Officials from the Consulate of India to San Francisco, including Dr. K. Srikar Reddy, the consul general and Rakesh Adlakha, the deputy consul general of India in San Francisco along with the US-India Strategic Partnership Forum (USISPF) president and CEO Dr. Mukesh Aghi, has unveiled the first India Pavilion at the Game Developer Conference.
The pavilion is set up by WinZO in partnership with India Game Developer Conference (IGDC) and gaming and sports media platform Nazara. Additionally, the India Pavilion serves as a vibrant hub for showcasing India’s prowess in the gaming ecosystem and sees a diverse array of game tech, from gaming giants of India such as WinZO to indie game development studios.
Talking about the development, Paavan Nanda, co-founder, WinZO, said, “We are witnessing a seismic shift in the global landscape. India’s participation in the GDC is a testament to how far the country’s technology and innovation ecosystem has come. From the Prime Minister’s clarion call in 2015 for India to be a startup Nation to today, in 2024, India ranks number three globally for total startup output. A global exposure is what we aspired for to build world class products that are made in India for the world. We are fortunate to create the opportunity for our peers through this initiative.”
The Pavillion showcased a wide array of games inspired by Indian culture, stories and epics such as Ramayana, Mahabharata, Bollywood-based action-adventure games, a temple construction simulation, a virtual reality cricket experience, to name a few.
The grand event also saw the release of the “India Gaming Opportunity: Robust Fundamentals To Power Continued Growth” report, co-authored by the India-based body Interactive Entertainment and Innovation Council (IEIC) and WinZO. The comprehensive report, launched at the Game Developer Conference, highlights the Indian gaming industry’s growth trajectory, underscored by an influx of $2.8 billion from investors since 2017, signaling strong confidence in the sector’s dynamic future.
“The inauguration of India Pavilion here today marks a significant milestone in the Indo-US relationship. The online gaming sector in India is burgeoning and initiatives such as these would go a long way fostering collaboration between the two nations including investment, innovation and content. We envision a future where our combined creativity fuels the next wave of gaming excellence and cultural exchange,” Dr. Mukesh Aghi, president and CEO, USISPF, commented.
Moreover, the IEIC and WinZO report projects market expansion of India’s online skill gaming from US$3.1 billion in 2023 to US$6 billion by 2028. The report also highlights that early investments by international studios are translating into talent proliferation now. India boasts over 1,168 universities and 45,473 colleges, ensuring the continued fulfillment of human resource needs across various industries, including online gaming.
The India Gaming Report 2024 further highlighted the innovation, creativity and excellence in gaming, positioning India as a global leader poised to generate high-quality jobs and propel economic growth in the coming years.