A new report on esports in India by consulting firm Ernst and Young (EY) revealed that esports players in the country prefer playing on PC and consoles like PS5 and Xbox Series X|S more than casual gamers. The graph below, taken directly from the report, shows the preferential differences between esports and casual gamers for PCs, consoles and mobiles.
The gap between esports players and “social gamers” as the report calls them seems to be the highest for consoles, with a 15% increase by the former. The survey was conducted by EY India with 974 respondents, with 14% being esports players and the rest being social gamers. The preference for playing on mobile of course remains high, as that is the predominant platform in India, with multiple companies investing heavily into the future of esports industry development.
It’s not a surprise to see esports players being more interested in playing on better hardware than casual gamers, as that provides a competitive advantage. Furthermore, the increased upfront cost of gaming on a console isn’t lucrative to the so-called casual gamer when free-to-play games on mobile command the industry in India. It becomes even more obvious when professional mobile esports players in the country are reportedly getting paid twice as much in light of industrial shift.
Nonetheless, EY’s findings, if accurate are in line with another recent report from HP. According to the PC giant, 37 percent of mobile gamers want to move to PC for a better gaming experience.
While this is being positioned as “strong growth potential for the industry”, by the company in a prepared statement it is important to note that buying a PC — or even a graphics card in India — at a fair price is a nightmare right now.
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