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Since the start of the pandemic in 2020 and the subsequent lockdowns, we have all had to compromise on a lot of things. Some of us had to stay home for months on end on quarantine leave. Some of us were forced to give up our employment as many companies sized down. Some of us had to live through the virus itself and spend further time recovering.

One thing we all have in common is, the past year has given us an unprecedented amount of free time - whether by choice or not - and how we’re attempting to adjust back to normal life as our country slowly recovers. Of course, this doesn’t apply to just Maldives. The entire world was going through the same thing and sharing the same aches and pains as us.

It shouldn’t come as a surprise then that the digital entertainment world has exploded since 2020. With people forced to stay at home with nothing much else to do - streaming services like Netflix, gaming sites like Twitch and general entertainment websites like YouTube have soared in popularity over the past year of lockdown as the entertainment industry shifted drastically to serve the needs of their new all-day-home customer base.

Twitch in particular has seen exponential growth as a content platform since last year. Average number of concurrent viewers on Twitch increased from 1.4 million to almost 3 million from 2020 to 2021. Similarly, the number of content creators livestreaming on Twitch along with gaming generated revenue from popular games such as Fortnite, Among Us and Fall Guys also saw a sharp rise going from 2020 to 2021 as more and more people turned to online entertainment and gaming to help them through their lockdown days.

While gaming has always been a huge part of the entertainment industry, the past year of lockdown showed us how personally important it could be for people as well. For someone who had to stay home for several months without going out, playing a game could be a good way to cope and help them relax – the same as watching a movie or reading a book. People not just from Maldives, but from every single country affected by this pandemic has shown us this as they turned to the comfort of having fun with friends in their favourite game during a very trying time.

With the global vaccination rollout happening, the world is slowly starting to go back to the old ways and it’s time for us to take a look forward too. As schools and businesses open back up again, we have to accept that the free time of lockdown is a thing of the past as well. Some of us might need to reschedule how much time we spend on gaming, but everyone should keep it above zero for a good mental workout.

About the author: Maldivian Gaming League is a team of e-sports organizers and competition promoters based in the Maldives. For more information, check them out on Facebook or Instagram.