India's Gaming Moment

With india becoming a large gaming market, will the centre’s push for a task force help create more world-class developers and jobs for the youth?

- M.G. Arun

$300 BILLION (Rs 22.5 LAKH CRORE) SIZE OF THE GLOBAL GAMING INDUSTRY

$2.4 BILLION (Rs 18,090 CRORE) SIZE OF THE GAMING INDUSTRY IN INDIA

440 MILLION GAMERS IN INDIA

$3.9 BILLION (Rs 29,396 CRORE) ESTIMATED SIZE OF INDIAN GAMING INDUSTRY BY 2025*

S. SRI VIDYA, 19, A COMMERCE STUDENT IN HYDERABAD, became an online gaming enthusiast during the pandemic since all her usual social interactions with her friends had come to a halt. Her choice was Valorant, a first-person tactical shooter game developed by US-based Riot Games, and made available in India in 2020. Since the game can be played only on a personal computer, she upgraded to a more expensive laptop with a gaming keyboard that has games-specific control keys highlighted. Since Valorant is played in teams of five, she invites four of her friends to join in as they battle with another team. The game’s excellent graphics and dynamic characterization got her hooked. “I like to play the girl character Jett, who uses wind, clouds, and knives to take on her enemies,” says Srividya, who turns to game any time she feels bored or has some free time.

Srividya is part of the growing tribe of Indian gamers—250 million in 2018, 440 million today—fuelling an Indian gaming industry that is already worth an estimated $2.4 billion (Rs 18,090 crore). As per consulting firm Accenture, worldwide, gaming/ esports is a $300 billion (Rs 22.5 lakh crore) business. Underlining the rising appeal of esports is its inclusion in the 2022 Asian Games. It will be one of the 37 sports played at the games to be held in Hangzhou, China, from September 10-25. India is still at a nascent stage in this industry but has a lot of potential for growth. Consulting firm KPMG projects the industry to grow to $3.9 billion (Rs 29,396 crore) by 2025 in India.