The online gaming industry has witnessed exponential growth in the global market over the past few years. The progress has been astonishing in a country like India as well. The onset of the COVID-19 pandemic signalled the postponing and cancelling of major live sports events. With the pandemic compelling everyone to stay at homes for months, people adopted online gaming as an excellent mode of entertainment. This paved the way for the success of online real money games by driving more gamers into this genre than ever before. Undoubtedly, the year 2020 has proven to be a boon for the real money gaming sector.
Today, businesses from varied industries have been expanding the online gaming sector through investment, game creation, hosting esports tournaments, or merchandise collaborations. According to a report by KPMG in India and the Indian Federation of Sports Gaming (IFSG), the online gaming industry in India is estimated to generate Rs. 11,900 crore by 2023. Another report titled ‘Gaming – India Story’ by the Maple Capital Advisors claims that the Indian gaming industry is expected to grow at 47per cent by the end of 2020. Various factors like increased internet penetration alongside a noteworthy rise in top-notch gaming content would colossally contribute to such growth. Increased internet penetration alongside a sky-rocketing rise in quality gaming content is significant for contributing to this phenomenal growth.
Amongst the two other online gaming segments, real money gaming is one of the best rewarding wins for gamers. Real money games transform the entire gaming experience in a fun-filled, exciting, and entertaining way. In the current scenario, there are over 400 gaming startups in our nation that are leveraging the upsurging smartphone user base to help the online gaming industry reach the top. Gamers have spent almost 45-60per cent time in online gaming platforms during the COVID-infused lockdown. With the ease and convenience of online payments today, real money games have garnered humongous responses from Indian gamers consistently.
With the stellar rise in real money gaming in 2020, gamers liked to escape from the mundane lockdown life to feel the thrill and mental stimulus offered by real money games like Online Poker and Rummy. These extremely entertaining games crafted with intuitive and engaging interfaces have kept the gamers engaged all the while. Real money games have facilitated the gamers with the opportunity to virtually socialise and be in touch with their fellow gamers from the safety and solace of their homes. Real money games being truly skill-based have been rewarding gamers’ knowledge and hence proved to be a win-win moment throughout the year.
The increased focus on the gaming industry doubled with big players making an entry, the entire ecosystem has been experiencing growth. Today, the online gaming industry is way more structured and offers doses of quality games and tournaments. With real money games, there is no scope for foul play as the industry players cling to maintain the data privacy guidelines to offer a safe and secured platform. Responsible gaming has emerged as the biggest feature in the Real Money Gaming industry and something every operator has to focus on.
Summing up
Despite being at a burgeoning stage, the real money gaming industry has effectively picked up a solid momentum in 2020. The RMG market shall develop at more than 50per cent to attain a valuation of $1.5-1.7 billion by 2022 according to a report by RedSeer Consulting. Going forward, real money games would drive the overall gaming industry’s growth in India.
(This article has been contributed by PokerDangal CEO and founder Varun Mahna, and AnimationXpress does not necessarily subscribe to these views)