Indonesia has a big game market, and most of its money leaves the country. The Indonesian Game Association (AGI) reported that local games held about 2.5% of the domestic market share in 2025, according to a Kompas report published October 23, 2026. Foreign publishers and developers took the other 97.5%.
AGI chair Shafiq Husein has put the value of the Indonesia game market at Rp 30 trillion. At 2.5%, that leaves local game developers with about Rp 750 billion per year. Kompas names limited capital as the primary obstacle holding them back.
The gap matters well beyond Jakarta. Shafiq says Indonesia ranks 15th in the world by game market value and sits first in Southeast Asia, a region our earlier coverage of Niko Partners’ $5.6B Southeast Asia games estimate showed is growing fast. A market that large, where local studios capture a sliver of the spend, is a structural problem and not a talent shortage alone.
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What Kompas and AGI Reported on October 23
The Kompas piece carries the headline Local Game Developers Only Control 2.5 Percent of the Domestic Market. It describes a wide gap between the size of the domestic gaming industry and the fortunes of the studios building games inside it. The article cites AGI data from 2025 showing local games absorbing roughly 2.5% of market share, while foreign publishers and developers dominate the remaining 97.5%.
Readers should understand what is new here and what is not. The 2.5% figure is AGI’s 2025 data, and Shafiq presented the same split to Indonesia’s communications ministry in May 2025, as Tempo covered at the time. What changed this month is the attention. The Ministry of Communication and Digital Affairs and AGI are holding IGDX 2026, and the local share number has resurfaced as the argument for why that event matters.
Kompas frames the problem as a squeeze. Local studios operate in one of the biggest game markets in the world but compete against foreign products with far deeper funding. The report treats capital, not demand, as the binding constraint. Indonesian players are clearly spending, and the money mostly lands elsewhere.
Indonesia Game Market by the Numbers
Several outlets have repeated the core figures, so the numbers hold up across sources. The table below collects what has been reported and who reported it. Where a figure comes from a single outlet, the table says so.
| Metric | Reported figure | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Indonesia game market value | Rp 30 trillion | Tempo (AGI chair Shafiq Husein) |
| Local game share, 2025 | About 2.5% | Kompas (AGI data) |
| Foreign publisher and developer share | 97.5% | Kompas (AGI data) |
| Local developer revenue | Rp 750 billion per year | Tempo (Shafiq Husein) |
| Global game market value | US$187 billion | Tempo (Shafiq Husein) |
| Indonesia global rank | 15th | Tempo (Shafiq Husein) |
| Indonesia Southeast Asia rank | Largest in the region | Tempo (Shafiq Husein) |
| Local indie games, government-linked estimate | About 0.17% to 0.34% of the national game market | Antara |
| Local developer share of national market value | 2.5% | Antara, Ken Research |
Tempo also reported Shafiq’s claim that the global gaming market, at US$187 billion, is about twice the combined value of the film and music industries. That Tempo report on Indonesia’s push for a local gaming industry is the cleanest English-language record of the chair’s numbers. Separate reporting from Kompas this year put Indonesian game transactions in 2024 at roughly US$2 billion, which fits the same order of magnitude.
How 2.5% of Rp 30 Trillion Becomes Rp 750 Billion
The arithmetic is simple. Multiply Rp 30 trillion by 0.025 and you get Rp 750 billion. That is the annual pool shared by every Indonesian studio, from solo mobile developers to larger outfits. The other Rp 29.25 trillion flows to foreign publishers, platform holders and the developers behind imported games.
Those figures describe a revenue split, not a profit split. A foreign publisher’s slice also funds marketing, platform fees and live operations teams located abroad. A local studio’s Rp 750 billion has to cover salaries, servers, user acquisition and any outside investment it wants to repay. The practical room for reinvestment at home is therefore smaller than the headline suggests.
To see how slowly the share moves, consider what higher local capture would be worth. The table below runs illustrative arithmetic on the Rp 30 trillion base. These are not forecasts, and no outlet has projected them. They show the scale of the prize that policymakers and investors are discussing.
| Local share of market | Local developer revenue (Rp 30T base) | Foreign share |
|---|---|---|
| 2.5% (reported, 2025) | Rp 750 billion | 97.5% |
| 5% | Rp 1.5 trillion | 95% |
| 10% | Rp 3 trillion | 90% |
| 15% | Rp 4.5 trillion | 85% |
| 20% | Rp 6 trillion | 80% |
Doubling the local share to 5% would add Rp 750 billion a year, which is as much as local studios earn in total today. That framing explains why AGI keeps returning to the same number. Small shifts in share translate into large gains for a sector this thin.
Why Limited Capital Is the Main Obstacle for Local Game Developers
Kompas calls limited capital the primary obstacle facing local game developers. The reporting on Shafiq’s statements, carried by outlets including CNN Indonesia, Suara and TVRI, says the same thing in different words. Local studios struggle to reach early funding, so they struggle to build products that can match foreign games in their own home market.
Before launch: the seed-money gap
Games are expensive to make before they earn a rupiah. A studio needs months of salaries, art, engineering and testing. Without early funding, teams ship smaller, cheaper projects or stop. Foreign competitors arrive with finished, polished products and marketing budgets that local teams cannot match.
After launch: the live operations squeeze
Kompas reporting from this year adds a second funding problem. Shafiq said the money shortage does not end at release. Studios also need capital to keep a game running through live operations, the updates, events and support that hold players over time. Local industry also lacks experienced talent in live operations, data analysis and player acquisition, per the same reporting.
That second gap is easy to miss. A studio can finish a good game and still lose it, because the post-launch stage demands cash and specialist skills that early-stage teams rarely have.
Where the Money Actually Goes: Hardware, Esports and Retail
A separate breakdown shows why game development captures so little. Uzone reported on October 22 that the biggest contribution to Indonesia’s game industry comes not from making or publishing games but from other segments. Hardware and accessories lead, followed by esports and retail. Developers and publishers together account for only a small remainder.
| Segment | Contribution to Indonesia’s game industry |
|---|---|
| Hardware and accessories | 47% |
| Esports | 24% |
| Retail | 22% |
| Developers and publishers | 7% |
These shares measure something different from the 2.5% figure. The Uzone split divides the whole industry by segment, while the AGI number divides game market revenue between local and foreign games. The two are not interchangeable, and readers should not subtract one from the other. Taken together, though, they point the same way. Indonesian players, gear buyers and event audiences generate plenty of activity, and the share that reaches game creators is small.
The hardware lead also hints at an opening. A market that buys this much gaming equipment has an audience that cares about games. That audience simply plays mostly foreign titles today.
Two Estimates, Two Definitions: 2.5% vs 0.17% to 0.34%
Careful readers will notice two different local-share numbers in circulation. A June 2026 Antara report on the ministry’s local game market target cites a government-linked estimate that puts local indie games at about 0.17% to 0.34%. The same coverage notes that local developers’ share of national market value is 2.5%. The two figures measure different slices, with the lower range covering indie games specifically.
Outlets also frame the low range differently. Some tie it to the national game market, while others tie it to economic output. Because the framing varies, this article uses the version Antara reported and treats the lower range as an indie-focused estimate. Ken Research, in its Indonesia video game market report, repeats the 2.5% local share for 2025 and calls it a large localization and IP investment gap.
A 2026 academic study in the Binus journal on game industry structure describes the same paradox in plain terms. The authors point to a domestic market worth nearly two billion dollars alongside a local contribution below one percent. The study looks at structural factors that stop local firms from scaling. Across the three numbers in circulation, the definition changes the answer a great deal.
What AGI’s Chair Has Said On the Record
Shafiq Husein, identified as chair of AGI, delivered the headline figures to the communications ministry in May 2025. According to CNN Indonesia, Suara and TVRI, he said local game development brings in only Rp 750 billion a year, equal to 2.5% of the Indonesian market, which means 97.5% goes to foreign games. Those outlets also relay his point that local industry is held back by limited access to early funding, which stops it from competing with foreign products in its own market.
Tempo recorded the global context he supplied. He put the worldwide market at US$187 billion and said Indonesia’s market, at Rp 30 trillion, is the largest in Southeast Asia. The reporting identifies Indonesia as 15th worldwide.
This article paraphrases those statements and does not put quotation marks around them. The available reporting does not reproduce a complete on-record English quote from Shafiq, and translated wording would not count as verbatim. The substance, though, is consistent across at least four outlets.
Historical Context: From 2024 Warnings to 2026 Data
The foreign-dominance problem did not start this year. In July 2024, The Jakarta Post reported that local developers found the targets in Presidential Regulation No. 19/2024 too ambitious. They suggested a more gradual approach and said they were cautiously optimistic about eventually overtaking foreign counterparts at home, provided progress came step by step.
Two years later, the data suggests the gradual path is still the realistic one. The 2025 AGI number leaves local studios at 2.5%. The Antara headline from June 2026 shows the ministry setting a target of 4% annual growth in the local game market, a pace that reflects how small the base is. Attention moved from debate to measurement, with BRIN and the communications ministry running research on the market’s valuation in 2025, as Antara noted.
The pattern is familiar from other late-developing digital industries. Demand arrives first, imported products fill it, and local firms struggle to catch up without financing, distribution and technical depth. Indonesia sits at that stage now.
Market Impact: What a 97.5% Foreign Share Means
For foreign publishers, Indonesia is a prize market and a stable one. A 97.5% share means local competition barely registers in their planning. Their main risks come from other foreign players, regulation and shifts in player spending, such as the pressure visible in one recent report where mobile game spending fell 7% to $19.6B.
For platform holders and hardware makers, the segment data makes the case plainly. Hardware and accessories account for 47% of the industry’s contribution, per Uzone. Companies that sell devices and services into Indonesia benefit from player enthusiasm whether or not the games are local.
For the Indonesian economy, the cost is leakage. Rp 29.25 trillion of annual game spending flows to foreign titles. Ministry officials have said the industry could drive economic growth, and Kompas, Tempo and Antara all report the government treating gaming as a growth sector. Keeping even a few more points of that spend at home would support jobs, tax revenue and an export-capable creative sector.
For investors, the number reads as either a warning or an opportunity. A 2.5% share signals how hard it is for local studios to win. It also signals how much room exists if capital, publishing know-how and distribution arrive together.
Local Studios vs Foreign Publishers: A Competitive Comparison
The reported obstacles map onto a simple comparison. This is analysis built on those reports, not additional data.
Where foreign publishers lead
Foreign companies bring capital, which AGI and Kompas identify as the central gap. They also bring experienced live operations teams, data analysis capability and player acquisition know-how, the three skill areas Kompas says local industry lacks. Add global distribution and brand recognition, and the head start is large.
Where local studios can compete
Local teams know Indonesian players, language and culture better than anyone abroad. They sit closer to the audience that keeps the national market at 15th in the world. That edge is real but unproven at scale, since the 2.5% share shows it has not yet turned into revenue. Ken Research lists publishing leverage and global distribution as the capabilities that would raise the locally captured share.
Platform-scale stories elsewhere show what concentration looks like. Our coverage of Roblox logging 4.05B hours is a reminder that a few huge platforms soak up player time. Local studios in Indonesia face that gravity on every device.
Capital Intensity Is a Global Games Problem
Indonesia’s funding gap is sharper than most, but money shapes outcomes everywhere. Top-end productions now cost sums that few studios can touch, as we discussed when covering GTA VI’s reported $1.5B budget. At the other end, well-funded newcomers can still fail fast, which our report on Liquid Swords folding after six months illustrated.
Those examples sit far from Indonesia’s circumstances, yet they carry one lesson. Funding alone does not guarantee success, and a lack of it nearly guarantees failure. Local developers need patient capital that survives past launch, since that is where Kompas says the squeeze continues.
Policy Response: The 4% Target, IGDX 2026 and the Export Push
The government has started to respond. The ministry’s stated goal, per the Antara headline, is 4% annual growth in the local game market. Applied to local developer revenue, that compounds to about 21.7% over five years, lifting Rp 750 billion to roughly Rp 913 billion. That is arithmetic for illustration, because Antara’s headline does not specify the base. It shows how modest the target is next to a market worth Rp 30 trillion.
This month, the Ministry of Communication and Digital Affairs and AGI are running IGDX 2026, an event aimed at stronger collaboration and a more resilient game ecosystem, according to RRI and Antara coverage. Validnews reported on October 22 that Indonesia’s game industry sees opportunity in exporting PC and console games, a route that would let studios earn from markets beyond their own. Readers who follow the wider scene can find more in our gaming coverage.
Whether these steps move the 2.5% depends on money more than on events. Conferences connect studios with publishers and investors, but they do not substitute for funding programs that reach small teams early.
Five Predictions for Indonesia’s Local Game Developers
These are the author’s expectations based on the reported data, not claims from any outlet or official.
- The next AGI dataset will still show local share in low single digits. Share shifts slowly when the base is Rp 750 billion and foreign titles compound their lead through live operations.
- Funding talk will move from grants to co-investment. Seed money alone does not fix the post-launch gap Shafiq described, so expect proposals that pair early capital with live operations financing.
- PC and console export will get louder policy backing. The Validnews coverage suggests officials see it as a route around a crowded home market.
- Live operations training will become a named priority. Kompas flagged live operations, data analysis and player acquisition as talent gaps, and those are teachable skills.
- Definitions will get tighter. With 2.5%, 0.17% to 0.34% and a sub-one-percent academic figure all in circulation, expect pressure for one agreed methodology.
What Developers, Investors and Platforms Should Watch
Developers should treat the 2.5% figure as proof of unmet demand for local content, then plan for the live operations stage before they ship. Studios that budget for post-launch support from day one avoid the squeeze Kompas describes.
Investors should watch whether the ministry’s growth target translates into funding vehicles. A 4% annual goal is gentle, and private capital could outrun it if a few local hits prove the model.
Platforms and publishers should notice that hardware and accessories lead the segment mix. Players invest heavily in the gaming experience, and a local library that matches their taste would deepen that engagement.
Frequently Asked Questions
What share of the Indonesia game market do local developers hold? AGI data from 2025 shows local games taking about 2.5% of the domestic market, with foreign publishers and developers holding 97.5%, as Kompas reported on October 23, 2026.
How big is the Indonesia game market? AGI chair Shafiq Husein put it at Rp 30 trillion, and Tempo reported him saying it ranks 15th globally and first in Southeast Asia. A separate 2026 Kompas report cited game transactions near US$2 billion for 2024.
How much money do local game developers earn? At 2.5% of Rp 30 trillion, local developers receive about Rp 750 billion per year, according to Shafiq Husein’s statements as reported.
What is holding local game developers back? Kompas names limited capital as the primary obstacle. Reporting on Shafiq’s remarks adds that access to early funding is scarce, and Kompas says experienced talent in live operations, data analysis and player acquisition is also short.
Why do reports cite both 2.5% and 0.17% to 0.34%? They measure different things. Antara reported a government-linked estimate putting local indie games at about 0.17% to 0.34%, while local developers’ share of national market value is 2.5%.
Is the 2.5% figure new? The data is from 2025 and AGI shared it with the communications ministry in May 2025. It returned to headlines on October 23, 2026 through Kompas and the IGDX 2026 events.
What is the government doing about it? Antara reported a ministry target of 4% annual growth in the local game market, and the ministry and AGI are running IGDX 2026 to strengthen the ecosystem. Validnews says officials also see PC and console exports as an opportunity.
