The Indian gaming ecosystem has seen a tremendous increase in both community involvement and revenue over the last few years. That’s why there has been a surge in esports, console gaming, and game development in recent times. And, amid the global pandemic, the industry further witnessed a surge as more Indians sought video games as immersive entertainment. This has consequently increased public awareness of the Indian gaming sector as a strong and promising domain, showcasing great potential.
India became the largest consumer of mobile games in FY 2022 in total downloads. Currently, India’s market is three times the size of the US and nearly two and a half times the size of China. Since 2020, total game downloads have grown from 6.5 billion to 15 billion. India also had the highest share of game downloads (17 per cent) globally in 2022.
India’s gaming market, which stood at $2.6 billion in 2022, is expected to grow at a Compounded Annual Growth Rate (CAGR) of 27 per cent to reach $8.6 billion by 2027. The revenue source is likely to move from RMG (real money games), where users play to earn, to in-app purchases, a category growing at 34 per cent CAGR.
Why invest in the gaming sector?
- India is the largest gaming market in terms of app downloads.
- There are more than 400 million gamers and 500+ gaming studios in India.
- India has around 600,000 esports players and 100,000 esports teams.
In addition to this,
- Indian Government is setting up a National Animation, Visual Effects, Gaming, and Comic (AVGC) Centre of Excellence in collaboration with IIT Bombay.
- Karnataka and Telangana have dedicated state-level AVGC policies.
- The government will also set up an AVGC task force to realize the sector’s potential.
Career opportunities in Gaming
Programming roles are very important as programmers contribute significantly to game development. Learning computer languages like C++ can garner promising job opportunities in the gaming industry.
it is the coding language skills and aptitude that can prove to be critical in landing the job as most gaming companies take coding tests and technical rounds as a part of the recruitment process to analyze the potential of the candidate.
Artists take care of the graphics aspect of games. Specializing in 3D, concept, or UI subcategories; they are crucial roles in the gaming industry – often creating a portfolio and uploading them on websites such as Artstation and Behance.
Game Designing
Game designers are responsible for designing various levels of games as well as ensuring the placement of elements. Various institutes in India currently provide the necessary education that helps candidates in becoming game designers. When we talk about the expertise for console gaming, in particular, the skill set for the same roles is still lacking in India and there is a skill shortage. However, it is expected that India will soon become a talent hub, comprising both mobile and console gaming development alike.
Game Management Roles
People looking to switch industries can also secure career opportunities in the games industry in disciplines such as recruitment, as the core expertise required here is predominantly hiring and any prior experience in gaming is a bonus.
Marketing
Marketing is also a viable employment option in the gaming segment. You have the option of being a Product Marketer, where you promote the product or game via different marketing strategies across various channels. Another choice is to adorn the role of a Studio Marketer, which involves managing the recruitment department with the sole responsibility of promoting the studio to attract talent.
Quality Assurance Roles
Roles in QA, also known as Quality Assurance, are another viable career avenue that can be explored. This department is responsible for the testing of games while they are in the development process. The builds are sent to the team for testing within its different stages of development to detect the bugs and ensure improvements are made but the next stages of development are completed. Once analysed, the designers and developers then work to resolve the issues and come up with the update.
The Indian video game industry is thriving and brimming with talent as more and more individuals are choosing it as a career option.
Given the rate at which the gaming business is changing, the upcoming generation can be primarily seen making a successful career out of gaming. As per industry experts, by 2023, the domestic gaming industry will add 10,000–12,000 direct and indirect jobs.