In the huge global mobile gaming market there were hardly any Indian games that competed internationally. Ludo King – the digital mobile board game showed great escalations in popularity in the 2020 COVID Lockdowns, crossing 48 crore downloads worldwide. The game carries a lot of nostalgic value as it has been a part of indoor game culture in many Asia, Europe, and the Middle East. Let’s take a look at why Ludo King went viral and what features made Ludo King the first choice Ludo game worldwide.
Ludo King is about memories
The Ludo board game has been an inseparable part of the childhood of every generation. The game was played in every household and it has had a long history of being played by Asian emperors in their courts. Even today the Ludo board is still a part of every child’s toy collection; you can find it in their closet. The board game required the board, the pawns, and the dice and at least one person to play the game with. The digital game Ludo King offered the same joy of playing Ludo with people but without the requirement of the physical board and people around. Ludo King is an online game that connects players online and players can enjoy the same game on their mobile phones with an audio-visual feel. This was a very strong reason for Ludo King to go viral since Ludo was in your pocket and it could be played anywhere anytime.
Ludo King values communication and interaction
The Ludo King game was designed keeping human to human interaction in mind. The game became the best means for people, friends, acquaintances, and relatives to connect over a casual game. People enjoy board games more with their loved ones or acquaintances and they are about having a collective joy that people share while having a healthy fight over a great game. Ludo King is nothing short of the traditional Ludo except that people can experience the same thing on a mobile. It being an online multiplayer game connects distant people with each other over the internet and the barrier of distance virtually vanishes to zero. Ludo King also added features like chat and recently voice chat to make the game even more fun. Players can now talk, poke fun at each other, and laugh while playing Ludo. Communicating while playing made Ludo King the most sought after Ludo game. In the recent update Ludo King brought ‘Festival E-greetings” as a festival specific feature. Players can wish each other on major festive occasions by sending e-greetings from their Ludo King app.
Ludo King transformed the Ludo experience
Ludo King being a digital Ludo game was published with the exact same design like the standard traditional Ludo. Over the years the game was upgraded with themes. Themes are different moods and world settings that take the players to the respective worlds while playing Ludo.
The themes give the Ludo board and its surrounding space a look and feel that would take the player into a whole new world, not just visually but with sound.
For example, “Nature” theme entwines soothing greenery and sounds of nature with a Ludo board of pavement blocks that gives a verdant experience while playing Ludo.
The “Egypt” theme takes you back to the dawn of civilizations – ancient Egypt, with the limestone Ludo board stylized with symbols and hieroglyphics carved on it for giving you the mystical feel of the lost Egyptian civilization.
The “Candy” theme takes us into the world of sweet delights – colorful candies with different flavors. The Ludo board, the dice, and the pawns are made of candies virtually submerging us in the world of candies.
The “Disco” theme is just another flashy evening disco with electronic dance music and thrilling floor lights giving us the mood of a disco party.
The “Pinball” theme gives the feel of the Pinball game with the pawns of the balls and the Ludo board made like the Pinball board.
“Christmas,” “Winter,” and “Battle” are the new additions to the themes.
Ludo King has seen a steep rise in popularity after the release of themes and is one of the reasons Ludo King is the top Ludo game on the internet today.
Ludo King mania and it’s media coverage
Ludo King’s popularity was on a steep rise through the entire year of 2019. In March 2020 it crossed 400 million downloads and with ever increasing craze, eventually emerged as one of the top three global games in August 2020.
On 21st May 2020, The Quint reported “Ludo King becomes India’s favorite quarantine game in the nationwide COVID-19 lockdown.” This was the time when the game showed a sudden rise in downloads and engagement.
The Hindu reported on 13th June 2020, “Ludo emerges as the most popular game during the lockdown.” The data showed that Ludo King was the top most downloaded Indian made game ever.
Times of India reported on 13the August 2020, “Ludo King stands among the top global games with 48.3 crore downloads in the current quarter!”
Final word:
Ludo is a part of the Asian indoor gaming culture and is loved as the best pastime. But, Ludo King took the game to a completely new level giving one of its kind experiences, and that is the reason Ludo King now sits in the premium league of global games with 48 crore plus downloads. Hope this game keeps us entertained, letting us play amazing Ludo matches with our friends and families.
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