Lighthouse Studio Conducts Survey on Game Character Appeal and Attachment: Prioritizing "Preference and Attachment" Beyond Just "Strength"

Lighthouse Studio, a group company of CARTA HOLDINGS Inc. that operates game media such as "Kamigame Kouroku" (CEO: Tomoyuki Kato, Naoki Kishida, hereinafter "Lighthouse Studio"), conducted an awareness survey on the appeal, attachment, and acquisition judgment of game characters targeting 300 game users nationwide who play games with character collection and development elements.

As a result, the most emphasized element when acquiring new characters was "Visual Design (Appearance Preference)" at 35.3%, revealing that users prioritize not only "strength" but also "preference" and "attachment."

■ Survey Overview

Survey Date: February 27, 2026 - March 3, 2026

Survey Target: Game users nationwide

Survey Method: Online questionnaire

Number of Respondents: 300

■ Survey Result Summary (Most Frequent Answers)

- The most emphasized element when acquiring new characters is "Visual Design (Appearance Preference)" (35.3%)

- For "Strongest Character Rankings (Tier Lists)" on strategy sites and social media, approximately half (49.3%) responded, "I refer to them, but prioritize my own preferences."

- The biggest reason for continuing to love a character for a long time is "fondness/attachment" (46.3%)

- The stance when playing games is "I want to strategize, but also enjoy it at my own pace" (55.3%)

- For "characters who are excellent in performance but whose appearance or personality is not to my liking," the response was "reluctantly acquire for strategy" (46.3%)

- For "characters whose appearance and personality are to my liking, but have low performance and limited use," the response was "acquire but do not use in actual combat" (48.7%)

- The visual element that tends to attract users is "good facial features and expressions" (48.7%)

- The reason for later becoming fond of a character who was initially not of interest was "being drawn to their personality or background" (45.0%)

- For "limit breaks" of favorite characters, the target is "up to the point where performance dramatically changes" (28.0%)

- The action taken when becoming fond of a character is "proceeding with game strategy using that character" (47.7%)

■ Survey Results

Playstyle: "I want to strategize, but also enjoy it at my own pace" was the most frequent at 55.3%

Regarding game playstyle, "I want to strategize, but also enjoy it at my own pace" was the most frequent at 55.3%.

Following that, "I want to enjoy the story and interactions with characters" was 24.4%, and "Prioritizing performance and aiming to master high-difficulty content" was 20.3%.

When acquiring characters, the most emphasized factor is "Visual Design" at 35.3%

The most emphasized element when acquiring new characters in the game was "Visual Design (Appearance Preference)" at 35.3%.

Following that were "In-game performance/strength" at 32.3%, and "Inner aspects such as story and personality" at 28.7%. "Voice actor" accounted for 2.7%, and "Others" for 1.0%.

Judgment criteria for male and female characters: "Both male and female characters: visual and inner aspects" is the most frequent at 33.0%

Regarding the criteria for acquiring "male characters" and "female characters" in games, "Both male and female characters: 'Visual and inner aspects'" was the most frequent at 33.0%.

Following that were "I don't consciously differentiate based on gender" at 24.0%, and "Both male and female characters: 'Performance'" at 23.0%. "Female characters: visual, male characters: performance" was 15.7%, and "Male characters: visual, female characters: performance" was 4.3%.

For characters who are strong but not preferred: "Acquire for strategy" is the most frequent at 46.3%

Regarding the response when encountering "characters who are excellent in performance but whose appearance or personality is not to my liking," "reluctantly acquire for strategy" was the most frequent at 46.3%.

Following that were "acquire and develop without hesitation to use as main" at 33.0%, and "do not acquire because it's not to my liking" at 20.7%.

For characters who are preferred but have low performance: "Acquire but do not use in actual combat" is the most frequent at 48.7%

Regarding the response when encountering "characters whose appearance and personality are to my liking, but have low performance and limited use," "acquire but do not use in actual combat" was the most frequent at 48.7%.

Following that were "always acquire and cherish regardless of performance" at 40.3%, and "do not acquire even if preferred" at 11.0%.

Regarding Tier Lists: "Refer but prioritize my own preferences" is the most frequent at 49.3%

Regarding the influence of "Strongest Character Rankings (Tier Lists)" on strategy sites and social media on character acquisition criteria, "I refer to them, but prioritize my own preferences" was the most frequent at 49.3%.

Following that were "actively acquire regardless of my own preferences" at 26.7%, "I do not look at rankings or others' evaluations at all" at 12.3%, and "do not care at all even if the ranking is low" at 11.7%.

Visual elements that tend to attract users: "good facial features and expressions" is the most frequent at 48.7%

Regarding the visual elements that tend to attract users when becoming "fond" of a character, "good facial features and expressions" was the most frequent at 48.7%.

Following that were "overall atmosphere" at 45.3%, "design of clothing and accessories" at 44.7%, "body shape and proportions" at 37.3%, and "battle animations and skill effects" at 34.3%. "No particular attractive element" was 9.0%, and "Others" was 0.7%.

Reason for becoming fond of a character later: "being drawn to their personality or background" is the most frequent at 45.0%

Regarding the reason for later becoming "fond" of a character who was initially not of interest, "being drawn to their personality or background" was the most frequent at 45.0%.

Following that were "because they were stronger than imagined when actually used" at 38.7%, and "noticed their charm through their relationships with other characters" at 32.7%. "Saw fan art or SNS reviews" was 9.0%, and "I have no such experience" was 17.0%.

Elements that make users feel they cannot like a character: "personality doesn't suit me" is the most frequent at 34.7%

Regarding elements that make users feel they cannot like a character, even if their appearance or performance is good, "personality doesn't suit me" was the most frequent at 34.7%.

Following that were "out of sync with the game's world view" at 33.0%, and "discomfort with the voice actor's performance or voice" at 29.3%. "An immediately superior character was released" was 16.7%, "None in particular" was 24.7%, and "Others" was 0.3%.

Limit Breaks: "Aiming up to the point where performance dramatically changes" is the most frequent at 28.0%

Regarding the stance on "limit breaks (drawing the same character multiple times)" to further strengthen favorite characters, "aiming up to the point where performance dramatically changes" was the most frequent at 28.0%.

Following that were "aiming for limit breaks as much as possible" at 26.0%, "doing so within the free range using distributed items etc." at 24.0%, and "satisfied with securing one copy" at 22.0%.

Paid cosmetic outfits: "Will not purchase with real money" is the most frequent at 40.0%

Regarding the response when paid cosmetic outfits are sold for characters whose appearance is liked but performance is low, "will not purchase with real money" was the most frequent at 40.0%.

Following that were "purchase only for characters I regularly use" at 23.7%, "will definitely purchase if I like the appearance" at 20.3%, and "not interested in cosmetic elements" at 16.0%.

Collaboration characters: "Judge by the same criteria as regular characters" is the most frequent at 33.7%

Regarding whether the acquisition criteria change for "collaboration characters" from existing anime or other works compared to original characters, "judge collaboration characters by the same criteria as regular characters" was the most frequent at 33.7%.

Following that were "not very interested in collaboration characters" at 27.3%, "will not acquire if in-game performance is low" at 24.0%, and "acquire even if in-game performance is low" at 15.0%.

The biggest reason for continuing to love a character for a long time is "fondness/attachment" at 46.3%

Regarding the biggest reason for ultimately continuing to love (use) a single character for a long time, "'fondness/attachment' exists" was the most frequent at 46.3%.

Following that were "because they have 'strength/versatility' that allows them to be active" at 25.3%, "because I like the character's 'humanity/existence'" at 20.4%, and "because the 'visuals' are perfect" at 8.0%.

Actions taken towards favorite characters: "Proceeding with game strategy using that character" is the most frequent at 47.7%

Regarding actions often taken inside and outside the game when becoming fond of a character, "proceeding with game strategy using that character" was the most frequent at 47.7%.

Following that were "no particular special actions" at 28.3%, "paying to acquire/strengthen that character" at 25.0%, and "enjoying searching for illustrations and impressions on SNS" at 22.0%. "Purchasing official goods or LINE stickers" was 9.7%, "creating and sharing fan art" was 9.0%, and "Others" was 0.3%.

■ Conclusion

This survey revealed that game users prioritize preference and attachment over performance aspects like strength and rankings when acquiring characters. Furthermore, there is a tendency to be drawn to inner elements such as personality and background, in addition to design aspects like good facial features and expressions. It also became clear that users wish to enjoy games at their own pace while progressing through strategies.

From these results, it can be said that to gain support for characters, not only performance design but also the design of visual appeal as a first impression, and inner and narrative elements that lead to continued attachment are important.

■ About Lighthouse Studio Inc.

Lighthouse Studio operates media businesses such as the game strategy site "Kamigame Kouroku" ( https://kamigame.jp/ ), which exceeds 100 million PV per month, and the e-commerce media "Kaubel" ( https://kaubel.com/ ), as well as the influencer marketing business "LIT LIVE" ( https://lighthouse-studio.voyage/litlive.html ). Lighthouse Studio strives to be a "lighthouse" for users and companies by promoting businesses and services to solve their challenges.

■ Company Profile

Company Name: Lighthouse Studio Inc.
Representative: Representative Directors Tomoyuki Kato, Naoki Kishida
Location: Toranomon Hills Station Tower 36F, 2-6-1 Toranomon, Minato-ku, Tokyo
Established: November 1, 2017
Business Description: Media business providing game information, influencer marketing business, and game-related businesses.
Major Shareholder: CARTA HOLDINGS Inc. URL: https://lighthouse-studio.voyage/
Inquiries from Media: CARTA HOLDINGS Inc. Public Relations: https://cartaholdings.co.jp/contact/pr/form/
Business Inquiries: Lighthouse Studio Inc.: https://voyage.maildealer.jp/f.php?c=39&s=4637