How are Indian AAA Games Overcoming Technology and Quality Challenges?

An average gamer may not notice the category of game they are playing. But the gaming industry bifurcates games into three broad categories - Indie, AA and AAA. In AA games, the freshness and innovation of Indie games are balanced with a little more budget and quality. AAA games, on the other hand, are the gaming equivalent of a big-budget, multi-starrer Hollywood movie made by a top studio.

The poker game platform where you play your rounds of Texas Holdem poker may be Indie or AA, depending on the production value of the platform. However, AAA games have massive budgets, often exceeding $50 million. They may involve 50 to 100 highly skilled resources in the development and have game stories that have an expansive narrative landscape. In short, these games are the big money-spinners that eventually define the size of the gaming industry in a country.

For the ever-growing Indian gaming industry, making breakthroughs in the AAA gaming category should be, and is the ultimate goal.

AAA Game Requirements and India

At present, the gaming industry in India is a melting pot of popular foreign game titles and homegrown favourites. To become a superpower on the production side, India needs to develop an assembly line of AAA games that meet global standards.

The Independence Day speech by PM Narendra Modi specifically urged the gaming sector to harness India’s potential and become a global leader. Indian game developers have matured in their ability to develop popular and quality mobile games. However, the country has the skillsets required to develop AAA games as well.

AAA games require an understanding of the global market, marketability in specific languages and markets, and astute management of the gaming communities. Minecraft, Grand Theft Auto V, and Call of Duty are all examples of successful AAA games. For realistic 3D graphics, these games use cutting-edge graphic techniques like ray tracing, photogrammetry and rasterisation. Sophisticated game engines like Maya, Blender, and Unity are used for AAA game development.

The use of the best resources and technology inflates the production cost of AAA games. The investment required to develop AAA games in India is a tough ask compared to the immensely popular real money games and mobile games. Take the popularity of the poker game platform Pocket52, for instance, where millions of gamers log in to enjoy games like Texas Holdem poker. Having said that, investments in Indian AAA games are gradually opening up.

India’s Foray into AAA

In 2022, Bengaluru-based Mayhem Studios announced the closed beta launch of Underworld Gang Wars. This battle royale game was 18 months in the making and was being distributed by large publishers. This high-budget production garnered more than 2 million pre-registrations within two weeks of launch, while its trailer clocked more than 70 million views across major platforms.

Apart from being made in India, the storyline has rich Indian elements including in locations, characters and icons. The question now is, will more Indian game developers follow in their footsteps? And how technology can help them?

Trending Techniques Shaping Indian AAA Games

The hallmark of AAA games is the top-notch quality that big budgets can afford. AAA games incorporate these features through their investment in cutting-edge graphics technology. Take ray tracing, for instance.

It can realistically simulate the way light reflects in the virtual landscape. Ray tracing is the reason why the light rays in AAA games create lifelike reflections, shadows and refractions. Experienced gamers may recall how Non-Playing Characters (NPCs) in games would sometimes be stuck in a loop in the background. Such lags and flaws have no place in modern AAA games.

The use of artificial intelligence has revolutionised how NPCs respond in a game, making them livelier within the gameplay. Out went the scripted behaviours and the predictive body movements. In came NPCs that display dynamic and engaging interactions.

Indian AAA game developers have the full potential to leverage the potential of these next-gen graphics technologies. While Mayhem Studios did so in Underworld Gang Wars, Pune-based Supergaming Studio developed its AAA venture, Indus Battle Royale. The game’s India-inspired map design and characters attracted a resounding 8.5 million gamers into pre-registration.

Vying for the ‘first AAA game from India’ tag is Raji: An Ancient Epic by Pune-based Nodding Heads Games. The game has amassed two million players in its four years of existence. It was recently launched on PlayStation 5 with improved graphics, featuring the aforementioned ray tracing technique, as well as the full-completion platinum trophy.

More to Come?

As Indian AAA games make a delayed entrance into the global gaming scene, one must acknowledge the reasons for the same. India is predominantly a mobile gaming market. Gamers don’t mind missing out on AAA titles, which are best experienced on PCs and consoles. Skill and technology have never been a deterrent for Indian developers, who often shoulder the duty of developing VFX and development duties for international cinema and AAA game studios anyway. The real challenge for Indian AAA games is, therefore, roping in investors who are prepared for its prolonged gestation period and global marketing campaigns.