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Saudi Arabia’s Gaming Sector Is Quickly Gathering Momentum
Around 3,000 locals already attend Gamers8, an 8-week eSports festival in Riyadh, with a tournament prize pool of $45 million.
Saudi Arabian locals make no secret of their passion for video games and eSports, with even Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman rumored to be an avid Call of Duty player.
Last year, the Saudi royal announced a $38-billion investment strategy for the Kingdom’s Savvy Games Group, which is owned by the country’s Public Investment Fund.
Meanwhile, as Gamers8 — an eight-week eSports festival in Riyadh with 3,000 attendees — gathers momentum, the government is increasingly emphasizing local game production, hoping to turn Saudi Arabia into “an Eden for game developers” with homegrown titles promoting Arabic culture.
“In the past, Arabs were only buying games, not developing games. Now, there is an opportunity to develop games, design your own ideas, and make them a reality according to local customs and traditions,” explained developer Mohammed Al Fakih.
Two-thirds of the non-immigrant population of Saudi Arabia is aged under 30, making the country an important player in the world video game market. In addition, some 25,000 domestic and foreign developers are currently working to find the winning formula that will help a locally-produced title break out on the world stage.
“With the expertise coming from outside and the knowledge being transferred, we will soon notice some games that can really take off internationally,” said Faisal bin Homran, chief eSports officer at the Saudi Esports Federation.
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Saudi Arabia’s national strategy has even more ambitious dreams: By 2030, officials hope that 30 globally competitive games will have been produced in domestic studios.
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NASA Forms New Partnership With Saudi Space Agency
The pair will collaborate on the Center for Space Futures, advancing space tech by bringing together public and private stakeholders.
Saudi Arabia’s space industry is on the brink of substantial expansion after generating $400 million in revenue in 2022, according to a report by the Saudi Communications, Space and Technology Commission.
Now, in a new venture with NASA, plans for a “Center for Space Futures” are set to further drive the Kingdom’s aspirations of becoming a leading player in space exploration and technology.
Capturing moments from the joint delegation visit with leaders from the Saudi and American Space Agencies @NASA to @PSU_RUH, along with scenes showcasing the audience's engagement. pic.twitter.com/oB1cFTiRNl
— وكالة الفضاء السعودية (@saudispace) May 14, 2024
The partnership between NASA and Saudi Arabia goes beyond economic advantages. The pair have already cooperated on preliminary work for the Artemis II lunar mission, which is slated for a September 2025 launch and aims to land astronauts near the moon’s South Pole.
Also Read: Plans Underway For Massive Middle East Autonomous Freight Network
During a visit to the capital, Riyadh, NASA Administrator Bill Nelson emphasized in a TV interview the broader objectives of the collaboration, which encompass “returning to the moon and then [to] Mars” while utilizing space exploration to glean important insights into climate change. The NASA spokesman also reiterated the space agency’s dedication to collaborating with Saudi Arabia on other future ventures.
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