The gaming industry in India has grown dramatically in recent years. It’s estimated that there are more than 300 million gamers in the country. The growth has occurred in all areas of online gaming from popular multiplayer games like PlayerUnkown’s Battlegrounds to favourite online casino games like blackjack.
For online gaming overall, India is in the top five countries and is competitive with major players like the USA. For casino game content, you can get an idea of the growth comparison from here. So, there is definite growth in the gaming industry; but what does this have to do with smartphones?
Why smartphones are promoting growth in online gaming
The smartphone industry in India is the second largest in the world. This means that there is a huge appetite to be able to use apps and mobile friendly web content. Phones have moved away from simply being communication devices into forms of entertainment.
This entertainment includes gaming. In India, as it has across the world, the growth in the use of smartphones as entertainment devices has led to a significant increase in mobile gaming. This has led to an overall increase in gaming as the industry has moved further towards the mobile sector as opposed to traditional PC/Mac gaming.
Other reasons for the rise in online gaming
The increase in smartphone use in India is not the only reason for the growth in the gaming industry. There are other factors which need to be taken into account.
- There is a large youth population in India. Around one third of the overall population is thought to be aged 25 and under. This group of individuals tends to have a high understanding of technology and a love of gaming.
- The young population means that there are more people of working age who have money to spend. People have the finances to be able to invest in gaming content.
- There is a potential for financial reward from gaming. Top Indian gamers like Raunak Sen aka Crowley, Ankit ‘V3nom’ Panth and Simar Sethi aka Psy can make substantial amounts of money from taking part in e-sports tournaments and from live streaming their play on platforms such as Twitch and YouTube. This potential for income has turned gaming from a pastime into a possible career for the best players.
- Technology continues to advance and features such as VR are starting to have an influence on gaming. As advances in technology continue, they are only likely to improve the quality of the gaming experience. This in turn will lead to an ongoing appetite for the latest games, within India and across the world.
These reasons combine with the use of smartphones to help secure India as a major force in the global gaming industry.
As the use of smartphones continues to increase, and technology continues to improve, it only seems likely that there will be a positive impact on the Indian gaming market.
