Bored in the house, Indians began to retaliate by turning to online games, which has promoted the growth of the industry in India which is still in its developing stage. From July to September last year, the number of mobile game downloads in China reached 2.9 billion from less than 2 billion in the first quarter of 20 years. According to a recent report published by KPMG about 250 million gamers at the end of the 2018 fiscal year to the mid-fiscal year 20, the number of Indian gamers increased to nearly 400 million, making the country “the world’s second-largest online player base after China”.

Analysts believe this trend will continue; although consumption growth has slowed after the opening of the city after the first lockdown, most key business indicators (such as Monthly Active Users (MAU)) compared to the period before Covid). The average operating level is still higher. In fact, the restrictions imposed to lead the rising second wave may only help consumption.

It is estimated that by FY25, the number of game users in India will reach 659 million. Analysts said that by the 25th fiscal year, industry revenue will increase from 136 billion rupees in the 21st fiscal year dominated by casual games to 290 billion rupees.

Better access to smartphones and low data prices are helping the industry expand its coverage and stimulate its growth. “In addition to metropolitan areas and first-tier cities, penetration into second-tier cities is also gradually beginning. In addition, there are more and more female gamers, and the social stigma and resistance to online games, especially casual games, is gradually fading,” KPMG analysts report concludes.

No wonder the topic of localized content began to appear in the game manual because developers wanted to attract new audiences. “India’s most popular games, such as Teen Patti, Ludo King, etc., all provide options to play in local languages (such as Hindi, Gujarati, Marathi, etc.),” say analysts. In addition, the number of online game developers has also increased, especially in the casual mobile game sector in India,” they added.

Investors also strongly support the industry. Between August 2020 and January 2021, it is estimated that US$544 million has been injected into the gaming industry. Investment should help local companies expand their business and serve global markets, many of which lack the means to compete with global competitors. Analysts said that looking ahead, once 5G enters India on a large scale, cloud gaming is another market segment that may stand out in India. Cloud gaming will be redefined by 5G because it will provide a better gaming experience.

Credits: Financial Express