One Store on Jan. 26 released its "2025 gaming usage trends" based on an analysis of its purchase data.

The analysis found people in their 30s and 40s are the core gaming cohort. Users in their 30s ranked first in both the number of buyers and share of total payments. Users in their 40s had the highest spending per buyer, showing they were big spenders.

By contrast, users in their 20s had a large number of buyers but a low share of payment amounts. The report attributed this to a value-driven tendency that actively uses benefits such as coupons and points. Teenagers had a relatively low share of payments, showing a usage pattern focused on free games.

Payment times also differed clearly by age group. Teenagers had the highest share of payments after 10 p.m., after their daily schedules ended. Users in their 20s used the service most during lunchtime, while users in their 30s and 40s, with a high share of office workers, concentrated payments during commuting hours.

How users used benefits also differed. Teenagers responded to immediate discounts and coupons, while users in their 20s used points and memberships evenly. Users in their 30s and 40s, who make larger payments, made heavy use of point-back that returns part of the payment amount. Those aged 50 and older showed a high reliance on telecom membership benefits.

One Store also disclosed design features of icons for top-grossing games. An AI analysis found top-grossing games used warm colors and low contrast and preferred simple compositions centered on character faces. Another feature was raising recognisability with short logos or abbreviated text. By contrast, lower-grossing games tended to have complex backgrounds and color contrasts that reduced readability.

One Store has maintained second place with a 12.6 percent share of domestic app market game transaction value over the past 5 years. As of the first half of last year, the average purchase amount per paying buyer was tallied at about 5 times that of Google Play.

One Store CEO Tae-young Park (박태영) said, "We will do our best to help developers succeed by providing tailored benefits that match the characteristics of each age group."