DUBAI: People spent an average of approximately 3.5 hours a day globally on their mobile phones in 2018. That is predicted to rise about 4 hours this year, according to Statista.
It’s unsurprising, given that more people use their mobile devices for everything from relaxing and socializing to shopping and even doctor’s visits — and that a significant portion of the time spent on mobiles is on gaming apps. In 2020, mobile playtime went up by 62 percent, according to Game Analytics, mostly as a result of COVID-19 lockdowns. Although gaming, in general, is more popular among younger audiences, mobile devices have opened up the arena to older audiences as well.
The increased time spent on mobile gaming – an estimated $85 billion industry – has encouraged developers to launch games that go beyond the puzzle game style popularized by the likes of Candy Crush.
One such game is Garena Free Fire. Launched in 2017, the battle royale style game shot to popularity in 2019 with the game achieving more than 100 million peak daily active users in 2020. It was the most downloaded mobile game worldwide both in 2019 and 2020, according to App Annie.
Battle royale games are multiplayer survival games that require players to eliminate other players to win. Since such games usually feature high-end graphics and animation, they’re better suited to bigger screens. However, Garena Free Fire was designed exclusively with the mobile gamer in mind, said Hans Saleh, Country Head for Garena, Middle East and North Africa (MENA).
The gaming market in the MENA region is full of potential. According to a Frost & Sullivan report, gaming in the MENA region is estimated to be worth $4.5 billion, with the number of gamers believed to be more than 100 million.
The report also found that Saudi Arabia ranked 19th in gaming revenues in 2019, while the UAE ranked 35th.
“Saudi is definitely one of the big markets, and so is the UAE. We are also seeing growth in Egypt. We are focusing on being closer to the gamers because it’s all about the user experience for us,” said Saleh.
The company conducted extensive research to get feedback on its product. Saleh attributes the popularity of the game to this user-centric approach. In fact, currently, Garena is in the process of beta testing a new version of the game called Garena Free Fire MAX, although there are no plans for a public launch yet.
Garena Free Fire-related content recorded more than 72 billion view counts across YouTube globally in 2020, making it the most viewed mobile-only video game globally on YouTube for both 2019 and 2020. It was also the third most viewed among all video games on YouTube in 2020.
The company is also promoting the game by building Garena Free Fire communities globally through grassroots events and influencer engagements; and through collaborations such as those with Netflix’s “Money Heist” and football superstar Cristiano Ronaldo.
To attract players in the region, Garena Free Fire recently announced a collaboration with Arab superstar Mohamed Ramadan. He will be introduced as an in-game character, becoming the first-ever playable Arab character in a battle royale game.
Another way of engaging gamers is through tournaments. The Free Fire World Series was launched in 2019 with a top prize of $200,000. “It gathers all the champions from different regions globally and they compete to become the world champion,” said Saleh.
Due to COVID-19 restrictions, the World Series was converted to the Continental Series in 2020 with separate tournaments for America, Asia, and the Europe and Middle East and Africa (EMEA) region with a total prize pool of $900,000 divided among the three regions.
This year, Garena is launching a new format especially for the MENA region, which includes the launch of the Free Fire Arab League and Free Fire Arab Championship. The winners of the Arab Championship will be eligible to participate in the Arab League, the winners of which will then go on to represent the MENA region in the Free Fire World Series.
The Free Fire World Series 2021 will take place in May in Singapore and will feature a $2 million prize pool.
Garena believes that the new format can engage viewers and players, as well as being sustainably run for the foreseeable future, said Saleh.
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