The Indian Esports scene was dealt with a major blow today as the Government of India issued another wave of bans for many Chinese apps including Garena’s hit Battle Royale title, Free Fire.
At the time of writing only Free Fire has been met with a banhammer, and players can still get a similar Battle Royale experience from Garena from their other title in Free Fire Max.
The ban comes as part of the latest initiative from the Union Government as it introduced a new list of 54 Chinese apps that were banned because of security concerns.
The list of banned games and apps include AppLock and many others, and according to the directive issued by the government, these apps pose a threat to national security.
This isn’t the first time the Indian mobile Battle Royale space has received problems from the Government of India. In 2020, the government introduced the first list of Chinese apps and games that posed serious threats, and it included the then popular title, PUBG Mobile.
Following the game’s ban, other competitors became highly popular, which included Garena’s Free Fire. While PUBG returned to the Indian markets as BGMI, Free Fire still held its own by continuing to grow at a rapid pace.
Moreover, the game’s popularity has become quite big with a fully fledged Esports scene containing some big names. Recently, European organization Team Vitality even made a big splash by announcing their efforts to expand in the Indian subcontinent.
While the expansion plans were announced last month, the team announced their Free Fire roster today, and it included some of the game’s best players from its professional circuit.
We contacted Team Vitality India today to know more about their plans, and the organization’s spokesperson told us that Free Fire Max is still available and considering the ban, they are still assessing the situation internally.
In the end, fans of the Battle Royale title aren’t happy with the decision at all, and it remains to be seen how the ban will affect the game’s community and the growing Esports scene as well.
