It's official: Krafton has announced that Battlegrounds Mobile India will be returning.
The well-known battle royale game BGMI went offline and vanished from Android and iOS app stores after being prohibited in India last July due to security concerns. Since then, the game's fans have been anticipating its return.
Just days after a report claimed that the developer and
Indian officials were in the midst of ongoing negotiations, Krafton has now
officially confirmed that the game is indeed returning.
"We are extremely grateful to the Indian authorities
for allowing us to resume operations of Battlegrounds Mobile India
(BGMI)," says Sean Hyunil Sohn, CEO of Krafton India. We want to express
our appreciation to the gaming community in India for their assistance and
endurance over the past few months. It gives us great pleasure to inform you
that Battlegrounds Mobile India will soon be downloadable, and we look forward
to seeing you again on our platform.
Sources claim that before Krafton can proceed with the BGMI
re-launch in the country, it must meet a number of requirements. One of these
requirements is to place a daily time limit on BGMI in order to prevent addiction,
particularly in kids. This is comparable to China's own three-hour PUBG time
limit. Additionally, authorities have asked Krafton to completely remove all
references to blood from the game. BGMI used to automatically display green
blood effects.
The battle royale video game genre is still very popular in
India despite the ban. In order to continue having fun after BGMI was removed,
players shifted to other options like Call of Duty: Mobile and Free Fire.
Sean Hyunil Sohn of Krafton disclosed the organization's
intentions to increase investment in the Indian gaming sector. "To fulfil
our mission, we collaborate with local developers and promote the use of
cutting-edge technologies in order to support technology developments in India.
We also understand how crucial it is to give Indian talent the training and
employment opportunities they need to develop their skill sets and succeed in
the field.
How has the industry reacted to the ban reversal?
Shiva Nandy, the founder and CEO of Skyesports, is eager to
see the BGMI return to online gaming competitions. "I applaud the return
of Battlegrounds Mobile India (BGMI) to India. While we have since diversified
to other titles, we look forward to incorporating India's favourite battle
royale title into our IPs like the Skyesports League, Skyesports Championship,
and more in the near future," he said. The game was previously a crucial
component of our Esports roadmap.
Roby John, CEO and co-founder of SuperGaming, echoes a
similar sentiment by saying how happy they are that BGMI is coming back.
"Without PUBG/BGMI, there would be no Indus, and playing PUBG and other
shooters like Apex and CoD helped us define the space and the expectations of
our players. We are pleased that it is returning because gaming should have no
restrictions.
"We look forward to using the game to strengthen our
recently-launched content IPs and expand them further to include BGMI,"
says Rohit Jagasia, Founder and CEO of Revenant Esports. "We had already
heard rumblings of the game making a comeback and had begun preparing for it.
The game's return will undoubtedly have a significant positive impact on the
Esports sector as well as reopening revenue streams for all stakeholders.
The CEO and founder of Penta Esports, Anurag Khurana, thinks
the BGMI's comeback will reenergize the Indian gaming and content production
communities. "BGMI had demonstrated enormous support from the Indian
gaming community, which is fantastic for the community. The return of BGMI will
be advantageous for all members of the gaming industry, including content
producers and esports competitors, he said.
.jpg)
