Mobile games revenue saw an increase of $135 million across Malaysia and Singapore combined between 2017 and 2019.
As found in a new report by Niko Partners, the Malaysian mobile games market grew by $100 million in two years, with a growth rate of 15 per cent last year. Meanwhile, in Singapore, there was an increase of $35 million for the same period, with a growth rate of 14.8 per cent in 2019.
Smartphones generated more money in both countries than PC, in Malaysia, the platform made $35 million from 2017 to 2019. Meanwhile, it grew by $5 million for the same period of time in Singapore
A rise in esports
One of the reasons for the increase in mobile revenue is esports, as competitive gaming continues to grow in the region. In both Malaysia and Singapore, the top-grossing game was esports MOBA Mobile Legends by Chinese firm Moonton, as it generated $20.9 million in the former and $12.5 million in the latter.
Both countries boasted numerous esports titles in their respective top ten grossing mobile games, PUBG Mobile being amongst them as it took eighth and second place in Singapore and Malaysia respectively. In Q2 2020, Tencent’s battle royale was the top-grossing game worldwide.