Niko Partners x Esports Charts: Top Esports Titles and Dominant Genres by Region in Q1 2025

Through our partnership with the esports analytical service Esports Charts, Niko Partners delivers deep data-driven insights into esports titles’ performance across Asia. By combining Esports Charts data with our regional market expertise, distinct regional trends have emerged across Southeast Asia (SEA), East Asia (EA), the Middle East and North Africa (MENA), China and India. Here is a breakdown of the leading esports titles and standout genres across key regions.

Q1 2025 Highlights:

MOBA titles still dominate the esports space. Based on Esports Chart’s tracked Asian markets: East Asia, Southeast Asia, India and MENA in Q1 this year, MOBA stands out as the leading esports genre. With leading titles League of Legends on PC, and Mobile Legends and Honor of Kings/Arena of Valor on mobile.
In the first quarter of 2025, East Asia had the highest share of events accounting for 36% of tournaments across the Asia + MENA region. SEA ranks second and China alone accounts for 26% of events. However, we note that the means China tournament data is not exhaustive and with some major events ongoing through May.
Valorant accounts for the highest esports event share, about 18.3% of events across the tracked regions. Tournament structure does have an impact on this statistic, as titles with more one-off events are overrepresented against tournaments that have a league or long-term format. Interestingly, Activision Blizzard titles WarCraft, Star Craft II, and Overwatch ranked highly in Q1, boosted by one-off event formats and a recent relaunch of all 3 titles in China through a renewed partnership with NetEase.
The $10K–99.9K prize pool range represents the largest share of events, accounting for 32.9% of all the tracked esports events in Q1. We note that some smaller, grassroots, and local tournaments may not be accounted for in these totals and that many larger events take place later in the year with larger international tournaments, global finals, and multisports events generally taking place in Q3 and Q4.
Offline tournaments lead slightly, making up 49% of the total. Meanwhile, Online tournaments remain significant, accounting for 43%. This indicates that digital competitions are still a core part of Asia’s esports ecosystem, likely due to cost efficiency and accessibility. Notably, Hybrid (Offline/Online) formats are still emerging, representing only 7%.

Important Note: Due to the expansive and complex nature of China’s esports industry, tracking esports events in China remains partial and selective.

Southeast Asia: Mobile MOBA Continues to Reign

SEA remains a stronghold for mobile-first esports. MOBA mobile titles such as Mobile Legends: Bang Bang, Arena of Valor, and Honor of Kings continue their dominance across the region with high tournament activity and strong prize pools. These titles underscore SEA’s preference for mobile gaming and esports experiences.

In terms of top PC titles in the region, Valorant is the key PC esports title in SEA, with strong representation in Vietnam and Thailand. In January, Indonesian Valorant team Alter Ego secured first place in the Predator League 2025 tournament in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. The event had a total prize pool of $120,000.

Earlier in January, the Thailand E-Sports Federation (TESF) launched the Esports Professional Development Program, aiming to train 10,000 esports professionals nationwide in 2025. Building on this momentum, Thailand continues to demonstrate its strong MOBA esports culture. Arena of Valor’s RoV Pro League 2025 Summer was held between February 15 and April 27, culminating in a playoff and Grand Final held at BITEC, Bangkok. Team eArena secured the championship and a grand prize of 6 million THB ($180,020). The event attracted a record-breaking 74,984 offline attendees, while its YouTube livestream peaked at over 242,000 concurrent online viewers.

Similarly, in Malaysia, efforts are underway to elevate the local professional MOBA esports ecosystem to new heights. In a group interview, MOONTON Malaysia Esports Lead Fikri Rizal Mahruddin confirmed Mobile Legends: Bang Bang (MLBB) developer Moonton is seriously considering transitioning the MLBB Professional League (MPL) Malaysia into a franchise league. This comes after MPL Malaysia introduced paid tickets for fans to watch the league live following its success in 2024. This would make MPL Malaysia the third domestic MLBB esports league to follow a Franchise League format, following MPL Indonesia and MPL Philippines.

Meanwhile, in Indonesia, ESL FACEIT Group (EFG) and Qualcomm Technologies have hosted the ESL Snapdragon Pro Series: Mobile Masters 2025. The Mobile Legends: Bang Bang tournament featured a total prize pool of $200,000 and took place at the start of Q2, from April 7-13.

Top Titles: Mobile Legends: Bang Bang, PUBG Mobile, Arena of Valor

Leading Genres: MOBA, Battle Royale

East Asia: Established PC Franchises Dominate

In East Asia, PC-based titles continue to lead. League of Legends remains a powerhouse in South Korea, while Apex Legends is the top esports title in Japan, which has one of the largest regional prize pools for the quarter.

Japan has emerged in the last several years as an important and distinct esports ecosystem, later than many other markets in Asia. Its legacy as a console-first market has made Japan somewhat idiosyncratic in terms of title preferences. Still, Japan is a key esports market in the region. In February, the Olympic Council of Asia (OCA) has confirmed that the 2026 Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games, scheduled from September 9 to October 4, will feature 11 esports titles as medal events. Japanese titles (alongside Chinese titles) are overrepresented on this list, with Street Fighter (Capcom), Tekken (Bandai Namco), and King of Fighters (SNK/Nintendo) combined into a single fighting-game focused medal event.

Top Titles: League of Legends, Apex Legends

Leading Genres: MOBA, Tactical Shooter

MENA: Tactical Shooters and Battle Royale See Growth

The MENA region, especially the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, showcased a strong appetite for the FPS genre through a high number of Valorant esports events in Q1.

Saudi Arabia continues to work to establish the MENA region as a leader in the global esports space. In February, the Saudi-based Esports World Cup Foundation (EWCF) formed a partnership with Tencent E-Sports to increase the Esports World Cup’s visibility, engagement, and industry collaborations in China. More recently the EWCF announced that this year’s tournament will feature a total prize pool of $70 million demonstrating the ongoing investment in the region’s esports future. In April, the Saudi Esports Federation (SEF) also opened the 25,000 square meters SEF Arena in Boulevard World, Riyadh.

Top Titles: Valorant

Leading Genres: Shooter

India: Shooter Titles Take the Lead

India’s esports landscape in Q1 was led by Battlegrounds Mobile India and Battle Royale genre. In February, team Gods Reign won the ESL Snapdragon Pro Series BGMI 2025 LAN Finals, securing $57,762 (INR 5 million) from the $115,525 (INR 10 million) prize pool.

India’s esports market has shown strong growth in the past several years and we expect this growth to continue on the back of solid grassroots interest in esports. The large prize pool on offer at the ESL Snapdragon Pro Series BGMI 2025 LAN Finals demonstrates some of the growing confidence in the esports sector in India. Earlier this month, RISE Worldwide Ltd, a subsidiary of India-based Reliance Industries, and BLAST Esports Ltd, a wholly owned unit of Denmark-based BLAST ApS, formed a joint venture to operate in India, a sign of rising foreign interest in India’s rapidly growing esports market.

Top Titles: Battlegrounds Mobile India

Leading Genres: Battle Royale

China: A Mix of Legacy and Local Powerhouses

In China, League of Legends remains king in the local PC esports landscape. Meanwhile, homegrown titles like Honor of Kings continue to dominate mobile esports. Peacekeeper Elite, the Chinese adaptation of PUBG Mobile, also retained a significant share of competitive prize pools. Interestingly, Blizzard’s real-time strategy title StarCraft II returned to China in June 2024, which accounts for the recent rise in StarCraft II esports events across the country.

We expect the Honor of Kings to continue to perform strongly. Some marquee Events like the King Pro League, which will not conclude until May and are absent from the Q1 numbers as the tournament has not yet concluded. Moreover, in March, Tencent announced a $15 million investment to grow the Honor of Kings esports ecosystem worldwide, introducing six new regional leagues and grassroots competitions. The 2025 competitive structure will include three global tournaments, seven professional regional leagues, and one-off grassroots events, strengthening the game’s presence outside China.

Top Titles: League of Legends, Honor of Kings, Peacekeeper Elite

Leading Genres: MOBA, Tactical Shooter

Niko Partners conducts year-round esports research across the Asia and MENA regions in support of syndicated and custom projects, as well as our Value-Added News Analysis (VANA) service. Subscribe to the Niko News for top weekly headlines from the gaming and esports industry with expert insights delivered directly to your inbox.

Esports Charts makes esports data transparent and helps sponsors, organizers, and viewers discover the popularity level of any live esports event, match, team, or player. Their comprehensive analytics cover up-to-the-minute trends in esports and livestreaming across the world and supports Niko Partners esports research.