According to Ovum's latest report, Digital Games Outlook 2011--16: Asia-Pacific, said market is expected to "more than double" over the next four years from US$11.2 billion in 2010.

Ovum's consumer telecoms analyst, Neha Dharia, attributes this growth to a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of revenues at 18 per cent.

"This growth rate is a healthy two per cent ahead of the global average, and retail sales in the region comprised over half of global retails sales in 2011," she said.

As a result, Dharia foresees the figure growing to nearly 60 per cent by 2016.

An erosion of average revenue per user (ARPU) is expected due to "more and more casual players entering the market," meaning that retail sales will lag behind gamer numbers.