Gamers left dismayed with PUBG Mobile ceasing India services

PUBG Mobile ceasing its India services has left gamers dismayed. This comes after an order, dated September 2 2020, by the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology stated that Tencent Games will terminate all services and access for users in India to PUBG Mobile on October 30, 2020. The game was banned under Section 69A of the Information Technology Act.

Taking to Facebook, PUBG Mobile informed its India users that to comply with the ministry’s orders, it will terminate all services and access in India. “Protecting user data has always been a top priority and we have always complied with applicable data protection laws and regulations in India,” it said. “All users’ gameplay information is processed in a transparent manner as disclosed in our privacy policy. We deeply regret this outcome, and sincerely thank you for your support and love for PUBG Mobile in India.”

The government took to banning apps after the Galwan Valley clash between the Chinese and Indian soliders in Ladakh along the disputed Line of Actual Control (LAC) in the month of June. India banned PUBG Mobile and PUBG Mobile Lite, along with other apps such as TikTok, because of their links to China. The ban was projected in the interest of sovereignty and integrity of the country. Moreover, the ban gave rise to Indian developers to design their own apps and soon enough, nCore – Indian gaming company, came up with FAU-G to fill the vacuum left by PUBG. FAU-G is set for launch next month.

PUBG – PlayerUnknown’s Battlegrounds is an online multiplayer game where players fight each other in a confined space until one survivor remains. Known as the battle royale, this genre became a global gaming cultural phenomenon overnight. PUBG established itself in India and grew in popularity in the youth population and became a cult. PUBG’s success in India and obessssion for it in the games prompted states to take legal steps to ban the game altogether.