So much for the tasteless jokes being shouted in voice chat! New Scientist magazine dredges up a whole new set of stereotypes for EverQuest II gamers in their study of 7,000 EQ2 players. What did they find?

They focused on just one game - EverQuest II, an online fantasy role-playing game - offering players a virtual weapon as a reward for returning the questionnaire.



Adult gamers had a body mass index of just over 25, which is the threshold for "overweight", while the US average is 28.

The average gamer also said that they engaged in vigorous physical exercise once or twice a week.

There is a downside to this study's findings though:

However, gamers did report more instances of depression and substance abuse than their non-playing peers, although whether this was caused by the game, or they were drawn to gaming because of pre-existing problems, is unclear.

Very interesting stuff! Read more on this study at BBC News!