Facebook has 'more gamers than Microsoft, Nintendo and Sony combined'

[thekitchensink]

padib said:

thekitchensink said:
HA! They think people play Facebook games because they're simpler? No, they play them because they're... what's the word... oh yeah--FREE!

Do they honestly think that more people would play these games than, say, Mario or Call of Duty, if those games were both free and available at the click of a button?

I think not.

The pick up and play nature of those games is very compelling free or not, that's my opinion on it. You'd be surprised how many people pay for Farmville items or Mousehunt special items and such. Those aren't free I can guarantee it.

Fair enough, but let me put it another way.  The average Call of Duty sells ~20 million copies, and it costs $60 for the most basic version.  In order to play it, people also have to go out to the store and by it, which deters some people.

Regardless of things like microtransactions, but I can guarantee that most of those alleged 200 million players do not spend $60 on in-game Facebook items.  There are certainly some people who spend a great deal more than that, but I promise you the average amount someone spends on Facebook games is much less than an average console game.

What I'm trying to say is, if Call of Duty can sell 20 million copies at a minimum of $60, then we can't even imagine how many players it would have if it was free and available at one click.