The country's games industry body has set some lofty goals – but the region is growing fast in terms of players and revenue

Soft power – a nation exerting power through economic or cultural influence – is something we're all used to in terms of film and TV. Think of the influence that Hollywood has around the world, or the way that anime has spread the recognition of Japanese culture.

But the idea that video games are a vital conduit of soft power is relatively new. In his recent book Power Play, George Osborn explored how many western democracies have failed to catch on to the importance of video games for spreading influence, while a few nations have been quick to seize on their potential.

Brazil is one of them. "Definitely, soft power is in our agenda," says Rodrigo Terra, president of the Brazilian games industry trade body Abragames.

He has lofty goals for Brazil's game industry. "We want to be in the top five game producers in the world in less than 10 years," he tells GamesIndustry.biz. "That's my wish. Let's see if we're going to be there."

"In 10 years, I definitely want the world to know our culture," he continues. "Know different stories about us, know the talented artists, writers, the talented people in our industry building great games, and then perceive the country, perceive us, as we did with other cultures since the beginning of video games."

Patricia Sato, executive manager for Brazil Games, an export program that aims to foster new international business opportunities for Brazilian companies, says that currently, people in other countries tend to associate Brazil with only a handful of things: mostly football, samba music, and carnival, and possibly also capybaras, the South American rodents that have become an internet sensation in recent years.

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