Indian e-sport developers desperately await 5G to leverage cloud gaming advantages

Post-COVID, a tectonic shift is seen in the way technology is exploited to revolutionize e-sports in India, both for the players as well as for the audience. India, notably, has been very adept to move from enjoying games viewed at large stadiums to a larger-than-life e-gaming experience. And, certainly, replicating the same experience in virtual stadiums has been possible only because of technology.

Also, with a multitude of OTT platforms now becoming the norm across India, e-sports can now be enjoyed by any household located in any part of India that has good digital connectivity. Players, their teams, coaches, and the audience are all connected digitally. So much so that a comment window allows players to talk to each other and the streamers, bringing the gaming community closer together.

Gautam Virk, co-Founder & COO of NODWIN Gaming, being in the business of e-sports bets big on advanced technology-aided gaming. Virk believes that technology itself is evolving at a fervent rate today, and all that gamers need to do is keep up with it and adapt as quickly to the changes it brings.

“I believe that technology will keep surprising the gaming community with better products and experiences. We need to be geared up and ready for the dynamic evolution of technology,” says the optimistic Virk.

Obvious trends that shapes e-Sports in India

India’s increasing smartphone penetration has already taken the mobile e-sports industry to another level altogether. Virk knows for sure that Artificial Intelligence is the backbone of the e-sports industry and in the coming years AI will be critical to giving the players highly advanced machine learning-based training platforms that will help upgrade their skills and gaming strategies.

Natural Language Processing (NLP) tools will gain traction in the near future and AI will also increasingly personalize the player-audience interactive experience.

What is expected is the high bandwidth capabilities of 5G powered wireless connectivity coupled with cloud gaming that will ride the next wave of e-sports penetration in India.

The increasing use of AI-backed data analytics that helps developers/players/organizers alike, study trends from recorded games and comes up with new insights on gaming strategies for professional gamers to better their gaming experience and for the audience to improve their viewing experience.

“Any new technology in the broadcasting industry helps the viewer and the organizer equally. The audience is always on the lookout for tangible experience with the game and their idols playing it. Integrating virtual fan meets through various video communication services available in today’s age, the extensive use of Augmented Reality in our live streams, and the use of AI for live scoring of games are some of the developments we did in the last one year at NODWIN,” says Virk.

What is expected is the high bandwidth capabilities of 5G powered wireless connectivity coupled with cloud gaming that will ride the next wave of e-sports penetration in India.

PC gaming: a passé

Virk reveals that the revenue generated through mobile gaming is already surpassing that from PC gaming and if more games like Free Fire and Call of Duty continue to improvise their interface, mobile gaming will undoubtedly become the cornerstone of e-sports in the next three years.

“According to a report jointly released by Indian Cellular and Electronics Association and consulting firm KPMG, the smartphone base in India will reach 820 million active users by 2022. This clearly highlights the potential of mobile gaming to drive a larger audience towards e-sports from India’s yet untapped markets. In rural India especially, where most youngsters do have a smartphone, e-sports could be the next big thing,” anticipates Virk.

Virk also sees another significant trend in gaming titles. His company NODWIN Gaming has witnessed a major focus on cricket e-sports, as this game has a large user base and is expected to help make e-sports available to a wider audience.

Analytics has also revealed that games with Indian storylines sell really well. This trend could be a big factor resulting in the birth of a brand new title, especially in e-sports.

Virk says, “Another aspect of changing the outlook of e-sports in India is incorporating as many games as possible into tournaments, e-sports is not just about the big game titles. There is a community for every game and our goal is to build a diverse e-sports ecosystem where everyone can co-exist and grow as one.”

Analytics has also revealed that games with Indian storylines sell really well. This trend could be a big factor resulting in the birth of a brand new title, especially in e-sports.

Cloud gaming – the next big wave

Cloud gaming is the future of gaming and e-sports. The best part about cloud gaming is that it is platform-independent, anyone, anywhere on any device can play any games. The reach of this specific technology has no boundaries.

I’m interested to see how cloud gaming pans out once 5G is out, as fast internet is the basic requirement of cloud computing....Gautam Virk.

“What’s better than playing high-end games without upgrading your device. Cloud computing has to be the universal savior when all the rendering and computing happens inside powerful servers and not on one’s PC. I’m interested to see how cloud gaming pans out once 5G is out, as fast internet is the basic requirement of cloud computing,” signs off Gautam Virk sending out a strong intended message that the Indian government is compelled to act fast in releasing 5G.