Is India welcoming the trend of making every family member a gamer?

The global gaming industry has evolved leaps and bounds in recent years. Amongst the various forms of gaming, fitness gaming has also been introduced to the world. Platforms such as Xbox, Nintendo, Dance Dance Revolution have an array of activities to offer - from home workouts to virtual sports, from yoga to dance. Fitness gaming platforms position themselves as a combination of entertainment and physical activity, and players across the world are adopting fitness games, many making it a part of their daily routine as well.

India is also seeing an immense rise in the gaming sector. It is a major part of the country's entertainment industry and is the second-largest base for online gamers in the world. The total gaming industry size of India is estimated at INR 136 billion and is expected to reach INR 290 billion by 2025. With Indian gaming enthusiasts gaining access to several international as well as home-grown platforms, both online and offline, the industry is only to grow further. But this also poses a question: Will the Indian gaming landscape evolve in the coming years?

But first, who’s gaming in India?

Everyone! Video games are no longer perceived as something that lazy teenagers would spend their time doing. Today, gaming is for everyone. Using technology to their advantage, developers are changing the gaming landscape, encouraging players of different ages to participate. There are about 400 million gamers recorded in India, the demographics ranging from tweens to the elderly with all genders engaging in some form of gaming.

Looking at the player profiles, a recent study by Kingston reported that over 87% of the gamers are under 30 years of age, over 65.4% ranging between 18-25 years, and 40+ year-olds engaging comparatively less. The same report also stated that 98.7% of gamers in India are male, but the number of female players is steadily increasing. On the other hand, a report on mobile gamers by Inmobi, earlier this year, stated that women constituted 43% of the audience, 12% of which in the 25-44 age group and 28% over 45 years. It also revealed that contrary to popular opinion, mobile gaming is also well-liked by older folks in the age group of 45-54 years.

How did gaming find its foot in India?

While the gaming industry in India was steadily growing in the background for quite a while, the pandemic induced lockdown escalated its growth exponentially. The fact that smartphones had penetrated the Indian market substantially and telecom network providers enabled users with easy access and affordable internet, online games were able to reach players across the country. Moreover, with the entire country forced to stay indoors, the surge towards games increased. The lack of social engagement provided the gaming industry with an opportunity to get more and more people playing.

Gaming platforms witnessed a binge-consumption pattern and participation came from bigger cities and small towns alike. The segment also saw an outstanding 100 per cent increase in user expenditure during the period. As a result, India climbed the ladder to reach the top position in the global mobile game downloads tally in the first nine months of 2020, recording about 7.3 billion installations. Indian gamers logged an average of 8.5 hours of weekly playing time.

So, what’s next?

India is a young market for the gaming industry, and with over 560 million internet users in the country, it holds huge potential to go beyond the beaten track. The pandemic-era has seen a spike of 117 percent searches for online games implies that game developers have great scope to innovate and bring new gaming for Indian players. Keeping in mind that the pandemic has also brought a greater awareness towards health and well-being, incorporating fitness with gaming can help the industry to drive a meaningful change.

Fitness gaming is already finding its way into the Indian market. Platforms, like Yipli, are not only providing the entertainment of gaming but also making people take a step towards leading an active lifestyle. Fitness games compel players to move away from the traditional sedentary way of gaming. Players engage in some sort of physical activity based on their fitness level and as they move forward with the game, they get better with it. For people stuck indoors, fitness gaming is a wonderful way to enjoy and stay fit. It is like the playground has come to you, when you cannot go to the playground, for reasons beyond your control. Research also shows that family bonds strengthen when members engage in an activity together, and what can be better than fitness gaming for that? Consider this, family members encouraging each other to get fitter through gaming! Check out our blog to find out how doing something together improves family ties.

It’s just the beginning.

The growing acceptance of gaming in the Indian market has led to many innovations in casual gaming already. Fantasy gaming is also gaining popularity. As we go forward, we would like to see more niche segments like fitness gaming with one-for-all age game formats. Developers should focus on games that provide a wholesome experience for all members of a family. Moreover, the rise of gaming in India has evidently caught the attention of foreign companies in the industry and the segment could attract FDI inflows in the coming years. So, we say, it’s just the beginning..