The esports industry has grown exponentially over the past couple of years. The pandemic led lockdown has reflected in the numbers of the esports tournaments, players, teams and also the entrance of non-endemic brands in the esports arena. The recently launched Ultimate Battle also saw a 45 per cent increase in user engagement on its platform and in conversation with AnimationXpress, Ultimate Battle founder Tarun Gupta stated, “During the Pandemic, Esports got much-needed exposure and our platform witnessed a great shift in gamer’s engagement behavior. Since the Gamers were restricted to their homes and had all the time we could ask for, gamer participation on the platform increased dramatically. Our analytics show a dramatic spike in terms of user acquisition and we’ve reached 54000 MAU this May 2021. Work from home during the pandemic gave our product team the time to focus on the product and we evolved dramatically. Our product team utilized this time to roll out some great features during the lockdown.”
New and new enthusiasts started showing interest in gaming and game streaming. In fact the esports viewership has seen a rapid surge and is expected to reach 25+ million in India in 2021. According to Gupta, because big leagues are happening today and brands are showing interest in the Indian esports scene, gamers are now getting more exposure to esports which is a positive sign for the growth of the industry.
Here are some of the key trends in Indian esports ecosystem that are driving the growth of the industry as per Gupta:
- Mobile gaming: India is a mobile-centric market and the number of gamers playing on mobile devices will keep on growing in the coming years.
- Esports Platform/Leagues: Competitive gaming has become widely popular and its credit goes to top league organizers and esports platforms catering to the requirement of gamers.
- Content creation: Content has always been the king. As we have seen in the past, a lot of content creators and streamers have made a fortune. We expect to see a whole new breed of content creators cropping up who will help take gaming content to the next level in India.
Ultimate Battle has seen a 45 per cent increase in user engagement on the platform within a few months of its inception and it is currently adding around 50K users to the platform every month, which is expected to rise in the coming months.
With burgeoning growth of the esports industry, new organizations and IPs are being created to serve the gaming community. Leagues and team organizations have recently been seen as the most lucrative options for starting off in the esports industry.
“Currently, there is a marginal divide between professional and grassroot players in terms of opportunity and a centralized stage to compete and grow. The launch of All India Esports League (AIEL) in the coming month, will feature top Esports title games like BGMI, Free Fire, and many more including Chess. Apart from invitations to top professional players/teams, there will also be PAN India qualifiers for grassroot level players, giving them a chance to compete and show their talents,” Gupta added.
Ultimate Battle is a 360-degree platform for gamers which is not just limited to gameplay but also blends gameplay with social networking, news, online game store and so on. It has helped them in their user acquisition strategy.
Fantasy gaming is one of the avenues that they’re currently looking at which might be beneficial for the esports community. According to Gupta, “As per industry reports, esports viewership is expected to grow above 85 million by 2024. We have 365 million Indian gamers across mobile, PC, and console which is projected to reach 440 million by 2022 according to industry estimates. This will be a good indicator for fantasy esports to hit the Indian market. Fantasy esports will happen eventually as the esports industry grows and garners a bigger fanbase.”
Currently the major challenge with the gaming industry in India is that it lacks a good legal and regulatory framework to support this industry. “Apart from this, the lack of knowledge and wrong perception about esports in the market acts as a hurdle in the acceptance and growth of esports. Esports is currently in its infancy and we are expecting things to mature as we move forward,” Gupta shared.
As the demand for esports is growing, venture capital firms and investors are showing interest in investing in esports. Ultimate Battle is in the process of raising funds and is in conversations with a couple of investors. They’re looking to join hands with strategic investors driven by a similar sense of passion and outlook.