Dream Sports, the parent company of Dream11, on Saturday, launched its first mobile game, Dream Cricket 2024, in India and Pakistan, as the two neighbouring countries engaged in a highly-anticipated ICC Cricket World Cup 2023 clash at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad.
The free-to-play game’s open beta version is available for download on the Google Play Store, in India and Pakistan, while an iOS version for Apple devices is in the works.
Dream Cricket 2024 is a cricket simulation game that allows players to play as different international teams in a World Cup event. The game features realistic graphics and commentary, a variety of game modes, including Test matches, ODIs, and T20Is, ability to create and manage your own team, and compete against other players from around the world in real-time.
This launch comes at a time when Dream Sports is staring at a massive retrospective goods and services tax (GST) claim of over Rs 40,000 crore related to its flagship fantasy sports platform Dream11, induced by the GST council’s decision to impose a 28% tax on the full face value of stakes raised by an online gamer. Earlier, GST of 18% was only charged on net winnings.
However, free-to-play and paid video games continue to be taxed at the older rate on app sales and in-app purchases in India, as they do not involve a staking or wagering element.
Dream Sports, had in 2021 acquired Pune-based mobile game developer Rolocule Games and rebranded it as Dream Game Studios, with founder Rohit Gupta serving as the CEO of the mobile gaming studio.
Dream Sports has announced that it plans to launch more mobile games in the future.