New Delhi, Aug. 23 -- Earlier this month, gaming giant Electronic Arts closed its $55 billion deal to go private, led by Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund. Last month, Microsoft said it was cutting 3,200 jobs at Xbox and divesting studios. Ubisoft, earlier this year, announced it is closing down studios even as it pushed major productions into 2028-29. These moves signal the end of the gaming industry's expansionist phase, driven by the covid-19 pandemic.

Now, rising hardware costs and investor pressure for profitability are forcing publishers to shift into a reset phase. Many are slashing costs and changing their operating models. India has also been a growing market for the industry, but being a mobile-first market, the country may...