Move over car or bike racing, it is time for some bullock cart racing on Playstation. In a bid to increase sales in India, Sony Computer Entertainment that markets Playstation2, Playstation Portable (PSP) and Playstation3 is betting on games based on Indian mythology, history and sports such as kabaddi and gilli-danda.

This move is part of the company’s three-pronged strategy aimed at making India one of their top ten markets in five years. Its biggest markets include North America, UK, Japan and some European countries. Sony Playstation entered India formally in 2007.

Jim Ryan, COO of Sony Computer Entertainment Europe, said, “To stimulate demand in the Indian market we are going to introduce games that will resonate with Indian consumers. As of now we are offering a game called Hanuman, Desi Adda comprising sports like kabaddi and gilli-danda. Every year we plan to introduce three new Indian games.”

Going forward the company is going to introduce a game called Cart Kings that will comprise bullock cart racing developed by Hyderabad-based gaming company Gameshastra. Gameshastra is also developing Eklavya, which will be the first Indian game to be introduced on Playstation3 platform. Street cricket too will be introduced soon. These games will cater to the Indian diaspora as well.

Atindirya Bose, country manager (Playstation), said, “The gaming market in India inclusive of both hardware and software is about Rs 500 crore. Till date we have installed base of 5 lakh Playstation2, 1.80 lakh Plastation Portable and 50,000 Playstation3.”

Other players who market gaming consoles in India include Microsoft with its Xbox and Japan-based Nintendo. Sony has about 90 per cent share of the domestic market.

The other two strategies include ramping up of retail distribution and aggressive price points. The company plans to create more experience zones across multi-brand retail outlets besides adding new exclusive outlets.

The company has also brought down the prices of its three Playstation variants by 50 per cent in the last one year. Playstation2 is available for Rs 6,000 now against Rs 12,000 in 2007. Similarly, Playstation3 is now available for Rs 20,000 against Rs 40,000 earlier, while PSP is sold at Rs 9,490 compared to Rs 17,000. “With our aggressive price points, we now see demand coming from not just the top eight cities but also smaller towns,” said Bose.