April 6th, 2022, Rishad Dsouza
To mark the release of MLB The Show 22, YouGov dips into YouGov BrandIndex data to examine consumer sentiment towards the title among Xbox, PlayStation and Nintendo Switch users in the US.
Buzz score is a net measure based on responses to two questions: “Over the past two weeks, which of the following video games have you heard something positive about?” and “Now which of the following video games have you heard something negative about?”. By calculating the difference between these two scores, we create our Buzz metric.
The brand received a solid uplift in scores after the launch of the gameplay trailer on February 9. Among Xbox users in the US, scores rose from 1.4 to 11.3 on March 23 before dipping slightly to 7.9 as of April 4.
PlayStation users reacted somewhat similarly, with Buzz scores among them rising from 6.3 on the day of the gameplay trailer’s launch to a peak of 12.9 on March 19, a score which has since dipped to 8.8. Buzz among Switch users rose from 3.3 on February 9 to 8.2 on April 4.
YouGov BrandIndex shows that this Buzz translates into higher purchase consideration for the franchise among both Xbox and PlayStation gamers. As of April 4, one day before the official launch, about one in six Xbox users (17%) say they will consider playing the title, representing an almost two-fold rise from the share who indicated the same on February 9 (9%). About 13% of PlayStation-using gamers are also considering giving the title a go. One in 10 Nintendo Switch users (10%) will also consider playing the title.
Using the Current Customer score, which tracks the share of people who play a certain title, YouGov BrandIndex will be able to track whether the increase in Consideration scores translates into tangible results.
Image Courtesy: MLB The Show 22
Receive monthly topical insights about the gaming and esports industry, straight to your inbox. Sign up today.
Discover more gaming and esports content here
Want to run your own research? Start building a survey now
Methodology: YouGov BrandIndex collects data on thousands of brands every day. MLB The Show’s Buzz score is based on the question: Overall, of which of the following video games have you heard something positive about? / Now of which of the following video games have you heard something negative about? And delivered as a net score between –100 and + 100. The Consideration score is based on the question “Which of the following video games would you consider playing?” and delivered as a percentage. Scores are based on an average daily sample size of 152 Xbox users and 206 PlayStation users. Figures are based on a 28-day moving average. Learn more about BrandIndex.