For most gamers, gaming habits typically span for a few hours every week. It could be a few minutes of a casual game, a match on FIFA or, if you know how to play rummy, then a round of rummy game. This is because a typical day involves a lot of activities, like studies, travel, work, shopping, etc., unless you are under house arrest.

The COVID-19 lockdown was like a house arrest for everyone because it stalled everyday life as we knew it. It led to a surge in all things digital, be it online payments, shopping or gaming. People chose contactless options in every aspect of life, including recreation. Thus, a great leap in gaming happened in India.

A Sudden Uptick

It was not much of a surprise that mobile gaming saw a 62% uptick as the lockdown started in March 2020. Player traffic in hyper-casual games increased by 8-10% during this period. Within a month of the lockdown, the average time spent on online gaming in India increased from 2.1 hours to 4.5 hours. In percentages, this was an increase from 11% of total smartphone use to 15%. 

Along with the amount of time spent, the number of gamers also increased drastically during 2020. Between 2018 and 2019, around 22 million new gamers joined the community. In 2020, more than 60 million new gamers were added before falling back to 30 million in 2021. It took two years from 2021 for 60 million new gamers to join. This alone reflects that an unusually high number of Indians tried gaming for the first time in the pandemic year.

A New High

The good news for the gaming industry is that the numbers didn’t return to the pre-pandemic levels even after the lockdown was lifted. Indians continued to spend 12% of their smartphone time on online gaming in June 2021. In other words, more than a year after the pandemic broke out, Indians were gaming at an average of 3.1 hours every week.

In a survey conducted after the pandemic in 2021, 45% of the surveyed gamers confirmed that they started playing online games due to the lockdown situation. 80% of these respondents admitted to having continued playing one online game every day since the pandemic. 38% of them even increased the number of games played within one year of the pandemic.

During the pandemic, a large section of gaming enthusiasts would play online games for hours at a stretch. A very interesting improvisation of this pattern emerged in the post-COVID scenario. To pursue their passion for gaming while getting on with their daily activities, many gamers opted for short yet frequent spells of gaming. 40% of respondents of the aforementioned survey disclosed that they kept themselves entertained through short, 10-minute gaming sessions between their office work, household chores and meals.

It would be safe to say that gaming has become an integral part of people’s lives in India, albeit in varying degrees.

A Look at Key Influences

One major influence of the pandemic on gaming was the ease of access. Apart from time to spare, people also had increased access to gaming in the years since the pandemic. The 5G network was rolled out, and smartphone penetration in India increased rapidly. With one of the cheapest data charges in the world, online gaming proved to be a highly affordable form of recreation. Notably, at $0.16, data charge in India is the seventh cheapest in the world.

The pandemic also resulted in a halt in offline gaming tournaments. This increased traffic in online tournaments, like the RummyCulture’s rummy game tournaments. As the pandemic hit, traffic increased by up to 10% on many such platforms. New gamers who didn’t want to miss the online entertainment also tried to learn how to play rummy. It was during this period that India’s biggest Clash Royale online tournament took place with 11,000 participants. All of this subsequently increased the total number of gamers in India.

Another pandemic-induced influence on gaming was its cultural acceptance in India. The transparency and safety of real money games and the carefree fun of casual games have eased this cultural shift. The governments also played their part. The government of Kerala, for instance, launched a COVID-19-themed mobile game. These factors provide positive coverage to the gaming industry in India. 

A New World in Gaming

The years that followed the pandemic have shown that gaming habits are here to stay. Gaming has helped people cope with what was termed as ‘pandemic fatigue’. The economic lull of 2022 reduced the revenue numbers in gaming, but the mobile gaming segment remained resolute in terms of profitability. The most palpable effect of lockdown is that it has made gaming an integral part of millions of Indians. This continues to boost the prospects of the industry in India.

Back in 2008, it was predicted that revenue from in-game advertising would cross $1 billion globally by 2012. Brands were early to recognise the potential of in-game advertising even 16-17 years ago. For gaming platforms, it was contributing 35% of their revenue.

Today, you are highly likely to see brand presence after a rummy game download, between the levels of a casual game and many other gaming moments. As the global in-game advertising market crosses $10 billion in 2025, brands in India continue to integrate themselves into the popular action-adventure, poker and rummy games.

The Growth of In-game Advertising

While traditional digital advertisements can easily become background noise for the viewers, in-game ads have a more interactive presence. Subtle product placements and quick integration have made it a lucrative part of digital strategy for brands across the world. 

Longtime gamers may recall seeing huge on-screen billboards in the game Doom, which carried various advertisements. That was almost 30 years ago. Barack Obama made an appearance as an in-game ad as a part of his presidential campaign back in 2012. It is easy to understand that the in-game ad market has reached a mature stage, at least globally. It is hardly a surprise that market experts predict a 12.3% CAGR between now and 2034 and is poised to reach $30 billion by then.

In India, however, gaming has been a comparatively recent phenomenon. As a result, brands continue to explore their in-game ad strategies in India.

In-Game Advertisements and India

It will not be long before the gaming community in India becomes 600 million strong. However, the climb to it has been somewhat sudden and fast. Understandably, many brands in India are still processing the importance of in-game ads. However, subtle in-game brand integrations have already started here as well.

Famous two-wheeler maker TVS integrated one of its Apache bike models into the racing game Asphalt. TVS received a positive response for this integration, with two million gamers using the bike during their gameplay. Redbull is another brand that has integrated itself in the form of in-game assets in an online cricket game. Since real-life cricket heavily features various advertisements, the virtual one also offers ample scope for in-game advertisements. These brand integrations are in the form of stadium cards, aggression booster cards, and various other accessories. 

Delivery app Swiggy tied up with a gaming platform in an arrangement that allowed users to redeem Swiggy money through use on the platform, watching streams, and playing games. While this is a unique arrangement, in-game ads like banners, interstitials, and rewarded videos have been common in online games, be it on a popular rummy game platform like RummyTime or a popular action and adventure game. The role of ad networks has been crucial in in-game advertisements and is behind the promotion of popular poker and rummy game downloads as well. 

A Growing Brand Presence

The presence of several leading ad networks in India has been a key factor in the growth of in-game advertisements, particularly in mobile gaming. Service providers like Google AdMob, Verve Group, InMobi, AdColony, etc., are helping brands identify suitable ad spaces and also helping gaming platforms to monetise their games better. Networks provide brands with clear directions through insights on consumers, classifications and tailored ad strategies. 

Music streamer Spotify has been a major success in in-game ads, with a viewability rate of nearly 94%. They have achieved this through diverse in-game ads across different game titles. Uber’s in-game ads are tailored to the local language preferences of gamers and their location. This is highly effective in a diverse market like India.

Popular Ad Strategies

Display banners in the virtual environment are a common in-game ad tool. Made to look like Out of Home billboards, they fit in naturally and have high visibility. Brands are also using video banners instead of static billboards to add more vibrancy to their ad presence.

Indian gamers are also lapping up rewarded ads in a big way. Like the Swiggy money example mentioned above, gamers can earn currency, extra game lives, game levels and so on through brand advertisements. 

Indian gamers are also well-versed in interstitial and expandable in-game ads. Interstitial ads have an interaction call in the form of skip and ‘know more ’buttons. Expandable ads are in collapsed form, which can be tapped or swiped for more information. 

The India Potential

Even though India has one of the largest gaming communities, the in-game ad market is a small portion of the global scale. Even the gaming industry contributes only 1.1% of total global revenue. This makes India an in-game ad market with great potential.

Brands appreciate that in-game ads offer direct engagement with a massive audience without disrupting the immersive gaming experience. By synergising tailored campaigns and contextual targeting, brands stand to gain a lot of mileage through in-game ads in India.