We are beginning to study the results of the first Rutgers Player-Authors survey of players regarding UGC practices in games.  A draft summary report of basic descriptive statistics is posted here.  Please do not cite or repost this draft version, as the numbers will likely change slightly.  We will have a firmer version posted here soon. 

However, based on initial analysis, the following appear to be true:

• We had over 400 valid responses
• The survey participation skewed substantially male (over 80%)
• The median age of respondents was roughly 30 years old
• The PC was respondents' most popular and preferred gaming platform
• The Sims was respondents' most played game among the available options
• Respondents shared UGC on YouTube more often than on other listed platforms
• The most common motivation of respondents for creating content was intrinsic pleasure (enjoyment of creativity) and the least common motivation was financial (to make money)
• The most common UGC practice of respondents was making new objects within games
• The least common UGC practice was costumes and crafts
• Respondents generally favored the genre of action/arcade/adventure games the most -- racing and sports games were the least popular
• Roughly half of respondents stated that they had created "remix" UGC
• The most common reference material for in-game "remix" UGC was "other video games"
• The most common form of UGC creation among respondents was "maps/scenarios"; the least commons was "music/sound effects"
• Minecraft was the most popular platform for UGC sharing among respondents; Second Life was the least popular.
• The same was true for downloading: Minecraft was most the popular platform (among those listed) and Second Life was least popular.
• Respondents had a range of opinions on the value of UGC.  Most respondents thought that creative tools and the ability to access player-created content were important to their enjoyment of games.  However, many players felt that UGC was not so important to their decision to purchase a particular game.

More information about the player survey, including a finalized version of the Survey One summary, will be posted on the Player-Authors website shortly as we continue to refine and analyze the data.  We will also be posting initial results of other components of the Player-Authors project.

Please note: If you are a game developer and want to participate in Survey Two of the project (targeted at the UGC perceptions within the developer community), that survey is still live and posted here: http://bit.ly/playerauthors2