Here's How Singapore's Young Gamers Help Bolster the Country's Economy

Singapore is the smallest SEA country with one of the fastest-growing economies in the region. The gross domestic product is expected to grow by 34%, achieving 626.07 billion USD by 2028. There are more than 6 million people, 0.9 million of whom are gamers. The Singaporean video game market is projected to show a CAGR of 12.99% in 2023-2028.

Mix of International Giants and Indie Studios

Singapore is famous in the region for the presence of international AAA companies like Electronic Arts, Ubisoft, and Bandai Namco. Interviewees are certain that the majority of Singaporean game developers work in these tech giants.

Kris Roebuck, CEO at Cyber Galactic

The Singapore game scene is more AAA. There are offices of big companies like EA and Ubisoft. So, most developers who work in Singapore tend to be attached to the giant companies.

However, at the same time, indie development is thriving in the country: a new generation characterized by freedom and creativity improves game skills and has the opportunity to create their own games. Thus, in addition to outsourcing, small and large Singaporean companies are engaged in creating their own IPs (for example, Free Fire).

Foong Ching Kong, Owner / Founder at AeonSparx Interactive Sdn. Bhd.

There are quite a lot of really good indie gamedev studios in the SEA region. Most of us are trying to find a way to survive.

The interest of the young generation has an impact on game development in Singapore. People have aspirations both to create something new and to work in large companies. Unlike the previous generation of developers who grew up playing slow-paced console games, the new generation is focused on fast pace, innovation, and adoption of foreign culture. That is why developers should take into account the diverse demographics within their team and adapt to the shifting preferences of the younger gaming audience.

Don Baey, Chief Business Development Officer, and Leslie Ng, Chief Strategy Officer | Creative Director at TrueWorld Studios Pte Ltd

Younger talents are much more creative, free, and expressive, and also often influenced by other countries’ cultures. For instance, in Singapore, many developers apply anime style or Japanese-inspired style due to its strong fanbase. It creates a unique blend of cultures in this part of the world trying to reach out to a different demographic in the Western world. Younger devs also sometimes consider their own game preferences that are radically different from older devs. For instance, the digital native generation grew up with Minecraft and Roblox and are attuned to fast-paced games, while older generations grew up with console gaming and slower-paced games on consoles. It is crucial that developers consider the different demographics both within the team and also the evolving preferences of younger gamers.

Shift to PC Games

Like the rest of the SEA region, in Singapore, mobile games dominate the market. According to Statista, the mobile games sector was 0.07 billion USD in 2023 and it will continue to grow achieving 0.08 billion USD in 2025.

Based on data in the Allcorrect report, the market size of mobile games was more than 50% of all games in 2021. However, interviewees are sure that there are many talents in Singapore that have experience and great skills in PC game development. That’s why this direction is also very popular in the country. In 2021 the percentage of PC game revenue was 26%.

Joseph Woo, Global Business Development Executive at Potato Play

Singapore has a couple of pretty good PC studios and very little mobile companies. They had a lot of experience, brought out what they learned and created great PC games.

Interestingly, the Deloitte report revealed that mobile and console games have the same reach (about 80%) among hard gamers who play more than 10 hours per week. PC games also have a high level of usage among hard gamers: about 70% of them prefer to play games via PC. For other gamer groups mobile games are still prevalent.

Opening Branch VS Collaboration

From the interviewees' point of view, Singapore is a favorable place to set up a branch of an international game company. There are several reasons for this:

What to choose: opening an office or collaborating with a Singaporean company? What are the best ways to reach the Singapore gaming audience? How does Singapore differ from other countries in the Southeast Asian region?

Download the full report How to Conquer the Southeast Asian Game Market? Part 2: Focus On The Countries to get answers to these questions

Here's How Singapore's Young Gamers Help Bolster the Country's Economy

Mix of International Giants and Indie Studios

Shift to PC Games

Opening Branch VS Collaboration

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