Esports has become one of the fastest-growing sectors in the world, not just with regard to sports but overall as well. There has been a lot of interest in esports over the last few years, which has only increased with the advancements in technology that have occurred, allowing for better performance and therefore a better experience while gaming. There are a number of esports leagues which take place annually, with prize pools going up to tens of millions of dollars, and professional teams, backed by sponsors, which participate in these events, which are viewed by millions of people live on dedicated streaming sites such as Twitch. However, Asia, as a market, has been one of the most lucrative ones for esports, and within Asia, it is India where there lies the most potential.
According to a report by Google and KPMG, the online gaming industry in India is expected to be worth more than $1 billion by 2021, with a growth rate of over 20% and around 310 million gamers in the country. Given that the report also states that Indian gamers use esports and online gaming for stress relief and social interaction, it is no surprise that the activity has become even more widespread over the last few months, when lockdowns were in place to control the spread of the COVID-19 virus. Puzzle, adventure and action games are the most popular in the country, based on this report, while mobile gaming is the sub-sector which is driving the industry in India.
A gaming specialist from Winz.io commented that the growth of gaming in India is a great opportunity to attract foreign investment and develop the online gaming industry in the country, and that has proven to be the case. There are several game developers and investors who have entered the esports scene in the country, especially for mobile games, with the rise of mobile gaming platforms such as the Mobile Premier League going to show just how popular the activity has become in India. Games such as Temple Run, Fruit Chop and now PUBG have been extremely popular in India, where smartphones have begun to be a lot more prevalent, and are certainly more common than high-end PCs or gaming consoles.
Mobile gaming has seen both single-player and multiplayer games prove to be a hit in the country, ranging from simple games such as Archery and Pool to the world-famous Counter-Strike and PUBG games. There are now over 250 Indian companies which have stepped into game development, providing a robust base to meet the rising demand for Indian games from the community. The government has also provided a host of subsidies and incentives for game developers, making it even more attractive to invest in the sector, which has also led to interest and investment from foreign companies. This will help in job creation as well as boosting revenue, while also giving the country a domestic industry to rival foreign game developers in the foreseeable future. At the same time, there are multiple bodies such as the Olympics organization and the Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FICCI) which have come forward to support the gaming industry in India. All of this support is only going to be beneficial for the industry in India, and one hopes that the country will soon be one of the big name players in the esports sector in the coming future, based on these investments and the interest that has been generated.
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