How gaming companies can leverage technology for social good

By Shruti Das

Leveraging technology for social good has become a norm of our times. One outstanding example is the emergence of the EdTech industry, which played a critical role during the pandemic by facilitating the continuity of students’ education through online learning.

Online skill gaming is another industry that holds promise for promoting social good. Online games of skill are truly interactive and inclusive, holding the potential to be not only engaging but also a strong medium for learning. However, clouded by multiple misconceptions, their potential remains relatively untapped and unacknowledged. When we refer to gaming, the image that immediately comes to mind is of concerned parents asking their children to stop playing online games and go play real games outdoors instead.

As kids, we remember playing indoor board games such as ludo, carrom, snakes and ladders with family members and friends. These games were the highlight of rainy days when we could not go outside to play. Most of these games are now part of digital games of skill. With shrinking family sizes, the rise of nuclear families, and working parents, these forms of interactive entertainment are becoming increasingly common. Similarly, digital games of skills open boundless opportunities for children who, due to various health reasons and special abilities, cannot play physical games with their peers. These games provide them with a platform to experience a sense of belonging and interact socially with like-minded peers.

Decoding Misconceptions and Benefits

From a more practical standpoint, rising outdoor temperatures and growing pollution levels make it clear that indoor online games have become a good option for children. Yet, parents believe children are isolated from social interactions when they play online games. Parents remain convinced that outdoor interactions and direct conversations can help children make friends and bond better with peers.

What well-meaning parents overlook entirely is that online games also provide opportunities for peer interactions and conversations. Though physically isolated, these children spend an equal amount of time with friends as they would when interacting in person or on the phone.

One survey found that 77% of boys played online games with friends at least once a month. What’s more, many kids visit each other to enjoy video games in the privacy of their homes. These shared experiences are so engrossing and interactive that a few therapists have even been using online games for group therapy sessions.

Going a step further, evidence indicates that online games could serve as a safe space for experimenting with social interactions, particularly for vulnerable groups such as individuals with depressive symptoms, social anxiety, autism spectrum disorders, insecure attachments, and shy personalities. Online games could provide a ‘safe’ harbour by allowing them to communicate at their convenience, without any pressure to reply instantly or the need for them to be physically present with others.

To elaborate, successful face-to-face conversations require various skills, including interpreting tone of voice, reading body language, making eye contact, and responding to dialogue. For shy individuals or those with personality disorders, these aspects of close conversations can be intimidating.

Conversely, through online games players can converse with others at their comfort level. This helps them make friends with those of similar intellect and abilities. Repeated online conversations can increase the confidence of shy individuals. Soon, they develop the skills and confidence to manage in-person conversations. In essence, online games act as a stepping stone for shy individuals to connect with others in the physical world, helping them make friends sooner or later.

Some Socioeconomic Advantages

Besides social benefits, online gaming can offer socio economic advantages. As part of the media and entertainment space, the sunrise online gaming segment could ensure several benefits for the youth, including employment and entrepreneurial opportunities. Since the country hosts the world’s largest population of more than 1.4 billion, it’s no surprise that India has the second-highest online gaming community with 568 million people.

In terms of skill development, gaming involves a deep integration of technology and artistic skills in, retention and monetization. Technology, humanities, music, graphics, software, hardware and the arts come together for compelling storytelling through games. Talent engaged in game design and development game development, design, publishing represents a pool of highly qualified labour in the digital sector. Another unique characteristic of the gaming sector is that it not only creates demand for a highly qualified labour force but also plugs the skill gap in other segments. The engaging, competitive nature of games is leveraged to bridge the gap between teaching and applied knowledge, such as war games in the military and simulators used in the transport sector. This is gamification to achieve desired outcomes.

Considering these numbers, the segment has the potential to emerge as a global hub. This is despite the fact that the pay-to-play online skill gaming industry began bearing the burden of 28% GST on the full face value of wagers from October 2023. Thanks to the resilience and ingenuity of gaming companies, the higher costs have been absorbed without impacting consumers so far. However, this GST levy raises the problem of vulnerable youth being entrapped by offshore illegal betting and gambling platforms. Since the GST rate amendment, India has seen a flurry of these platforms emerging and advertising “no GST” to lure vulnerable players into engaging in illegal betting and gambling activities under the guise of offering games of skill with no GST implications.

The tax contributions from gaming have increased substantially, highlighting the revenue and job-generating potential of legal Indian gaming platforms. It is anticipated that the government will garner up to INR 14,000 crore a year through GST^. However, this revenue-generating capacity of online skill gaming platforms will eventually decline as many of these legitimate skill gaming start-ups are unable to bear the burden of high GST. As a result, the sector is facing a funding crunch and no major new start-ups have scaled operations.

Due to the symbiotic relationship between online gaming and tech tools such as virtual reality, artificial intelligence, blockchain and more, there is tremendous scope for digital innovation and employment creation in tertiary segments like cybersecurity, digital payments, marketing and advertising, customer service, etc. For example, gaming can be used to investigate complex AI thought and decision-making processes, thereby contributing to the development and understanding of AI. Currently, online gaming is said to employ approximately 100,000 people. Over the next few years, this number is likely to rise to around 250,000. Additionally, it can increase the digital skills of India’s youth.

The Additional Potential

By promoting the online gaming industry, the country could attract more global investments. At the same time, Indian start-ups can go global, exporting Indian culture and tech. Home-grown platforms have allowed game developers to increase their revenue by 100X through a scalable plug-and-play model. Games are works of art and cultural artefacts. Most gamers tend to identify with their games. The potential of games can be used to promote and build an understanding of India’s culture nationally and globally by offering immersive experiences, completing missions and testing one’s skills against others in competitions. To make this a reality, an enabling environment must be created via a rational regulatory framework with reasonable tax rates that could encourage more investments and innovations in the field.