Ankush Gera By Express News Service KOCHI: India has surpassed the need for gaming consoles! While the rest of the world is lining up to buy the next game, Indians can be seen crushing candy and shuffling cards on their phones. It’s safe to assume that if you peek into your neighbour’s phone on a metro ride home, they’re likely to be gaming or shopping. However, this growing appetite for online games affecting around 22.2 crore Indians, who spend an average of 42 mins gaming every day, comes with its own set of challenges for the industry. With 40% of Indians having access to smartphones, Indian gaming companies now have the challenge of keeping them engaged. They’ve tackled this challenge by digitizing skill-based Indian card games and sports that have an established viewership. This also taps into a nostalgic vein, because most of their consumers have grown up playing these games or watching these sports. The new generation of mobile games has turned spectators into participants, giving them a chance to challenge their logical reasoning, memory and decision-making skills, in a stress-free manner. A study by KPMG also notes that this local content has great potential for vernacular dissemination given that Indian language internet users are poised to reach 540 million in 2021. Opting for responsible gaming Regulating in online gaming is a tricky issue since the websites and mobile applications hosting them have a global presence. However, self-regulatory bodies like the Indian Federation of Sports Gaming (IFSG), have become strong advocates of responsible gaming, undertaking many measures to create a healthy ecosystem for both users and operators. It has rolled out policies for member companies of the IFSG on a range of issues, like disallowing underage players and pre-determining the platform fee or prize pool contribution. Furthermore, in order to ensure a level playing field for all players, many gaming platforms have prohibited their employees from competing. Fair play is also encouraged by ensuring that multiple or fake accounts aren’t held by a single player. Turning passion into profession For those seeking to turn their passion for gaming into employment, the future of gaming in India looks very promising. Companies like Facebook, Apple, and Google are investing in the industry. In fact, NASSCOM data also suggests that India’s mobile games market will be worth $1.1 billion in 2020. Job seekers can consider applying for positions of content developers, animators, designers, game testers and critics. The author is the founder of Junglee Games, one of India’s fastest-growing skill-gaming platforms, with over 25 million users across the globe. Game your way to glory Companies like Facebook, Apple, and Google are investing in the industry. In fact, NASSCOM data also suggests that India’s mobile games market will be worth $1.1 billion in 2020

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