On the surface, there are bigger leaders in the mobile gaming industry than India. China, for example, has more than 500 million smartphone users and was the first country to take popular PC and console games and turn them into mobile titles. Plus, only two of the top mobile games in India are developed in the country, which is very low for a nation with plans on taking the market by storm. However, recent developments twinned with a booming and tech-savvy population means that there is a chance that the home of Bollywood could overtake China, Europe and APAC as the industry’s undisputed kings. Continue reading to find out more.
Young Talent
Usually, young talent doesn’t get an opportunity to shine when established and lucrative developers are already on the scene and making money. However, the story is different in India due to the ban on Chinese apps and games, such as PlayerUnknown’s Battlegrounds (PUBG). Considering that PUBG Lite accounts for two-thirds of the downloads in India, there is a massive gap to fill, and homegrown creators and innovators aren’t hanging around. Thanks to the likes of 99Games, Games2Win Media and Zapak, there are tons of popular titles that are proud to be Indian. These include Parking Frenzy India and Car Parking Puzzle Game, online games with tens of millions of monthly users. As more Indian mobile developers get a shot at making games, the popularity of homegrown titles will inevitably skyrocket.
Smartphone Ownership
India is often viewed as an emerging or developing country, which might tempt people into assuming that its citizens aren’t as technologically advanced. Yet, the opposite is true. Take smartphone ownership as an example. Around 25% of India’s population, or 400 million people, own a modern mobile device, meaning that the accessibility of mobile games is incredibly high. And, when you consider how Indian game developers are targeting cultural and societal trends, you can see why gaming is a popular pursuit. Andar Bahar is an excellent example as it is an Indian game usually played in the street or in-person. However, as technology has developed, gaming companies and online casinos have published Andar Bahar online games to huge fanfare. The number of sites offering free bets and matching deposits only highlights this fact.
The Current Landscape
You only have to look at the current landscape to see how big online gaming is in India. By 2021, for instance, the online gaming base is expected to reach 310 million gamers, which is almost double what it was in 2017. That’s not all, either. 2021 should also confirm that the market value has risen from $360 million to $1 billion in three years at a growth rate of 20%. Apart from smartphone use and accessibility, the popularity of mobile games is down to the convenience of payment options, both in-play and apps stores. The health of the industry shows how India is a sleeping giant that is ready to wake up.
When it does, the dominance that China and Europe share might disappear rapidly as India has everything it needs to take over as the market leader.
