Vietnam’s gaming industry is cementing its position in the digital economy. According to Data AI & App Magic, in 2022 alone, games and apps developed by Vietnamese attracted 4.2 billion downloads, the fifth highest level worldwide. Many Vietnamese games are listed in the world’s top 10 game rankings.

Not only games, but e-sports, a branch of the gaming industry, has been developing strongly.

Nguyen Xuan Cuong, chair of the Vietnam E-sports Association, said together with the tournaments, e-sports clubs and competition teams exist in Vietnam. 

“We have begun seeing the appearance of Vietnamese famous gamers. E-sports tournaments in Vietnam attract large audiences,” he said.

“The fact that games have no luxury tax shows the government’s view, considering gaming a creative economic branch. These are good signs for the development of the Vietnam’s gaming industry."

Gaby Hien from Google Play commented that since the appearance of Nguyen Ha Dong and his game Flappy Bird, Vietnam’s games have attracted much more attention. While market demand is increasing, the existing workforce is not enough to serve the industry.

According to Hien, the preconceptions of many Vietnamese about the gaming industry is an obstacle that hinders the development of the sector. They believe that online games are harming Vietnamese youth and try to prevent their children from playing games.

Many young people working in the gaming industry and many gamers dare not tell their parents about their jobs. Game designers tend to shrink back amid the opposition of part of the community.

Le Quang Tu Do, head of the MIC’s Authority of Broadcasting and Electronic Information (ABEI), said Vietnam’s gaming industry has experienced ups and downs.

The first adversity is the lack of connection between game production and distribution. There are many game firms in Vietnam, but 88 percent of games distributed in Vietnam are foreign made. The talents in the gaming industry tend to hide in the darkness and don’t want to turn up.

While the gaming industry can generate jobs and bring foreign currencies to Vietnam, it has been facing society's bias. Because of the wrong views, many students don’t want to study to become game developers. As a result, Vietnam is seriously lacking human resources to develop the gaming industry.

Gaming is an industry with great potential, but since it has been facing barriers, it cannot develop.

However, the barriers have been gradually removed in recent years.

Do of ABEI believes cooperation between producers and distributors is needed. In an effort to solve the problem, ABEI is planning to run ‘Game Hub’ program to connect game studios in Vietnam.

There in the hub, experienced workers will lead the inexperienced while large firms with advantages in distribution will cooperate smaller companies good at production. ‘Game Hub’ will also connect investment funds and game producers to help game development.

In principle, there are always risks in investments, including investment in games. However, investors are most afraid of scam projects.

In 2022, there were a number of bad Vietnam game projects, which affected foreign investors. In such conditions, ‘Game Hub’ will serve as a guarantee for projects to be appraised. The participation of state agencies will make investors feel more secure about pouring money into game projects.

At the same time, MIC is planning to develop human resources for the gaming industry through short- and long-term training programs.

The Posts and Telecommunications Institute of Technology (PTIT), an arm of MIC, is following procedures to get a license to set up a new major – gaming technology. 

VTC, a unit of MIC, has said it will set up training centers and short-term training courses targeting people who want to attend short-term (3-6 months) courses before joining the market. This is the answer to developing human resources for the gaming industry.

Trong Dat