After much tussle, Battlegrounds Mobile India is back! After a 10-month hiatus, the game is back on Google Play Store and Apple App Store. But the renewal is back with its own set of restrictions and under the watchful eye of the Indian government. “The highly anticipated return is expected to provide a significant boost to India’s already thriving E-sports and game streaming markets. With the domestic gaming arena experiencing remarkable growth, it is estimated to be valued at around $8.6 billion by 2027 from $2.6 billion in 2022 with midcore expected to drive growth the fastest – and within that BGMI will play a substantial role,” Justin Shriram Keeling, founding general partner, Lumikai said in a conversation with Brandwagon Online.
The number of streams thereby adding to an increase in revenue is also set to go up following the comeback of the game. According to industry estimates, for core BGMI gamers/creators, earnings are expected to go up by 120%, which is in tandem with viewership growth. “For most of the core BGMI creators, viewership has gone up 300-400%, as BGMI was their primary content before the ban. This has not had an immediate effect on their revenue growth, but if they are able to sustain these numbers for a few months, then their revenue is expected to hike by over 120%,” Rohit Agarwal, founder and director, Alpha Zegus said.
KRAFTON has agreed to certain limitations with one of them being restriction of time for its users. The playtime for gamers under the age of 18 years old would be three hours whereas the rest of the players would be six hours daily. Furthermore, parental verification and daily spending limit for minors would continue to be part of the game. The game has been launched with an update, a new map – Nusa and other in-game accessories including skins, weapon upgrades, and vehicle upgrades.
The game had been banned by the authorities due to security concerns with rumours of KRAFTON being connected to Tencent, a Chinese gaming company. The game also faced backlash following a series of crimes. However, KRAFTON has distanced itself from the rumours denying any contact with the Chinese gaming company.
The game was brought post an announcement recently made by Rajeev Chandrasekhar Union Minister of State for Electronics and IT, on his Twitter handle stating that the game would be kept under close watch in its trial period. “This is a three-month trial approval of #BGMI after it has complied with issues of server locations and data security etc. We will keep a close watch on other issues of user harm, addiction etc in the next three months before a final decision is taken,” Chandrasekhar tweeted.
Despite the looming uncertainties, the gaming industry believes that this will finally legitimate the play. According to a report by Niko Partners, nearly half of all mobile gamers in the country had played BGMI in the 12 months prior to the game’s ban. Among them, 59% continued playing after the ban, 12% switched to another game, and 29% stopped playing mobile games altogether.
According to KRAFTON, BGMI had over 100 million users at the time it was banned in India. With the reintroduction of BGMI, it expects a stabilising effect on the growth of the gaming industry, creating significant opportunities for sustained development and a boost in revenue generation. “The resurgence will lead to a remarkable increase in brand endorsements and investments,” Animesh Agarwal, founder and CEO, 8Bit Creatives said.
Moreover, the esports industry is set to grow with the BGMI ban uplifted. Moreover, the game was the first esports event to be broadcasted on mainstream television attracting 24 million concurrent viewers and a total of 200 million viewers. “BGMI holds a prominent position in the Indian esports ecosystem. Therefore, it is evident that its return will result in an influx of tournaments and esports athletes, driving substantial growth within the industry this year. The live-stream viewership of tournaments will skyrocket, and non-endemic brands seeking association with high-profile tournaments will come into the picture,” Naman ‘Mortal’ Mathur, co-owner, S8UL esports.