The Andhra clans totalling upwards of 40 at last count, are roaming the streets virtually to bump off other FPS. And the corporates are saying wOOt!
HYDERABAD: The Andhra clans (gangs of five each), totalling upwards of 40 at last count, are roaming the streets virtually to bump off other FPS (first person shooters). And the corporates are saying wOOt! (gaming lingo for cheers).
No, we aren’t talking about the faction gangs of Rayalseema but the average college-going kids in the city who are fast-turning Hyderabad into the online gaming hub in the country to rival Mumbai.
“Recently, we had a review and discovered that Hyderabad had a significant number of power gamers,” said Swaroop Chowdhary, MD, Reliance Webworld, which runs some 200 odd Gamezones in its 240 stores in the country.
Hyderabad is one of the top five cities in the gaming space with a good number of game cafes next only to Mumbai, said Naveen H, national gaming head, Sify, which operates 200 exclusive and standalone Gamedromes across the country.
The numbers also reflect in the higher registrations from the city for online gaming competitions in the country.
For instance, upwards of 2,000 gamers from Hyderabad alone have registered for the ongoing Gamebox Championship 2008 being organised by Reliance Webworld.
Not surprisingly then, most companies, particularly broadband Internet service providers, are talking of aggressively expanding outlets to provide access to both hardcore and casual gamers in the state.
For instance, while Reliance is talking of having 200 Gamezones, shop-in-shop properties at its existing 240 Webworld shops, Sify, too, is talking of an aggressive expansion of its standalone Gamedromes.
Game developer Game Shastra decided to set up its first gamine lounge in Hyderabad, primarily as a recruitment tool for talent. “We will set up more lounges in other cities but as a market Hyderabad will be on a par with any of the big metros in the country.” Prakash Ahuja, CEO, Gameshastra, told DNA Money.
The reason for such a higher number of game enthusiasts here is not surprising considering the large number of game development companies and then there is a high level of talent available in Hyderabad, he added.
But then this trend is not limited to the city alone and companies are looking at B and C class cities in the state to expand. “Visakhapatnam is another city which is hot on the gaming scene,” said Chowdhary.
Reliance operates just one Webworld in the port city but is looking to open up more shops given enthusiastic response to the gamezone from young people.
Unlike other cities where gamers also include the under-14 kids, there are more college-going kids in Hyderabad’s gaming community. This apart, there is also a higher share of the young call-centre employees here, he said.
What this means is that the ARPUs accrue to gaming centres in Hyderabad than other cities and secondly the time spent is also is much more at game cafes in the city.
p_chitti@dnaindia.net
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