Sacred Symbols+, Episode 212 | Gaming While Indian (Patreon)

India is the second most-inhabited country on Earth, and in just a few years, it'll be at the top of the heap. There are 1.4 billion people and counting there -- that's 'billion' with a 'B' -- an astounding four-plus times America's population, so when it comes to market economics, well, that's a whole lot of prospective customers. But there's a problem: India is woefully poor. And it's these two dueling and unavoidable factors -- population and poverty -- that have morphed India's gaming scene, one predicated largely on the free-to-play machinations of some of your favorite mobile and PC offerings. From competitive Counterstrike at Internet cafes to nightly FIFA tournaments amongst friends, in a society largely devoid of the likes of Nintendo and a development sector only in its infancy, there's nowhere in the world quite like India. To discuss the Indian gaming scene, I (Colin) welcomed Sam Sharma to the show, a resident of Pune (home of a Ubisoft studio!) who, thanks to his merchant marine father, had a must more expansive gaming experience growing up than many of his friends, who can't afford gaming hardware and play solely on their phones. It's a different world, albeit on the same planet. We hope you enjoy our chat.