Report: Mobile outpaces online PC games in Southeast Asian markets

The Southeast Asian online game market is still growing, and a new report from market research firm Niko Partners suggests that interest is shifting from PC to mobile games in the region. According to the report, mobile game players now outnumber online PC game players in the region 119 million to 97 million. Niko now predicts that the Southeast Asian online games market as a whole will reach $784.4 million in 2014, led by strong revenue growth in Indonesia, Thailand and Vietnam. That's based on select results from a study of 10,000 (mostly young, male "hardcore") game players in the region, along with data from regional mobile marketplaces in Vietnam, Indonesia, Thailand, Malaysia, the Philippines and Singapore. But more of that growth may be tied to mobile games than was previously expected. Seven percent of the "hardcore" online PC game players recently surveyed by Niko Partners said they did not play mobile games; that's a significant decline from the 25 percent who said so in last year's study, and it suggests Southeast Asia is rapidly catching up to China, where Niko has conducted studies suggesting that nearly all Chinese online PC game players also play mobile games. "The Southeast Asian games market is often compared to that of China, and we can see that it is following behind China by a few years," stated Niko managing partner Lisa Cosmas Hanson. "Gamers in SEA embrace massively online battle arena games, shooters, and mobile games, just as they do in China. However, older Chinese gamers still embrace higher revenue-generating MMORPGs, a segment that many SEA gamers shy away from." So if you're thinking about bringing your mobile game to Southeast Asia, now seems like a prime time to do so. The full report is available for purchase on the Niko Partners research store.