India's gaming industry: From underdog to global contender

Authored by Parth Chadha, CEO & Co- Founder at STAN

Engineer’s Day celebrated on 15th of September every year, honours the legacy of M Visvesvaraya, a pioneer of engineering excellence. While traditionally attributed to industrial advancements, today's engineers are leading revolutions in the digital realm too. We celebrate these professionals as inventors who create new systems and advance industries. In India, the gaming industry has become a vibrant sector on a constant growth trajectory. While India was once considered a distant player in the global gaming market, it is now emerging as a potential force owing to united efforts of young software engineers who are not only developing world-class games but also fostering a thriving gaming community. These engineers are restructuring gaming culture with the ultimate engineering toolset by combining technology, culture and community to bring change.

The gaming industry in India is currently experiencing a paradigm shift, representing the innovation and creativity our country has to offer. According to the Grant Thornton Bharat and E-Gaming Federation report it is currently valued at around $3.1 billion, and is expected to grow to $8.92 billion in the next five years. Currently, there are more than 400 million gamers worldwide and the need for top-tier games and platforms is constantly increasing. However, such growth is not solely attributed to the number of players- every great game, platform or innovation has its talented teams behind it, contributing to this progress.

Realizing that there was a gap in the gaming industry when it comes to bringing a community of gamers & creators together ,  Parth Chadha, Co Founder and CEO of STAN, one of India’s gaming community startups embarked on the journey to providing platforms for gamers to connect, collaborate, compete and support each other. He wanted to build a place where amateurs and professional gamers feel welcomed and are able to connect to their favourite creators/celebrities, hold meetups, share ideas and also be able to monetize. This further developed into a full-blown platform that stands today as STAN and has attracted millions of users from all over the country. The platform has recorded an impressive 12 million+ downloads of the STAN app within just two years, making it India's fastest-growing gaming community startup in India.

Notably, India has witnessed a huge cultural shift in how gaming is perceived. Gaming in the past was considered more of a fun activity and not a very viable career choice. However, as more engineers join the gaming industry, they are slowly changing that perception by proving that gaming is not only creative but rewarding. These engineers are contributing to the cultivation of attitudes towards gaming as a profession and promoting programming, design, and problem-solving skills among youngsters through game development and community building.

The gaming communities in India are the key driving factor to further bolster India’s gaming system altogether at a new extent. Gaming communities foster a sense of belonging among players, enhancing social interactions, and encouraging collaboration and competition.

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