It is imperative that there are multiple avenues for the young professionals across the UAE to develop the knowledge and skills needed to thrive in the local gaming industry
As any business owner knows, having the right people with the right skillsets on your team is critical to achieving sustainable growth.
You only need to look at the countless tech-related courses on offer across California to understand that the growth of companies in Silicon Valley is driven by a continuous stream of exceedingly talented young professionals. Highly-skilled talent leads to growth.
The same can be said for any industry, but excitingly, we are seeing this happening in Abu Dhabi’s video game sector. Though many people view gaming as a hobby taken up by teens, it is one of the world’s fastest growing industries, gaining almost 20 percent in 2020 to reach $174.9 billion. And this growth shows no signs of stopping, with global revenues expected to reach $217.9bn in 2023.
Looking closer to home, the MENA region is home to the fastest growing gaming sector in the world, boasting a year-on-year growth of 30.2 percent.
This month has also seen an impressive local success story, with the proposed sale of the region’s leading online gaming site, Jawaker. Our investment in Jawaker many years ago allowed them to expand and offer upcoming talent incredible career opportunities. Today, Jawaker has attracted interest from major global players in the industry and Stillfront Group has agreed to acquire it for $205 million.
With numbers like that, the business opportunities within gaming are abundant. That’s why we, as the driving force behind Abu Dhabi’s media and entertainment sector, have launched the AD Gaming initiative in partnership with a number of industry leaders. It is also why Abu Dhabi has committed to investing AED22bn in the cultural and creative industries over the next five years.
This significant investment into a range of creative sectors, which includes gaming and esports, demonstrates just how serious the emirate is about capitalising on these opportunities, creating jobs, and attracting top global talent within the gaming industry.
Yas Creative Hub will be home to some 16,000 creative professionals.
The launch of Yas Creative Hub, the new home of twofour54 (pictured above) and its 600+ media and entertainment partner companies, and the respective AD Gaming Hub, as well as the range of gaming business licenses on offer in Abu Dhabi, mean that the hard and soft infrastructure to facilitate growth is in place across the UAE capital.
But local and global companies won’t set up in Abu Dhabi if there isn’t a steady stream of world-leading talent right here in the emirate. That is why it is imperative that there are multiple avenues for the young professionals across the UAE to develop the knowledge and skills needed to thrive in the local gaming industry.
One key stream for knowledge development comes from one of the biggest names in the gaming world, Unity Technologies, whose game development platform was used to create over half of the top 1,000 games on the Apple and Google app stores.
Through their ‘Train the Trainer’ programme, Unity is working with top universities across the UAE to provide professors and teachers with key game development skills and knowledge, which they can then pass on to a broader range of students. Once equipped with these skills, students can then apply for and obtain one of Unity’s certifications, which are among the most sought after accreditations in the industry.
With a vast range of creative roles on offer within the sector, talent that can generate compelling storylines, develop characters and scenery designs, are highly sought after.
MENA region is home to the fastest growing gaming sector in the world.
As with most roles in the sector, game development jobs are underpinned by technical skills in coding, software design and programming. The skillsets needed to succeed are varied, and there are many exciting career paths within the gaming sector for students to explore. It is clear that gaming will play an increasingly significant role in the future of entertainment, so opportunities in this industry are only set to grow.
With a steady flow of industry-leading talent, and an influx of new gaming businesses to Abu Dhabi, we are providing businesses with the tools and people they need to succeed whilst simultaneously creating a wave of new jobs in the emirate.
It is by working with the world’s best that we will be able to drive the growth of the global gaming industry from right here in Abu Dhabi.
James Hartt, director of Strategic Partnerships at twofour54.
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By James Hartt
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Levelling up Abu Dhabi’s gaming industry talent
It is imperative that there are multiple avenues for the young professionals across the UAE to develop the knowledge and skills needed to thrive in the local gaming industry
As any business owner knows, having the right people with the right skillsets on your team is critical to achieving sustainable growth.
You only need to look at the countless tech-related courses on offer across California to understand that the growth of companies in Silicon Valley is driven by a continuous stream of exceedingly talented young professionals. Highly-skilled talent leads to growth.
The same can be said for any industry, but excitingly, we are seeing this happening in Abu Dhabi’s video game sector. Though many people view gaming as a hobby taken up by teens, it is one of the world’s fastest growing industries, gaining almost 20 percent in 2020 to reach $174.9 billion. And this growth shows no signs of stopping, with global revenues expected to reach $217.9bn in 2023.
Looking closer to home, the MENA region is home to the fastest growing gaming sector in the world, boasting a year-on-year growth of 30.2 percent.
This month has also seen an impressive local success story, with the proposed sale of the region’s leading online gaming site, Jawaker. Our investment in Jawaker many years ago allowed them to expand and offer upcoming talent incredible career opportunities. Today, Jawaker has attracted interest from major global players in the industry and Stillfront Group has agreed to acquire it for $205 million.
With numbers like that, the business opportunities within gaming are abundant. That’s why we, as the driving force behind Abu Dhabi’s media and entertainment sector, have launched the AD Gaming initiative in partnership with a number of industry leaders. It is also why Abu Dhabi has committed to investing AED22bn in the cultural and creative industries over the next five years.
This significant investment into a range of creative sectors, which includes gaming and esports, demonstrates just how serious the emirate is about capitalising on these opportunities, creating jobs, and attracting top global talent within the gaming industry.
The launch of Yas Creative Hub, the new home of twofour54 (pictured above) and its 600+ media and entertainment partner companies, and the respective AD Gaming Hub, as well as the range of gaming business licenses on offer in Abu Dhabi, mean that the hard and soft infrastructure to facilitate growth is in place across the UAE capital.
But local and global companies won’t set up in Abu Dhabi if there isn’t a steady stream of world-leading talent right here in the emirate. That is why it is imperative that there are multiple avenues for the young professionals across the UAE to develop the knowledge and skills needed to thrive in the local gaming industry.
One key stream for knowledge development comes from one of the biggest names in the gaming world, Unity Technologies, whose game development platform was used to create over half of the top 1,000 games on the Apple and Google app stores.
Through their ‘Train the Trainer’ programme, Unity is working with top universities across the UAE to provide professors and teachers with key game development skills and knowledge, which they can then pass on to a broader range of students. Once equipped with these skills, students can then apply for and obtain one of Unity’s certifications, which are among the most sought after accreditations in the industry.
With a vast range of creative roles on offer within the sector, talent that can generate compelling storylines, develop characters and scenery designs, are highly sought after.
As with most roles in the sector, game development jobs are underpinned by technical skills in coding, software design and programming. The skillsets needed to succeed are varied, and there are many exciting career paths within the gaming sector for students to explore. It is clear that gaming will play an increasingly significant role in the future of entertainment, so opportunities in this industry are only set to grow.
With a steady flow of industry-leading talent, and an influx of new gaming businesses to Abu Dhabi, we are providing businesses with the tools and people they need to succeed whilst simultaneously creating a wave of new jobs in the emirate.
It is by working with the world’s best that we will be able to drive the growth of the global gaming industry from right here in Abu Dhabi.
James Hartt, director of Strategic Partnerships at twofour54.
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