By Yoon Ja-young
Smartphones have changed every aspect of our life, and games are no exception. Mobile games, or video games played on mobile phones or other portable smart devices, are taking a bigger slice of the pie.
According to a report by Korea Development Bank, the global mobile game market is expected to mark an average 14.3 percent annual growth from 2007 to 2012. The market is estimated to grow to $11 billion by 2012, taking 8 percent of the total game industry. The local mobile game market also grew by 22 percent to 400 billion won last year.
It owes its growth to the smartphone boom and wider availability of wireless Internet. Smartphones and the broadband network make game applications available anywhere, anytime. Games are not only for young, heavy users who enjoy hardcore games. Those in their 30s and 40s, and those who prefer light, casual games have also become consumers of mobile games.
The open market or application stores have accelerated the growth of the mobile game industry. It enabled mobile game developers to approach bigger markets.
“As the mobile culture has rapidly expanded to smartphones from traditional feature phones, mobile game businesses are getting more opportunities,” said Jung Woo-chul, an analyst at Mirae Asset Securities. “It has broken down barriers to global mobile game services, and they have released new games in many countries,” he said. “The competition is also fierce due to easy entry,” he added.
Gamevil and Com2us are the country’s leading firms in the mobile game industry. Gamevil marked 28.5 billion won sales last year and Com2us recorded 28 billion won. Gamevil’s baseball game has had 13 million downloads here, and its operating profit ratio stands at 54 percent.
The surge of mobile games amid the smartphone boom has changed the industry landscape as well. It has become an all-round competition among diverse genres of games.
“In the past, game companies competed on their own platform, such as online, mobile or console games. But the fusion of the platforms make all compete together in one huge market,” said Choi Yoon-Jung, researcher at the KT Business and Economic Research Center, said in a report. Not only mobile companies but also online game producers like Nexon or portal operators like NHN have set up mobile game businesses to compete in the lucrative market.
They are taking a multi-platform strategy. The user can play games on diverse devices, from computers to smartphones or tablets.
Among over 330,000 applications registered at Apple’s App Store, games took around 15 percent, and entertainment applications took over 11 percent. These applications have become the most promising content for developers. They are expected to take a bigger share upon development of handsets, as high-end devices can equip games with diverse functions such as education, training, or promotion. These games are called serious games ― the users not only seek fun but also earn some real value while enjoying the game.
“To enjoy serious games, the users buy not only the software, but also hardware like game consoles or motion sensing interfaces. Such economic burdens, along with limitations in location, restrict the expansion of serious games,” said Kim Jong-dae, a researcher at LG Economic Research Institute.
He said that the development of smart devices give some additional value to the games. Long term evolution services, which will pull up the speed of telecommunication networks, will also enable users to enjoy games with advanced graphics.
The pre-release screening system on mobile games, however, has been a big obstacle to the industry. “For smartphone games, time is crucial. The screening process has limited participation from individual developers,” KT’s Choi said in a report. Amid mounting criticism, the Legislation & Judiciary Committee at the National Assembly approved the revision bill last month so that smartphone games could be released without pre-release screening.
Even when the screening system is scrapped, the government plans to impose a curfew on games to curb game addiction among children and teenagers. This still remains as a threat to the mobile game business.