In light of the extraordinary circumstances that are now expected to be the new normal, the one segment that did become the norm was mobile gaming.
Newzoo, the gaming analytics company estimates that in a few days as 2020 ends, mobile game revenue will hit $76.7B, a 12% increase from 2019. To put that figure into perspective, the global Box Office revenue was $42.5B in 2019, and the global recorded music industry generated $20.2B in wholesale revenues in the same year. In other words, it’s safe to say that mobile gaming alone will generate more annual revenue than the music and film industries combined.
As the mobile gaming industry thrives, smartphone manufacturers are looking at gaming and the interests of consumers when innovating and creating devices. An example of that would be Oppo’s through its design and entrainment led Reno Series that’s now in its four generation. Furthermore, the global technology has been active in the gaming community in the UAE.
Mobile gaming
In a webinar, organized by Gulf News, Tarek Zaki, Senior Product Manager at Oppo Middle East and Africa, reiterated Oppo’s commitment to the gaming sector in the Middle East and said that it isn’t jumping on the bandwagon. Rather, this has been a carefully constructed strategy for the company.
This has been evident, with the launch of its Oppo Reno 4 Pro 5G and Oppo Find X2 Pro, both devices are optimized for gaming experiences. Furthermore, Oppo also played host to a gaming tournament at Mall of The Emirates in August that saw over 1,600 gamers take part in. The successful event was held despite stringent regulations during a pandemic.
Zaki explained that this was Oppo’s first gaming event in the midst of a pandemic underscoring the company’s commitment to create a local ecosystem for the gaming community here. More so it also represents Oppo’s values as it continues to create the hardware that’s not only on a par with the best but also easily accessible in terms of price to get more users on to mobile gaming, not just in the competitive ranks but also everyday users.
Popular content creator and Youtuber Bashar Kayal who was part of the webinar echoed the sentiment. Bashar also felt that mobile games are getting close to console level quality in terms of gameplay and graphics.
In the region, gaming has always been at the forefront, with adoption rates on console, mobile and PC being significantly higher. However, it’s fairly evident that the larger audience is deep in mobile gaming. A segment that’s quickly growing in popularity is augmented reality. Staying ahead of the curve, Hayder Alani, CEO, Dynabytes Software House also present in the webinar explained why AR is the next logical step for gaming and development needs to start now to catch up to the hardware that the next generation of mobile devices brings.
Dynabytes is currently working on its mobile AR game Fantasma that’s based, and will be playable, in Dubai. The game involves using mobile cameras to give gamers an interactive experience. With games such as Fantasma that are using more modules in a mobile phone, the need for smartphone technology to evolve is paramount.
Oppo as a company has always pushed for its engineering to keep building innovative designs on its smartphones and in 2021 and beyond, the future of mobile gaming will be a bright one.
