Jordanian company dives into Arabic mobile games market

Its logo is simply a tomato, not an apple, but successful conscionable 8 years Jordanian institution Tamatem has already bitten a chunk retired of the lucrative marketplace for Arabic mobile games.

"Less than 1 percent of internet content is successful Arabic, adjacent though determination are 400 cardinal Arab users," said the company's laminitis and CEO Hussam Hammo.

"There is simply a precise large spread successful this marketplace that we are trying to fill," added the 38-year-old entrepreneur, sitting successful his elegant Amman offices.

Hamo founded Tamatem—which means tomato—in 2013 and it was the archetypal Arab institution to triumph concern from the "500 Startups" programme based successful Silicon Valley, California.

Eight years connected the institution has grown to astir 80 unit who person mobile telephone games into Arabic, besides adapting contented to acceptable Arab culture.

"Language was a obstruction to mobile games growth" successful the region, said Nour Khrais, laminitis and main enforcement of games developer Maysalward.

"The Arabic connection connects (the player) emotionally."

With offices present successful the United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia, Tamatem has published much than 50 mobile games, which person been downloaded much than 100 cardinal times connected Apple and Google Play stores.

"Seventy percent of smartphone users successful the Arab satellite person acceptable their phones successful Arabic, which means they similar to usage contented successful their parent language," said Hammo.

"Sadly erstwhile you hunt successful English for a crippled successful app stores you volition find millions of games, but erstwhile you hunt successful Arabic determination are lone a fewer thousand," helium added.

'Billion-dollar industry'

But contention is fierce, and Khrais said the Middle East and North Africa portion was "the largest maturation portion successful the satellite successful the tract of physics games".

Market analysts Mordor Intelligence said the planetary gaming marketplace successful 2020 was valued astatine $174 billion, and was expected to scope $314 cardinal successful 2026.

Tamatem, which has partnerships with companies successful the US, China, France, South Korea, Bulgaria and Croatia, converts games by replacing characters' voices and names, adapting euphony and clothing, adding Muslim holidays similar Ramadan and adjacent changing car licence plates.

"We don't lone bash translation, we bash the astir important happening which is educating by making the contented applicable to the Arab culture," said main operating serviceman Eyad Al Basheer.

"Hollywood Story" from Nanobit.com, successful which players tin go movie stars, strut the reddish carpet, bent retired with fans and adjacent sprout blockbusters, was renamed "Malekat al Moda"—or "Queen of Fashion".

Instead of locations successful New York and Los Angeles, the avatars question betwixt Dubai, Beirut and Cairo, successful an Arabic crippled which has present been downloaded much than 15 cardinal times.

Strategy multiplayer and civilisation-building crippled "Clash of Empire" from developer Leme Games launched its Arabic mentation "Tahadi Al-Molouk" oregon "Challenge of Kings" this year.

'Next concern revolution'

To acceptable Arab audiences, the fig of the notorious crusader Richard the Lionheart has been replaced by legendary dynastic Muslim leader, Salah al-Din al-Ayubi.

One of the company's biggest hits is "Shake the Metal" which taps into the fashionable athletics of drifting. Featuring car models beloved successful the Arab world, it has present been downloaded 5 cardinal times.

The astir fashionable of Tamatem's Arabic mobile games however, is "VIP Belote", which is based connected the French paper crippled and has been downloaded much than 20 cardinal times.

In a 2019 study by the World Economic Forum, Tamatem was chosen arsenic 1 of the champion 100 Arabic companies "shaping the 4th concern revolution".

And the Covid-19 pandemic has proved a boon, with the fig of mobile gamers soaring by 150 percent, Hammo said.

"Tamatem made games easier, and we recognize things that we didn't recognize before, due to the fact that it was successful English," said subordinate Khader Hamid, a 28-year-old civilian engineer.

Mona Rummaneh, a 30-year-old moving successful e-marketing, said Arabic games near her "confident that each the contented is due for our civilization and morals".

She recalled however aft the Beirut larboard detonation successful August 2020, she and different gamers voiced their solidarity with Lebanese players.

"So it is much than conscionable a game," she said.

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© 2021 AFP