Future Now
The IFTF Blog
Strategies of Leisure and Downtime, Bangalore, India
Leisure/Downtime, Expert interview, Rajesh Rao, Bangalore, India.
From his Indira Nagar office in Bangalore, Rajesh Rao operates one of the oldest gaming companies in India. Dhruva develops and publishes games for PC’s, mobiles, and consoles. He provides a unique perspective on gaming trends and consumer needs in India. In the context of the growing Indian economy powered by an ambitious middle-class, Rao sees a bright future for gaming in India, though it has a long way to go before occupying a space in mainstream leisure activity.
Dhruva’s Creations
Rajesh Rao is especially proud of two of Dhruva’s creations in the gaming world: Slyder and Cricinfo Genie. Slyder, a mobile maze game, can be uploaded to a server and people could go to the lobby and download it. “Those kind of networks- linking of mobile games with your networks is definitely the future” says Rao.
Cricinfo Genie, on the other hand converts ball by ball commentary into simulation. “First it was just an application. In the second version we made it possible for people to play- so if you wanted to play the last ball, you could play the last ball.” The Cricinfo Genie generated lot of buzz and Rao remarks that it is such buzz that is critical to raising awareness of games.
Changing Mindset towards Leisure/Entertainment
Rao sees the changing mindset towards leisure in the context of rising prosperity and people’s confidence about the future (though people are a bit cautious in the context of the recession). The notion of leisure is changing with the “change in people’s inclination to indulge themselves and not feel guilty.” A vibrant class and its engagement with leisure as a potent statement of mobility and confidence is where the gaming option seeks relevance and space.
Creativity
One sees a new-found “movement toward self-expression by kids. They are expressing themselves vertically and horizontally through social networking sites and mobiles.” The involvement of children in the creation of games is one such reflection of self-expression. The capture of the younger generation and its creative impulse bears the greatest potential for the gaming industry.
Gaming Culture and its Space within Leisure
Rajesh Rao believes that the gaming culture in India is sharing competitive space with other conventionally popular leisure experiences like- going to the mall, shopping, coffee shop, or dating. “It’s a process of engaging the customer, people have a finite amount of time for leisure and there are so many things that are vying for that time. You are trying to wedge yourself. And say - me gaming. So you better be as good as the coffee shop, mall, otherwise its’ not going to happen.”
Future of Gaming
• Good Content
• Connected Content
• Localization
• Generation of buzz
• Good experience with gaming
While commenting on the future of gaming, Rao says “So that’s what we need to see—buzz, rise in the awareness, confluence of good content and interest… but I think connected content is definitely going to play a key role.” He also places importance on localizing the game content to cater to the Indian market – invoking cricket and the film industry.
Upshot
Rajesh Rao’s perspective on gaming draws from an awareness of:
a. The importance of popular cultural themes and forms to the content and canvassing of gaming.
b. The need for competitive establishment of gaming as a leisure option in a rapidly modernizing socio-cultural space.
An added dimension to the future of gaming and other leisure options in modern urban spaces like Bangalore could be conceived in terms of the consequences of increasing congestion and constraints on mobility. Gaming could bring about simulated proximities and replicate inaccessible options of entertainment and leisure.