May 31st, 2023, Rishad Dsouza
The launch of Street Fighter 6 has been welcomed with glowing reviews in the gaming sphere and YouGov data shows that gamers have been abuzz for the game throughout May. The Capcom franchise witnessed a 10.8-point uptick in Buzz scores among gamers in the US, from an average of 4.9 in April to 15.6 in May.
A franchise’s Buzz score is the difference between the percentage of respondents hearing positive things (from friends, family, or the media) and the percentage hearing negative things about it in the past two weeks. This Buzz movers piece highlights the video game franchises that registered the biggest month-over-month upticks in Buzz scores among gamers. Gamers are defined as those who play on PC or console for at least an hour each week.
Street Fighter, which has won accolades for many aspects of the new title – most notably the story mode – was able to marginally eclipse the Buzz rise of The Legend of Zelda. The Nintendo title picked up a 9.5-point uplift in Buzz scores amid the critical acclaim received by Tears of the Kingdom. We did a deeper dive into the franchise’s brand metrics in mid-May.
Madden NFL made a 7.7-point improvement in Buzz to round off the list in the US. The franchise has been the subject of discussion and speculation over the expected release of Madden NFL 24.
Across the pond, Tom Clancy’s Rainbow Six takes the top spot with a 3.6-point rise in Buzz, possibly influenced by a new expansion for Rainbow Six Siege called Operation Dread Factor.
Call of Duty takes the second spot rising from 2.2 in April to 5.6 in May. There have been some rumors that the franchise will reveal its 2023 game in early August. EA Sports FC rounds off the list with a 3.0-point uptick, showing that excitement might be building for EA’s first full-fledged football video game without the FIFA tag.
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Methodology: YouGov BrandIndex collects data on major video gaming franchises. Buzz score is based on the 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?” and delivered as a net score between –100 and +100. Scores reported represent the change between the 30-day daily average between March 30 – April 29, 2023 and April 30 – May 29, 2023. Scores are based on an average sample size of 333 gamers in Great Britain and 468 in the US. Daily figures are based on a four-week moving average.
Image credit: Street Fighter