they give a decent explanation of their methods as well as their survey (which takes only a few minutes to go through). It's like those political categorization surveys but for games. https://quanticfoundry.com/2024/05/21/strategy-decline/

They claim to have 9 years of data.  However, I didn't see sampling demos etc. So one can't say how much change is impacted by changes in the composition of the sample. (I'm sure they have that data and it may be there, I just didn't catch it)

Speaking for myself, while strategy is still a preferred category, the emergence of handhelds like Steam Deck has definitely impacted what I play.  It makes it much easier and more attractive to do casual doses of roguelikes like Hades or Metroidvania type games, that 9 years ago I rarely would have played.  So my profile may have changed, but not because social media is rotting my brain (I hope) but because evolution in hardware has made certain kinds of games more approachable.

It sounds like they asked the same questions over those nine years so at least there is some baseline.

[grumbler]

I'd say that the key to differentiating strategy games is that they feature deferred gratification. Eschewing immediate gain in the hope of cashing in on a bigger gain in the future is what strategy is all about.  I'd be interested in seeing how chess ranks against these other games.

[HisMajestyBOB]

I find myself preferring simpler strategy games these days. Not necessarily easier, but something that's easy to play for an hour or two, and that doesn't have too convoluted rules, like Rule the Waves, Battle Brothers, Strategic Command. Between kids, work, and life, just don't have the time anymore to sit and grapple with Victoria 3, War in the Pacific or anything else on a grand scale.