Playing games is the perfect way to spend quality time with friends, family, and co-workers. Almost every household in India would have family memories of playing one of these three popular indoor games — Rummy, Ludo, and Carrom. While the rise in tech has led to a shift from offline to online gaming, intriguingly, the same trend in popularity is reflecting online too.
As per a report by KPMG and Google, the Indian online gaming market is growing 3.4 times and is estimated to touch $1 billion by 2021. This number was $290 million in 2016.
Among the other indoor games, Rummy has been the most-played card game and undebatably the favourite card game in India. It has been an integral part of all celebrations, including auspicious festivals like
Diwali, family celebrations like marriages and birthday parties, and team get-togethers at the workplace.
Today, all of us live incredibly fast-paced lives with little time for social get-togethers and limited options for immersive and personalised entertainment. Over the last decade, online gaming has emerged as a favourite pastime for millions of Indians and Rummy as a card game got a front-row seat in this boom because of its nostalgia element and the edge-of-the-seat intense game playing experience.
Just like e-commerce and other technology platforms, the rapid proliferation of smartphones and increasing data penetration have undoubtedly fuelled the growth of online games like Rummy. But, a quick survey among gaming enthusiasts reveals more. "It just makes me feel alive, activates my brain, and helps me think on my feet," says a Jaipur-based player.
Talking about his game playing experience, another player in New Delhi said, "It's all about how good you can play the game and how quickly you can outthink others. Even when we play in small groups within the family, the biggest joy is to show that I have better skills than the others. When I play the game online, I compete with so many players whom I don't know. It's even more fun to judge how they are playing and how to outplay them all to become the winner".
Clearly, the core of the massive popularity of Rummy lies in the action packed nature of the game — one has to think on their feet, stay focused and continuously access the possibilities to make the right moves and win the game.
As per Google's search trends, Rummy centric searches have steadily grown over the past three years and has clocked a record 300% year-on-year growth in the last quarter.
During the last quarter, there is a surge in search terms (on Google) on "how to play rummy" and "rummy rules" as more and more gamers are trying to learn and brush up their rummy skills. Gradually, this is getting normalised, as expected, but still higher (2x-3x) than usual.
Recently, RummyCircle, the most popular Rummy platform in India launched Rummy Masterclass videos on YouTube in partnership with Indian actress Mandira Bedi.
According to a report by Deloitte published in 2018, the last few years have led to remarkable growth in the revenue figures of the Indian skill games industry. The calculated CAGR for the previous three years for card-based games based on the change in revenue is 67.58%, generating total revenue of about Rs 730 crores in 2016-17; Fantasy Sports has grown by 199.69% making total revenue of about Rs 67 crores in 2016-17.
Authentic online rummy platforms offer multiple safe and secured payment options including mobile wallet apps, Credit Cards, Debit Cards, Netbanking, among others.
Industry body The Online Rummy Federation (TORF) ensures a safe, secure and responsible playing environment for rummy players across India. TORF does this by ensuring that stringent standards and guidelines are laid out and followed by rummy operators who are members of the TORF.
The popularity of online Rummy will continue to grow unabated as more and more people look for options of fun and engaging entertainment in their fast-paced lives.
