BGMI re-launch: Indian gaming community celebrates game’s imminent return

KRAFTON, the developer of battle royale game PUBG: Battlegrounds and its India-focused version, Battlegrounds Mobile India (BGMI), has announced the game’s imminent return to the Indian market.

According to the developers, the game is to be available in app stores ‘soon’ after less than a year of absence from India allegedly due to KRAFTON’s ties with Chinese conglomerate Tencent.

The announcement comes after a 10-month period of absence from India, and the return is a result of a long-time collaboration between KRAFTON and the Indian government, according to the developer.

BGMI was first released in 2021 after its original game PUBG Mobile was itself banned in India.

Sources has received comments from various Indian esports stakeholders reacting to the news.

Animesh Agarwal, CEO of 8Bit Creatives, a company that represents a number of BGMI content creators, expressed joy for the return of the game.

Lokesh Suji, Director of the Esports Federation of India and VP of the Asian Esports Federation, highlighted that the game is sure to undergo changes to make sure it adheres to the rules set by the Indian government.

However, there is an aura of optimism about the growth the popular game brings back into the ecosystem.

Meanwhile, Skyesports‘ Founder and CEO, Shiva Nandy, emphasised that the game was an integral part of the Indian esports roadmap and that, while India has diversified into other titles, the fanbase is still there and Skyesports looks forward to integrating the game into the Skyesports League, the Skyesports Championship and more events in the future.

Finally, the Founder and CEO of Indian esports organisation Revenant Esports, Rohit Jagasia, noted that there were signs of the game’s possible return for a while now, and the organisation has reacted accordingly by signing two players ahead of BGMI’s return.