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The World Health Organization has declared video games an effective way to stop the spread of the coronavirus, one year after adding ‘gaming disorder’ to its list of addictive behaviours, according to The Business Insider. Such declaration comes at a time when people are experiencing their first-ever home quarantine.
There are cooking and other hobbies, but video games are now being considered as the best way to get entertained or socialised during the quarantine. Video games can connect people from all over the world through multiplayer games.
With the pandemic showing no sign of going anytime soon, video game engagement has increased tremendously since March 2020. Asian gaming giants Nintendo and Tencent have seen their profits increase by 41 per cent and 31 per cent respectively.
An analysis from gamesindustry.biz shows a 63 per cent rise in sales across 50 key markets. The home quarantine has compelled everyone to explore the gaming world, even more, leading to an 80 per cent increase in the download of new games.
A data analysis from Streamlabs shows different and popular gaming platforms such as Twitch, YouTube gaming and the Facebook stream have seen a 20 per cent increase in usage hours. In pandemic, these platforms have become the social savior for people, especially in quarantine.
Meanwhile, e-sports have become more or less the casualty of it, as most of the events have been either postponed or cancelled. The good news is that e-sports have started finding their foot connecting to the fans through broadcasting their events on TV, YouTube, and other social media platforms.
All the video game giants have been thriving in the world. In a recent data analysis, Microsoft showed a 130 per cent increase in multiplayer games, and arsenal.gg showed that Steam hit its record of the user over 20 million.
The gaming industry has a higher net worth than Football and movie industry combined. In Bangladesh, PUBG, Valorant, FreeFire, Clash of clans, Mobile Legends Bang Bang, Dota, and various multiplayer games are now ruling the market.
The level of popularity the video gaming industry has being receiving during this pandemic is more and less expected to sustain in future. Since people are being used to video gaming, who knows, the industry will not be the largest one day, especially within the next 10-15 years.
The writer is an undergraduate student of human resource management at East West University. Email: [email protected]