Online Gaming in India: Turning over a new leaf

The Indian gaming market is poised for explosive growth in the next four years, according to a new report from KPMG in India. They play all types of games, and the pandemic has come as a massive boon for India’s gaming sector.

We spoke to Rahul Bhatia, CEO & Co-Founder RVOnline Gaming to understand the gaming trends in India.

▾ The gaming trends

The pandemic, among many other things, has made people more cautious of spending time outside. The subsequent work-from-home and stay-at-home scenario, not only led to considerably more screen time for users but has also created more demand for new and fast-paced content on a screen near them.

This has led to a more engaging relationship between the users and the games they play. From working up proficiency levels to community gaming, users have driven a wider base of audience spending more time on online gaming. While most people still play online most of the time, the absence of social activities of pre-COVID times has given birth to social gaming as well. We have witnessed users playing in groups or building rapport with other players to spend more time in a given room or table.

We have witnessed a significant rise in the female gamers. A lot of them, owing to more time in hand, have taken up online gaming as a social as well as individual interest.

Lastly, this growth in audience and time spent has led to a larger pool of rewards and competition. New players, games, and trends have emerged making it a more evolved ecosystem.

▾ Boost in the mobile gaming

Smartphones have clearly become the most convenient and accessible go to device for online gaming.

Rahul Bhatia, CEO & Co-Founder RVOnline Gaming

However, I believe what has also come up is multiple screen engagement for a lot of users. With so much content up for grabs, users are now engaging through multiple screens-smartphones, PCs, tabs, Smart TVs.

Currently, when we look at the PC gaming business particularly and consider how the previous few months have gone, data suggests that there’s a lot coming up for 2021. According to the most current IDC data, the Indian PC market saw its best quarter in the last seven years, during which the PC gaming sector saw a significant increase in the number of players.

I do not believe that PC gaming is dying; in fact, it is thriving in the current environment. Modes may vary, but gaming is here to stay.

▾ Cloud gaming and its future

I agree that we have entered the cloud era, and gaming has emerged as one of the fastest-growing businesses in India and throughout the world in recent years. Cloud computing has introduced a new dimension to the world of gaming. It is a futuristic trend, but AI, machine learning, and Big Data will also play a big role in developing as well as playing games. Developers and Gaming companies have started gathering and measuring insights on players and users to optimize the user experience and gameplay across the ecosystem.

Cloud Gaming will also make gaming accessible, affordable, and safe for users. One would not have to download or buy games every now and then from unverified sources to play games. This will also reduce piracy in the longer run.

▾ Impact of 5G

5G, in my opinion, is a blessing for cloud gaming because it addresses the constraints that have been holding it back for quite some time now. 5G will enable streaming games on mobile phones smoother than ever before, transforming smartphones into cloud gaming machines. Gaming and tech firms are increasingly looking at 5G and cloud gaming as significant gains. Smartphones may make excellent AR or VR devices, negating the need for a VR headset. Along with cloud gaming, this will transform the online gaming industry in a big way.

▾ Threats and challenges

An inherent and always there challenge is the lack of uniformity in the legality of online gaming across Indian states. The ambiguity poses a challenge for investors in the sector and that may slow down the pace of development in the sector.

The average revenue per user is also something that is considerably low in India as compared to the global average, from USD 5-10 to USD 100-120. But I believe, Indian online gaming is turning over a new leaf, and with more mature and serious gamers discovering passion and interest, there will be a healthy increase in user spends going forward.

Lastly, localization is key. We need more Indian studios and game developers to make world-class experience products that change the industry outlook from promising to lucrative.