Googly CEO Shubhodip Pal talks about what his platform aims to offer gamers in India and its rising gaming and esports community

Googly is a brand-new platform launched in India yesterday, on the occasion of Republic Day. This platform will look to provide gamers in India, with a place where a proper community of gamers and esports enthusiasts can exist. At Googly, there’s something for every gamer out there, be it casual gamers, or hardcore gamers. 

India Today Gaming had a chat with Mr Shubhodip Pal, CEO, and Co-founder, of Googly about what his platform has to offer, and what Googly aspires to achieve in this country’s nascent gaming industry and culture.

 

Tell us about Googly and what it aims to offer to gamers in India. What does Google have to offer to all categories of gamers out there, the casual players as well as the hardcore gamers?

 

Googly is India’s all-new premier multi-gaming destination for online gaming, be it esports, hyper-casual or casual. At Googly, we’re trying to build India’s largest community of gamers, by offering a platform that’s one-stop for everything gaming. 

 

 

So be it a casual gamer, or an esports enthusiast, we have something for all of them here. The casual games section is all cloud-based and all you need is the Googly App to begin your journey. No game downloads are required; you save real estate on your mobile, and you can visit this section, to experience a new game every day. We have over 100+ cloud-based games to choose from, and over 50+ esports titles. 

 

 

 

 

 

All the multi-feature sets of the platform are available to all gamers for subscription packs as low as Rs.39 per month (for casual gamers) and Rs.99 (for esports players) and as high as Rs.369 annually (for casual gamers) and Rs.969 (for esports players)

 

 

From connecting with like-minded gamers for team formations and general chit-chat to happy doses of wins for a brag-like status/prize money/reward points or just shopping for your favourite in-game assets from the ‘Shop’ section, Googly has it all for you!

If you’re a casual gamer or an esports player, the platform hosts a plethora of tournaments for you to join and win rewards in return. In short, at Googly, you’re gratified while you’re having fun. 

 

 

With its multi-feature sets, all available under one subscription, Googly is here to fuel every gamer’s passion, by providing them opportunities to create custom tournaments that they can play with their friends or join tournaments for their favourite titles, challenge 1v1, find new people and make new friends, stay updated to the latest happenings in the world of gaming, get social with other gamers of the platform using our in-built social module or the Discord server, chat with members of the entire Googly community.

Our mission is to pioneer a ‘multi-gaming platform’ across different devices with advanced features to engage game enthusiasts and democratise the gaming ecosystem by building the largest community of gamers in India.

 

What inspired you to bring this platform to India and cater to its growing gaming audience?

 

It all started with my own personal experiences. My 17-year-old son is an avid esports enthusiast and in the past few years when he was looking for players to play and interact with, he found it very difficult to engage with similar enthusiasts beyond his personal circles.

Further, there were some bad experiences my son shared with me where it was difficult for him to get the deserved winnings after winning against someone he had found through social media or Discord. This bought to my attention the need for developing and sustaining a community of like-minded enthusiasts.

Given my son’s experience with some bad losers, it also became imperative for us to ensure that the winnings from participating in tournaments are transferred to the right winners in a transparent and seamless manner. This made us think of having the escrow function on our platform.

Anytime a tournament is created on Googly that involves winnings of either Gotokins or GoPoints, we ensure that the GoTokins/GoPoints are first debited from the individual’s platform wallet and then transferred to an escrow account. Post the tournament, it is transferred as per the tournament conditions in a seamless manner to the winners’ wallet immediately, and automatically. To put it simply, there is no room for sore losers on Googly.

Part of our vision has also been to enable the democratisation of gaming in India. I could notice how while the esports space started to boom in the country, there were various hindrances in the market with the lack of an all-inclusive option for gamers.

This led us to the idea of not only creating a perfect and holistic platform for the gaming community in India but also pursuing my goal of democratizing gaming for India through a platform which caters to all kinds of gamers.

It is super easy to use the app, casual games with a tweak to make it multiplayer. We also have new fun features around the corner which will come as an update to our customers on the platform by April end of this year. And that’s how Googly was born to be the one-stop shop for all things gaming!

 

There’s been a significant rise in the gaming population of India, and it’s projected to grow even more rapidly. With esports moving so fast, how is Googly looking to contribute towards esports?

 

While esports in India is witnessing paradigm shifts with Govt. of India also recognising esports as a sport, an ecosystem that caters to the evolving needs of Indian gamers is missing. This is what Googly seeks to solve. There is no single platform that exists that provides the diverse content that Googly offers to the gaming community.

Many times, esports enthusiasts find it challenging to find the right tournaments for them to participate in. With Googly, it becomes easier for any enthusiasts to find the right tournament for them. Another important goal for us is to reach budding esports enthusiasts and talents across the country through the platform.

 

 

We also aspire to help improve India’s representation at global esports events. We want more Indian Esports players to participate in international tournaments and competitions, representing India and raising the country's profile in the global esports community.

If in the next three to five years Googly can help Indian esports players win medals at international events, that is a mission accomplished for us. I believe that India's success in esports is a great way to help improve the country's soft power, as it would help showcase India's talent and technological advancements to a global audience.

 

We’ve seen in India, the rise of esports before there has been a strong and diverse video gaming culture being inculcated, with many still confusing gaming with esports. What are your thoughts on that?

 

We understand that esports and casual gaming or gaming in general, are different worlds, and certainly, it is important to not mix the two. This is an important part of our endeavour and vision. While Googly is a platform wherein you can experience esports and casual gaming, we have created an experience that will not intermingle between these two very distinct kinds of gamers.

The tournament calendars, be it daily/weekly or monthly are specific to esports/casual titles. Functionalities are customised to esports/casual basis what the gamer type is used to. Leaderboards are also customised, newsfeed again, basis the kind of subscription is fed to the consumer etc.

 

Googly features a social hub and you’ve previously said your company wants to create a gaming community. With the launch of Googly, how are you planning on bringing a variety of gamers to the platform?

 

Most gaming communities in India currently are very game title-specific and the market is unstructured with no interaction between these individuals outside of their specific communities.

With Googly, we are trying to bring these varied communities together on one platform. Further, the current avenues for engaging and playing together provide limited functionality. Hence, our aim with Googly is to provide all kinds of gamers with a platform wherein they can come under one roof and play against each other, meet like-minded individuals, make friends through our varied features, and form their own unique communities.

Simply put, the platform caters to all kinds of gamers, bringing all of them under a unique umbrella and hence making a one-of-its-kind gaming community in the country.

 

 

This community on the platform will be under different levels. First is the ‘Googly’ community, which includes all the members of the platform who come to have a good time regardless of their preferences. Now at a deeper level within Googly, you may find different communities related to different games such as DOTA, Call of Duty, etc, or a community from a specific city.

With such a wide variety, it also opens doors to give gamers the chance to explore different new games and be part of different communities. With this understanding, we have provided flexibility to our users wherein one can form and be part of specific groups as per their liking and preferences.

 

What are you most excited about with the launch of the platform in India?

 

I think, for us, we are excited about the fact that we are being able to bring something which is not seen in India and bring that paradigm shift to India’s gaming space. This includes the community aspect, bringing India’s diverse gaming communities under one platform, and the subscription model in an affordable format.

And finally, the most exciting part for us is being able to bring various gamers from different parts of India under one platform. We are excited to bring Indian gamers under one single roof and make them experience what Googly is all about! Getting this chance to prove something that is not normal excites us.

 

During the development, have there been any notable features, or initiatives that sounded promising but were perhaps dropped because those features or ideas wouldn’t find their audience in India?

 

Coaching academy is a feature we have planned next for both esports/casual audiences. We have held it back for now, but this feature will be launched soon, talent would be picked from the platform basis performance and willingness to be a coach and earn for the lessons.

We also have an exciting roadmap set with upcoming features and updates to roll out in May and June. As we continue to grow and show India Googly’s potential as a platform, we shall keep coming in with more exciting features, trying to push boundaries with new updates and functionalities as we go.

 

Please talk us through Googly’s tournament creation and what drove the idea behind introducing it to the platform.

 

The various alternatives available for gamers and esports players in the country do not usually give the functionality for the consumer to form their own custom tournaments. But with Googly’s tournament feature, we are essentially empowering the consumer to form their own custom tournaments.

 

 

 

Furthermore, while a lot of people were trying to make their own tournaments, there was a missing thread that would stitch together a holistic experience. Hence, with features like the prize pool, and options such as quick or advanced tournaments, tournament chat, etc, Googly is providing consumers with a complete ecosystem like traditional sports through a digital medium.

 

 

 

I also believe when you create tournaments like these you also allow people to utilize and explore the platform to its potential. The Googly App has all the platform functionalities for esports/casual, so one can create on the go as well.

 

What are some of the challenges the team at Googly faced while bringing the platform to India?

 

While most of our challenges have been similar to those faced by most start-ups. One aspect which led to some challenges was the hazy distinction between ‘Game of Skill’ and ‘Game of Chance’ especially in the outside world be it a bank or a wallet company etc. Having said that, it’s not their fault for not understanding the difference and when explained with examples, the road became easier but few issues remained.

Ensuring compliance amidst this ambiguity was a big challenge. This led to lengthy deliberations with officials in our journey as we were gearing up for the launch. With the absence of clear guidelines, it took some explaining from our end about Googly and our vision but eventually we were successful.

Luckily, we had the right partners and people with us who could help us navigate this. [Government] has now started to understand the policy challenges within the space and is taking some constructive steps to solve policy ambiguities. The step towards recognizing esports as a multi-sport event really brought a lot of confidence in gamers, and brands like ours. We believe that policymakers and platforms like Googly will have to walk this path together and eventually bring out what is best for the sector.

 

What’s next for Googly? What can gamers expect next from Googly in the near future?

 

What Googly is offering on its launch is just the tip of the iceberg, we have a lot more exciting features coming up soon for all our consumers be it esports or Casual gaming consumers. A feature that will be out soon is the coaching aspect, the coaching feature with an academy is something we are very proud to have created and can’t wait for people to experience it.

We strongly feel that with the rise of esports in the country, a coaching functionality will give our gamers an opportunity to upskill their gameplay, and hopefully contribute to the sport as a whole at the national level. We also have more exciting features coming with rollouts between May and June.

Furthermore, as a platform, we also aim to open doors for a lot of publishers who are wary of entering the Indian market. Even before our launch, we have seen positive responses from publishers who see potential in Googly, this could also lead to avenues for some more exciting features and updates in the coming days. In conclusion, a lot of exciting features are to come, and we are excited for Indian gamers to experience all of them. So, stay tuned and till then, let the games begin!