By Peush Bery, Head of Product Development Strategy, Witzeal
At its heart, developing a game is synonymous with building an experience. Across all genres, the core objective is always to create an immersive and engaging experience for the game player. But building a successful game requires a multifaceted team. Depending on the type of game, such a team mainly comprises of engineers that build and manage the backend and front, artists, and animators to create art, and game designers to design worlds and gameplay.
It’s safe to say that the past few years have been the inflection point for video games in India, catapulting it to the top five mobile gaming markets in the world with a growth rate of 38%. Currently, there are more than 400 gaming companies in India, and it is home to 420 million online gamers, second only to China, according to an analysis by KPMG.
The headway in the gaming industry is due to the growing younger population, higher disposable incomes, introduction of new gaming genres, increasing number of smartphone and tablet users, and high internet penetration rate.
India was a sleeping giant till Covid-19 happened, and now we have established ourselves as a market that cannot be ignored; stakeholders like the brands, investors, authorities and so on, were just sitting on the fence and observing.
A land of diverse cultures and traditions, India has been at the forefront of bringing technological innovations to create a highly immersive experience for gamers. Latest trends have showcased the integration of regional languages and traditions that shape the framework and content of the games. They have paved the way for the integration of vernacular languages like Hindi and Tamil in games creating immense exposure in tier2 and tier3 cities and have allowed content creators and developers a chance to grow.
Game developers, publishers and marketers have been steadily tapping the market potential through experimentation and introductions of unique concepts to enhance and extend the platform in helping brands advertise and garner viewership. Thus, we are witnessing a rise in various new concepts such as eSports, fantasy leagues, multiplayer social gaming, etc. Moreover, the gaming community has observed a demographical shift with an uptick in women game developers who are breaking the bias to introduce a fresh perspective to the fast-paced industry.
Hence, it is imperative to acquire the training and education of the industry at large and exhibit skill sets that demand technicality and creativity. Thus, an individual or developer today interested in venturing into the gaming industry will not only have to take a dedicated and formal educational route but also be willing to push boundaries and create cutting-edge experiences and content.
Moreover, gaming development companies in India can further revolutionize their inventory through various next-gen technologies to create a continuous advent of ground-breaking experiences. Furthermore, developers will need to strengthen their foundations from the grass root level, adopt cloud technologies and build the right infrastructure towards a world amassed with unparalleled experiences and one that will lead the industry to greater heights.
Earlier the gaming industry was not seen as a career-centric industry but with the pace of transformations occurring in the gaming sector, there is an increase in new Indian talent entering the gaming business that views game development as a viable career path.
Way forward
In the foreseeable future, India could potentially become a big player in Web3. India’s enviable software talent pool is its biggest strength especially amidst a time when the world is at the cusp of internet technology’s evolution from Web 2.0 to Web 3.0. According to the latest industry estimates, the domestic gaming industry is predicted to create 10,000–12,000 direct and indirect jobs by 2023.
Given the rate at which the gaming business is changing, the upcoming generation can be primarily seen making a successful career out of gaming. Taking cognisance of the same, even the central government is strongly supporting the market, with its announcement of setting up of a new task force known as ‘AVGC’. This new task force will cater to the global demand in animation, visual effects, gaming, and the comic sector.
With the right game developers, emerging technologies and government’s continuous support, India is certainly poised for a major leap in developing games and holds strong potential to emerge as the new online gaming powerhouse.