Top Emerging Gaming Markets in 2025: India, MENA, and Beyond

The video game industry is reshaping the world economy at an unprecedented pace. Depicting a robust market size of $298.98 billion, opportunities in this segment are rapidly growing. With the advent of new-age technologies and the increasing number of smartphone users, the game industry is riding on an impressive growth trajectory. By 2030, the gaming industry is projected to experience a massive revenue influx of $600.74 billion, with a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 12.2%.

As investments in the global game industry are increasing, you must deploy out-of-the-box ideas to succeed in this creative sector. For that, you should seek assistance from a leading game development company. It will enable you to stay ahead of the competition with improved ROI in the years to come. When you are investing in the game development industry, you should not restrict your market reach to a specific country. You should also explore other countries in the world.

Already, countries like the USA, Canada, China, Japan, and South Korea have evolved into a favorable investment destination for businesses operating in the gaming industry. So, it is the right time, you must also expand your business presence in other parts of the world. In this blog, we will guide you to navigate your investment scopes in countries like India, the UAE, and Brazil that are fast evolving into the global gaming landscape as a potential investment option.

India- The Next Gaming Superpower

Faster internet connectivity with landmark campaigns like ‘Digital India’, Start Up India’, ‘Skill India Mission’, and so on, has resulted in the thriving gaming ecosystem in India. With an impressive market share of $4.38 billion, the gaming landscape of India is widening opportunities for businesses of all sizes. It will be interesting to take a close look at its gradual ascendancy into the global gaming market under segments like:

Demography

• In 2024, the total population of online gamers in the country was 488 million. By 2025, it is forecasted to reach the mark of 517 million. (Demand Sage)
• Players aged 15-24 years old occupy 39.6% of the country’s gaming market. (Mordor Intelligence)
• Over 68% of the Indian gaming population is within the age of 35-44 years old (Animation Xpress)
• In India, male players constitute 56% of the total population, while female gamers constitute 43% of the country’s population. (Demand Sage)

Device Preferences

• Mobile occupies 94% of India’s gaming market share.
• Whereas, the market share of gaming devices like PC is 9% and that of consoles is 4% (KPMG)

Revenue Model

• The market of in-game advertisement in India has crossed the mark of $772.20 million. By 2030, it is projected to reach the mark of $1.22 billion (Statista)
• Whereas the in-app purchase model presently adds about 41% of the total gaming revenue in India. By 2028, it is anticipated to surpass the figure of 44% (Business Standard)

Top Genres

The simulation game genre is currently leading with 22% of the total game downloads in India. Similarly, the arcade game genre occupies 19% of the total downloads in India.

With improved digital infrastructure and a growing gaming population, India also has numerous game outsourcing companies, such as Red Apple Technologies. It will allow you to gain future-proof game development services for your business growth.  

UAE

As a premier gaming hub, the UAE is captivating the attention of global enterprises with immense prospects. Numerous factors are reshaping the UAE’s position in the worldwide game landscape. This covers:

• Growing Market Size

The game market size of Dubai is $484.1 million. By 2030, it is predicted to reach the mark of $754.2 million with a compound-annual growth rate of 6.16%. (MarkNtel Advisors)

• Vibrant Gaming Population

(i) 73% of the total population in the UAE is gamers. While the number of paid gamers is 41%. (United Arab Emirates Ministry of Economy)

(ii) 70% of female players and 74% of male players enjoy mobile gaming in the UAE. Whereas, 49% of  women and 64% of men like console gaming in the UAE. (Newzoo)

• Higher Penetration of Mobile

(i) The market share of mobile in the UAE’s gaming landscape is 76%. While the market share of desktop is 55% and that of console is 43%. (UAE Ministry of Economy)

(ii) In the UAE, players spend around  20-40 minutes on average on mobile gaming each day.

• The Rise of Esports

It is also one of the major reasons why the UAE has managed to grab attention from investors across the globe. This thriving segment has already ensured a surplus revenue flow of over $14.2 million in 2024. By 2030, it is projected to reach the mark of $40.4 million. (Grand View Research) 

Brazil

Emerged as the top gaming market in Latin America, Brazil ranks in the 10th position in the global game industry. Its market share in gaming has already crossed the mark of $7.25 billion in 2025. By 2030, it is projected to reach the mark of $10.17 billion (Statista).

The Brazilian game industry drives maximum revenue from mobile gaming, which has occupied a market share of 78.9%. While the market share of desktops in the country is 42.3%, and that of consoles is 39.3%. Similarly, the market share of tablets is 14.5% and other handheld gaming devices is 11.3% (Venture Beat). However, the country needs to do more work in the coming days to improve its global position in the game industry. Apart from Brazil, countries like Nigeria and Egypt are also evolving into promising gaming hubs.

How Do We Help You Shine in the Gaming Landscape of India?

India’s gaming industry is evolving at lightning speed with the active contribution of gamers, innovators, developers, and other stakeholders. At Red Apple Technologies, we help you navigate this dynamic ecosystem with steps like:

• Requirement Analysis

As a leading game development company, we never believe in the one-size-fits-all approach. Our team thoroughly scrutinizes your project details at the beginning. It enables them to proceed after crafting a proper development roadmap.

• End-to-End Assistance

With the rising competition in the gaming market in India, we not only help you conceive the best idea but also bear the entire responsibility to execute it. From creating prototypes to UI/UX design, tech stack integration, QA testing, marketing, and post-launch support, our end-to-end solution covers everything to add value to your project. 

• Next-Gen Tech Integration

To craft a memorable and tailored gaming experience for your users, we also excel in adding new-age technologies like Generative AI, Blockchain, NFT, AR & VR, harnessing the power of Unity, Unreal, HTML5, and other game development tools.

• Dedicated Assistance

We also come with engagement models like Dedicated Hiring that enable you to choose the best team of game developers in India to implement your project vision wisely. This also offers you the flexibility to introduce new changes to your existing project scope to ensure a far better outcome.

• Regulations Compliant

As a reputable game development agency, we observe steps like signing NDAs (Non-Disclosure Agreements), Service-Level Agreements (SLAs), and beyond to safeguard your unique game idea at every stage of design and development. 

Wrapped Up

Crossing the boundaries of North America and Europe, the game industry is flourishing in the Asia-Pacific, MENA, and other regions of the world. This not only refines the quality of gaming but also encourages businesses and investors to build their market presence in countries like India, the UAE, Brazil, and beyond to attain robust dividends and returns for a long time. When you invest in India, you will have the opportunity to communicate with game outsourcing agencies like Red Apple Technologies that have the proven efficiency to transform your vision into profitable games with an increased ROI.

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