What you’ll learn from this report:

India secured its position as the world’s most populous nation in 2023 and retained its title as the fastest growing video games market in Asia*. Total gamers in India are forecasted to have surged a remarkable 343% in the 10 years between 2017 and 2027, climbing to 641.2 million in 2027. Video games revenue is also on the rise, forecast to increase 21% YoY in 2023 to $868 million**. Factors such as higher disposable income, the growth of internet connectivity, and low-cost smartphones are propelling India’s video games market forward.

This data is just a small part of the newly released 79-page 2023 Niko Partners India Games Market report, that includes Niko’s proprietary market model and 5-year forecast through 2027, along with qualitative and quantitative analysis on gamer demand, behavior and usage for mobile, PC, console games.

The India Games Market Report is a comprehensive guide that informs you of the latest developments across the video games and esports sectors in India. From the importance of localization to user preferences for in-game monetization, discover how gamers in India engage with video games so you can make the best business decision.

*Niko Partners tracks 11 markets in Asia including China, Japan, South Korea, Chinese Taipei, Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, Vietnam and India.

** Excludes revenue generated from Real Money Games

PUBLISHED SEPTEMBER 2023

79 slides

$5,000

Key takeaways from the analysis:

  • Niko Partners projects India video games revenue across all platforms to reach $868 million in 2023, up 21.2% YoY.
    • India’s video game market is the fastest growing by gamers and revenue, which is forecast to reach $1.6 billion by 2027, growing at a 5-year CAGR of 17.2%.
  • The number of gamers in India across all platforms is forecast to reach 444 million in 2023, up 12.1% YoY.
    • The number of gamers across all platforms in India is forecast to reach 641.2 million in 2027, growing at a 5-year CAGR of 10.1%.
  • India is a mobile first market with 96.8% of total gamers playing on a smartphone or tablet.
  • 31% of the 444.4 million gamers will spend on video games in 2023, with annual ARPPU reaching $6.38
  • The return of BGMI and Free Fire are positive signs for the industry and foreign game companies looking to enter the market.
  • Introduction
  • Executive Summary
  • Market Size, Forecast and Macroeconomic Trends
    • Macroeconomic data, Population, Gamers and Internet Users Population
    • Key Drivers of Growth Through 2027
  • Gamer Survey Demographics
    • Methodology
    • Percentage of Gamers by Gender, Age, Preferred Devices
    • Average Annual Income of Indian Gamers
    • Average Game Playing Hours per Week
  • Real Money Gaming
    • Overview
    • Regulations on RMG
    • Percentage of Indian Gamers Who Have Played RMG
    • Average Playing Hours and Monthly Spending on RMG
    • Concerns for RMG
  • Mobile Games Market
    • Mobile Games Revenue & Downloads
    • BGMI and The Rise of Battle Royale Genre
    • Top Mobile Games By Revenue and Downloads
    • Top Mobile Game Publishers By Revenue and Downloads
    • Popularity of Digital Wallets among Indian Mobile Gamers and Subscription Like Services
    • Most Disliked Aspects of Mobile Games
    • Smartphone brands, App Stores, and Gaming Location
  • PC Games Market​
    • PC Games Revenue & Streaming
    • Most Popular PC Games Genres
    • Overview of Steam Ban Concerns
    • Popularity of Digital Wallets among Indian PC Gamers and Subscription Like Services
    • Most Disliked Aspects of PC Games
    • Laptop brands, App Stores, and Gaming Location
  • Console Games Market
    • Number of Console Gamers and Console Ownership
    • India Hero Project
    • Average Number of Downloaded Games per Year
    • Most Played Games and Average Gaming Hours per Week
    • Popularity of Digital Wallets among Indian Console Gamers and Subscription Like Services
  • Esports and Livestreaming
    • Esports Industry Revenue
    • Preferred Device for Esports Tournaments
    • Esports Engagement among Indian Gamers
    • Overview of the Top PC and Mobile Esports Tournaments
    • Overview of Gaming & Esports Content Consumption Behavior
    • Game Livestreaming Platforms and Monetization
  • Hardware and Infrastructure and Technology
    • Internet Café Attendance
    • 5G Mobile Internet Usage
    • Reception Towards Play-to-Earn Mechanics Within Games
  • Localization and Monetization
    • Incorporation of Indian Elements in Games Localization
    • Importance of Games Localization
    • Barriers to Spending for Games
    • Reception Towards In-Game Ads
    • Unified Payments Interface (UPI) Usage
  • Regulations and M&A
    • Gaming-related Regulators in India
    • Recommendations for Developers and Publishers
    • Key Gaming M&A / Investment Events in India
  • Appendix (Genre List and Glossary)
  • About Niko

• India vs China gamers in millions (2017-2027)
• Number of internet users in millions (April 30,2023)
• Gamers Gender Identity
• Gamers Age
• Devices Used to Play Video Games in the last 30 Days
• Primary occupation
• Income from all sources
• Time spent on gaming each month
• Hours per week spent playing on certain devices
• Top Mobile games by revenue (H1 2023)
• Top mobile game genres by download (H1 2023)
• Mobile game revenue by Genre (January-August 2023)
• Smartphone shipments by connectivity (2022)
• Most played game in the last 3 months
• Average hours played per week
• Mobile games preferred Payment method
• Digital wallets preferences
• Reason for spending on mobile games
• What do gamers buy in mobile games
• Choosing a new mobile game preferences
• What Gamers dislike most about the mobile games they play
• Smartphone brands owned for gaming
• Primary smartphone app store
• Gaming location by time %
• Most played PC game in the last 3 months
• Average Hours played on PC Per week
• PC Games preferred payment method
• PC Digital walled payment preferences
• Reason for spending on PC games
• What does gamers buy in PC games
• What’s important when choosing a new PC game to play
• What does games dislike most about PC Games?
• Laptop Brands owned for gaming
• Average annual premium game purchases
• PC Gaming location by Time %
• Which console owned most
• Average games downloaded each year
• Most played console game in the last 3 months
• Average hours played on console per week
• How do gamers pay for console games
• What do gamers buy in console games
• Where do games learn about new games
• Consoles gamers want to buy next
• Console subscription services
• Esports tournaments by platform (H1 2023)
• Esports tournaments by event type (H1 2023)
• Esports engagement
• Aspiration to play esports professionally
• Platform for watching gaming & esports content
• Average hours per week watching online content
• Visiting internet cafes percentage
• Internet cafes preferences
• Mobile internet market share (April 2023)
• Fixed line broadband market share (April 2023)
• Familiarity with future technology
• Interest in implementing certain technologies in video games
• How important are certain localization aspects for games
• Why do gamers not spend money on games
• What would gamers buy if they spent
• What do PC gamers do when they see an in-game ad
• What do mobile gamers do when they see an in-game ad
• Unified payments interface (UPI) usage
• UPI usage by payment platform (June 2023)
• What Real Money Games do gamers Play
• Which RMG platforms did gamers use in the past year
• Average hours per week playing RMG title
• Average spend per month on RMG titles
• How important are the following when playing RMG
• What do gamers most dislike about RMG titles?

  • Accel
  • Acer
  • Activision Blizzard
  • AFCO Asia
  • Airtel
  • Alienware
  • All India Gaming Federation (AIGF)
  • Apple
  • Asus
  • Baldota Family Office
  • Better Capital
  • BHIM
  • Bigo Live
  • Black Shark
  • Bobble AI
  • Branded
  • CIIE.Co
  • Courtside Ventures
  • Dell
  • Driffle
  • Egg Network
  • Electronic Arts
  • Faad Network
  • Fingersoft
  • Galaxy Racer
  • GameEon
  • Gamerji
  • Gametion
  • Garena
  • Global Pay Media
  • Hitwicket
  • Honor
  • HP
  • Huawei
  • Imangi Studios
  • IndiGG
  • International Esports Federation (IESF)
  • Iqoo
  • Jetsynthesys
  • Jlo
  • Kalaari Captail
  • Konami
  • Krafton
  • Kratos Studios
  • Lenovo
  • LG
  • Lightbox
  • Loco
  • Lumikai
  • Marwah Sports
  • Mayhem Studio
  • MeitY
  • Meta
  • Microsoft
  • MihoYo
  • Miniclip
  • Ministry of Youth Affairs
  • Mixi
  • Moon Active
  • Nazara Technologies
  • nCore Games
  • NetEase
  • Nexus Venture Partners
  • Nimo TV
  • Nintendo
  • Nodding Head Studios
  • Nodwin Gaming
  • Octro
  • OnePlus
  • OPPO
  • Outfit7
  • Pay tm
  • Pivot Ventures
  • Playrix
  • Poco
  • Prime Venture Partners
  • Prosus Ventures
  • Pyrodactical Studios
  • Qlan
  • Razer
  • RealMe
  • Reliance Jio
  • Riot Games
  • Rooter
  • Rovio Entertainment
  • Samsung
  • Sky Sports
  • Snax Gaming
  • SoftStar
  • Sony Interactive Entertainment
  • Sequoia Capital
  • Steadview Capital
  • Studio Sirah
  • Supercell
  • Supergaming
  • Supersonic studios
  • Taturs Ventures
  • The Esports Federation of India (ESFI)
  • TOP GAMES
  • Trifecta Capital
  • True Caller
  • Twitch
  • Valve
  • Vi
  • White Venture Capital
  • Xiaomi
  • YouTube
  • ZTE

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