RuStore, in cooperation with the VK Music platform, has published the results of a study on the musical habits of mobile gaming audiences. The survey involved gamers aged 14 to 60, allowing researchers to cover both young and more mature segments of the audience. The key finding is that music remains an integral part of the gameplay experience, with 71% of respondents listening to music daily. Additionally, 49% of respondents have discovered new tracks and artists directly while playing, and among young players aged 14–34, this figure reaches 58%.
Genres Chosen by Gamers
A distinct energetic and heavy bias is clearly visible in genre preferences. Rock became the leader, chosen by 44% of participants, with pop music taking second place (39%). Soundtracks followed at 26%, electronic music at 24%, and metal at 24%. This breakdown confirms that the gaming audience gravitates toward music with pronounced dynamics and drive that blends well with active gaming. Calm and slow genres did not make the top list, highlighting the specific tastes of the community.
Top Artists in Playlists
Among favorite artists, the band Korol i Shut became the absolute leader, while the top also featured Aria, Kino, Linkin Park, Rammstein, Radio Tapok, Imagine Dragons, BTS, and Metallica. The list shows a notable combination of domestic rock and the global metal/rock scene, as well as the presence of pop and K-pop names, reflecting the broad tastes of the audience. The dominance of rock bands in the rating aligns with genre preferences and forms a recognizable sound profile for the mobile gamer.
How the Game Sounds: Custom Playlists or No Sound
Nearly half of the respondents—48%—prefer to turn on their own tracks while playing, doing so either constantly or periodically. Meanwhile, 32% of participants choose to play without sound, relying entirely on game mechanics and visuals. Thus, for a significant portion of the audience, music is not just background noise, but a conscious element of customizing the gameplay experience that helps them concentrate or, conversely, adds drive.
What They Play: From Casual to RPG
The choice of games themselves is also heterogeneous. Overall, 50% of respondents prefer puzzles and casual titles, but among the 14–34 age group, priorities shift toward RPGs (37%) and action games with shooters (35%). This indicates that younger players more frequently choose deeper, more time-consuming genres, whereas the older segment of the audience tends toward light and accessible gaming.
What This Means
The study by RuStore and VK Music gives platforms and app stores an insight into the musical life of a mobile gamer: from daily listening to discovering new artists right inside the game. For streaming services and publishers, this is a signal that integrating music into the gaming experience and recommending new tracks during gaming sessions can become an effective tool for audience retention. For the audience itself, the data confirms a simple thing: the typical mobile gamer is a rock and metal fan who plays to their own playlist.
