Niko Companions: Southeast Asia’s video games marketplace forecast to hit $6.47 billion in 2029

• Southeast Asia’s video games marketplace generated $5.37 billion in 2024, up 5.2% year-over-year.

Pocket Gamer Connects Summit Korea takes position on October thirty first, providing insights into the Asia marketplace and past.

As we lead as much as the display, we have now been reached out to audio system and native firms to get their perspectives at the regional trade.

We spoke with Niko Companions director for Southeast Asia and East Asia analysis Darang Candra to get the lowdown on the most recent marketplace knowledge and what the state of play is for the area’s video games marketplace.

This interview used to be performed as a part of our area highlight, which you’ll view right here.

PocketGamer.biz: How would you assess the Southeast Asian video games scene these days? 

Darang Candra: In line with our Southeast Asia Marketplace Style and 5-12 months Forecast, the area generated $5.37 billion in video games earnings in 2024, up 5.2% year-over-year. Income is anticipated to proceed rising in 2025, albeit at a slower expansion price. 

Younger players also are considered one of Southeast Asia’s defining strengths. Younger players are avid adopters of latest cost applied sciences, with virtual wallets recorded to be the preferred cost platforms for video games within the area for the previous few years. Lately, greater than 75% of Southeast Asian players use virtual wallets to pay for video games.   

What alternatives do you spot in Southeast Asia’s video games trade?  

Niko Companions has tracked Southeast Asia’s video games marketplace for the previous 11 years. The area has observed huge expansion previously decade, pushed by means of prime adoption of recreation gadgets (in particular cell), sturdy recreation communities and social actions, rising social acceptance of video games — in particular esports — as a well-liked mode of leisure, and prime social media and video platform usages touching on recreation contents. 

Southeast Asian players are extremely social, with greater than 45% of players need in-game chat and rank/scoreboard function of their video games. 52% of SEA players watch recreation livestreams, upper than the Asia-MENA reasonable of 45%. Recreation livestreams stay a well-liked job for SEA players. 

And what demanding situations do you spot? 

The primary problem is the slower expansion of the video games marketplace because of present financial and political problems confronted by means of probably the most international locations within the area, even supposing we undertaking the expansion to rebound within the coming years. 

What’s your outlook for the sphere? If we discuss once more in 5 years, the place do you hope Southeast Asia’s video games marketplace to be?  

The area’s marketplace is anticipated to develop 1.8% in 2025 to $5.47 billion. The marketplace is forecasted to achieve $6.47 billion in 2029 at a five-year CAGR of three.8%. 

The Southeast Asia video video games marketplace had 285.82 million players in 2024, up 3.1% Y/Y. This may increasingly develop an extra 1.5% to 290 million in 2025 and achieve 324.4 million in 2029 at a 5-year CAGR of two.6%.

What extra do you suppose the area’s video games sector wishes? I.e. extra strengthen from govt, extra funding generally?  

Govt strengthen is at all times the most important on this area because the video games trade isn’t as established as in East Asian international locations, as an example. Having transparent rules that don’t impede the trade whilst balancing it with the want to safeguard avid gamers (particularly minors) is vital.

Funding could also be every other key to growing the area’s video games sector, as there are alternatives from each the manufacturing facet and the shopper facet. 

Who do you spot as the important thing avid gamers within the Southeast Asian video games scene in 2025? 

Corporations which are in a position to harness the social and aggressive sides of Southeast Asian participant base are in a position to search out luck within the area.

In 2025, we’ve observed the continual acclaim for esports titles from publishers comparable to Moonton (Cell Legends), Garena (Unfastened Fireplace), and Tencent (Honor of Kings). Different firms that set up to achieve luck of their respective niches come with Infold (Love and Deepspace), Konami (eFootball), and EA (EA FC). 

In the neighborhood advanced video games also are gaining extra press and recognition inside the area and past. Notable titles that experience observed luck come with Coral Island (Indonesia), Gigabash (Malaysia), Cat Quest (Singapore), and House Candy House: On-line (Thailand).