The video game genres that have grown the most in India over the last two years
Anyone who follows the global gaming industry closely will have noticed that something is happening in India that deserves far more attention than it usually gets. The country already has 591 million players, representing 18% of the global user base, while its market is valued at 3.7 billion dollars, with projections indicating unstoppable growth before 2029 and attracting increasing attention from developers, investors, and global publishers.
As smartphones become more powerful, there has also been a clear rise in overall interest in mobile casino games, driving downloads of fast-paced entertainment options such as monopoly big baller among the connected population. What is even more striking is that precisely 90% of Indian players use only mobile devices, which has a decisive impact on which genres are growing in the region.
Battle royale and FPS
There is one fact worth keeping in mind before going into detail, Battle Royale and FPS games are currently the fastest-growing genres in India, with a compound annual growth rate of 15%-16%, according to the latest data from Mordor Intelligence and Market Research Future. To understand why, it is necessary to look at the recent history of Battlegrounds Mobile India, Krafton’s title that was banned in 2020 along with other apps of Chinese origin, before returning to the market in 2021 with a version specifically adapted for the country.
That comeback was much more than the return of a popular game. It reactivated a community that had remained dormant for months, generated a wave of content creators dedicated to the genre and pushed millions of young players towards online competitive gaming. Along the same lines, Call of Duty Mobile has capitalised on this ecosystem with its 2026 esports roadmap, turning mobile FPS into something that is no longer just a game, but an organised competitive structure with real prizes. According to Niko Partners, 40% of Indian players surveyed said they would play battle royale several times a week over the next twelve months, which says a great deal about the strength of that habit.
Casual and hyper-casual games
Beyond the competitive spectacle of battle royale, there is another genre that dominates in terms of sheer volume, casual and hyper-casual games. With 35% of the market’s total revenue in 2025, this category brings together the largest number of active players in India, and it is not difficult to understand why.
Hyper-casual games fit perfectly with the profile of the average Indian player, with five-minute sessions, intuitive mechanics, ad-based monetisation that does not require spending and compatibility with mid-range and low-end devices. What many did not anticipate was that this accessibility would eventually become the entry point to more demanding genres. Players who began with puzzle or clicker titles have gradually migrated towards battle royale or strategy games as they have become more familiar with the digital ecosystem and upgraded their devices. In fact, simulation games account for 22% of all downloads in India, a figure that alone reflects the market’s appetite for experiences that go one step beyond pure casual gaming.
Strategy and sports driven by cricket and local culture
It is impossible to talk about Indian gaming without mentioning cricket, not only as a sport, but as the driving force behind an entire genre. Fantasy sports games have built an ecosystem in India that has no real equivalent in any other market worldwide. Dream11 surpassed 220 million registered users in 2024 and has begun moving that audience towards casual puzzle games during quieter periods in the cricket calendar, something that is worth taking into account when trying to understand how genres feed into one another in this market.
Strategy games are also showing growing penetration, especially those that incorporate vernacular mythology, characters from Bollywood cinema, or festival-themed skins such as Diwali or Holi.
Esports and the professionalisation of Indian players
To understand the scale of what is happening, it is important to know that 60% of Indian players have participated in the esports ecosystem in some way, whether by playing, watching competitions or taking part in tournaments. Tamil Nadu classified esports as an official sport in 2024, unlocking 200 crore rupees in grants for facilities. Karnataka, with Bengaluru as its epicentre, has the highest density of certified Unreal Engine developers per capita in the country.
All of these point to a market in which competitive genres have stopped being mere entertainment and become infrastructure. The video game genres that have grown the most in India over the last two years have not done so by chance. They have grown because they align with a young, connected generation, with more and more 5G devices in their hands, and with a local industry that has learned how to speak to them in their own language.
