Back in June, Ariel Edwards-Levy shared a 1940 Gallup poll, presumably conducted face-to-face, about what games Americans played in the past year.
I thought it would be fun to re-run that question and see how things have changed. Here’s the most played of these games today, sorted in descending order by 2023 results.
![](https://i0.wp.com/troypress.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/10/1940-2023-games-by-current-frequency.png?resize=760%2C428&ssl=1)
And here’s those same findings sorted by the biggest change (absolute value).
![](https://i0.wp.com/troypress.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/10/1940-2023-games-by-change.png?resize=760%2C428&ssl=1)
The average of these games was played by 25% of Americans in 1940, and by 28% in 2023. Key changes—
- Those who have played Solitaire in the past year have doubled compared to 1940: 65% vs. 33%. I’m going to assume that’s because of people playing Solitaire on their computers, smartphones, and tablets. I don’t think more people are sitting alone at the kitchen table dealing out cards.
- Bridge playing has collapsed, dropping from 38% to 6%. Perhaps because of the requirement for exactly four players, it’s no longer a common social activity. Similarly, pinochle playing has collapsed, dropping from 27% to 5%.
- Chess playing has quintupled, to 30%; again, I’m going to assume that’s due to video games. While usually I see people playing Candy Crush on their devices at the airport, I do see chess players as well.
- The growth in Dominoes surprises me, as it doubled from 17% to 35%, though anecdotally I’ve heard of more people playing Mexican Train Dominoes.
- I’m also surprised at the growth in Charades, from 4% to 15%. No idea what’s going on there.
- Poker playing is less a social activity, with the rise of online gambling: poker playing is up 5 percentage points, increasing to 35%.
- The number who has played golf has increased, from 15% to 20%; this may now include golf-related activities, such as putting greens, driving ranges, and more realistic miniature golf. Tennis playing has increased from 14% to 17%.
As we’ve written elsewhere, mobile games have made Americans a nation of gamers. They’ve also transformed playing games from a social activity to a more individualistic activity.
Researchscape International, which conducts PR surveys and newsmaker surveys, fielded an online survey of 1,076 U.S. adults from September 8 to 11, 2023. Results were weighted by ten demographic variables to better represent the overall U.S. population.
Photo credit: iStockPhoto Diane Labombarbe.
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