  Location-based games (LBG) impose virtual spaces on top of physical
locations. Studies have explored LBG from various perspectives. However, a
comprehensive study of who these players are, their traits, their
gratifications, and the links between them is conspicuously absent from the
literature. In this paper, we aim to address this lacuna through a series of
surveys with 2390 active LBG players utilizing Tondello's Player Traits Model
and Scale of Game playing Preferences, and Hamari's scale of LBG
gratifications. Our findings (1) illustrate an association between player
satisfaction and social aspects of the studied games, (2) explicate how the
core-loops of the studied games impact the expressed gratifications and the
affine traits of players, and (3) indicate a strong distinction between
hardcore and casual players based on both traits and gratifications. Overall
our findings shed light into the players of LBG, their traits, and
gratifications they derive from playing LBGs.
