What Makes Dubai the Hottest Destination for Gamers Right Now?

• By 2033, Dubai hopes to elevate itself among the top ten gaming influencers worldwide and create more than 30,000 employment opportunities in addition to a GDP contribution of nearly $1 billion.
• Envisioned within Dubai Gaming 2033 is an expansion of emerging talents and the abundant creation of state-of-the-art entertainment, culture, and technology.

Dubai has progressed very quickly, morphing into a powerful centrepiece of the MENA gaming platform. This transformation is fuelled not just by strategic initiatives and infrastructural development but by an industry brought together by the diversity and dynamism of its constituents. One such force catalysing this uprising lies at the feet of the changing demographic, which is seeing an increase in the growth of women gamers.

Women gamers from the Middle East and Northern Africa

Internationally, women gamers constitute a significant portion of the gaming population. According to MENA, this is owned by women gamers, even in such a way that gaming revenues are likely to go up to $5 billion by 2025. Consequently, this shift in demographics would potentially influence the entire gaming industry landscape in a manner that would increase its inclusivity and diversity.

The Claims for Inclusivity in Dubai

Realising the potential of gender inclusion in a blossoming society, Dubai iterated that several projects are in place to promote and help women in the gaming industry. Dubai Esports Festival offers (one of many) platforms through which to bring women into the gaming scene with more networking opportunities, skill acquisitions, and talent showcases. Additionally, workshops in the gaming sector and the event organised by the Chamber of Digital Economy have made preparations for equipping the participants, women included, with appropriate skills in the gaming business.

Women in the lead

The success stories that tell us how the initiatives have been embraced by various women engaged in gaming in Dubai are to give further insight. Aisha, a college student in Dubai, discovered that she was passionate about gaming during her teenage years. Her zeal was encouraged by local gaming events that provided some community for her. She now even streams her gaming performance on Twitch, offering motivation for other young women taking up gaming. Fatima, once an engineer, ventured into game development after taking a workshop offered by the Chamber of Digital Economy. She now works for a local gaming studio, designing games with aspirations cemented in regional culture.

Industry insights

Bigwigs in game design have already observed this penchant of women in society concerning gaming. Hence, David Fernandez, CEO of Sandsoft Games, believes that there is serious potential for women to develop games for both male and female audiences. On the other hand, Lucy Chow, a renowned gaming investor and Women in Games Ambassador, cites examples of games such as the Dubai Esports Festival to further this development of gaming in the Middle East and reshape the menagerie into a more equal market.

The Way Forward

As Dubai continues to embrace the establishment of itself as a global gaming hub, the inclusion and empowerment of women gamers in the city are the foremost needs of the time. The supportive policies of the governmental administration in the city, in tandem with a thriving community, have ensured a good atmosphere for gaming within its Quesnel investment structure for optimum growth while also continuing the fostering of societal incorporation of innovation. Through these acts of collaboration, Dubai is leading in recognition, from within, to an unprecedented growth within the gaming community worldwide.