The Government of India recently announced that the ban on TikTok and other Chinese apps might be permanent from June 2021. This news is not a good sign for PUBG Mobile India, which was banned along with 118 Chinese apps in September 2020 as part of the second phase of the 'digital surgical strike' against China. PUBG Mobile India, in the aftermath of the ban, tried to stay relevant by releasing some teasers around Diwali time that the game was coming back in the New Year. Throughout the period of November and December, PUBG Mobile India worked hard to ensure that the game would come back in the country. However, in December, the Government of India bluntly denied that PUBG Mobile India was not given 'special preference' and that the ban was not been lifted.
However, the recent announcement of the government that the ban on TikTok and other Chinese apps might be permanent could signal the death blow for PUBG Mobile India. With the launch of FAU-G (Fearless and United Guards) on January 26 and with over 3 lakh downloads in less than 24 hours, PUBG Mobile India's market space is also being eroded. With the TikTok announcement and with FAU-G all set to take center stage in the coming few months, the initial apprehension that PUBG Mobile India might never come back in the country might prove to be true.
PUBG Mobile India upstaged by FAU-G
On the global stage, PUBG Mobile is enhancing the user experience with the release of several power Runes and also ensuring that there is a new update every single time. However, all the global updates will not be available in India due to the ban. Recently, there was a report that the ban on PUBG Mobile India can be bypassed by the use of VPN but that has also been blocked by the Government of India. Technically, access to PUBG Mobile is NOT illegal in India but with intermediaries being penalised, there might be no alternative but for PUBG Mobile India to stay banned.
FAU-G, on the other hand, has had a strong start with over 3 lakh downloads but there were plenty of complaints about the graphics, interface and certain aspects related to the game. There were many one-star ratings and five-star ratings but even in those ratings, gamers urged FAU-G to make some improvements.
