PUBG Mobile Removed From App Store, Google Play in India

PUBG is not accessible on Google Play and App Retailer, days after it was banned alongside 117 Chinese language-origin apps. On the time of writing, the sport — be it PUBG Cell or PUBG Cell Lite — proceed to work for individuals who have already got it downloaded. Devices 360 has reached out to Tencent for touch upon how lengthy it’ll proceed to perform, and we’ll replace if we hear again.

Earlier on Friday, Tencent said it could have interaction with the federal government to get PUBG again on cell platforms. India is without doubt one of the largest markets for PUBG, with over 50 million each day energetic customers reportedly, although the income share is far smaller. PUBG had taken on much more significance as India went beneath lockdown as a result of ongoing coronavirus pandemic, with the sport one of many solely methods for pals to actively socialise with one another.

The federal government says PUBG and different banned Chinese language-origin apps are “prejudicial to sovereignty and integrity” of the nation, and that it was receiving “many complaints from varied sources together with a number of stories about misuse of some cell apps accessible on Android and iOS platforms for stealing and surreptitiously transmitting customers’ knowledge in an unauthorised method to servers which have areas outdoors India.” Tencent says it takes consumer and knowledge privateness severely.

Given the initially banned Chinese language apps like TikTok are nonetheless blocked within the nation, Tencent may discover it onerous to revive PUBG Cell on Google Play and App Retailer in India. For what it is value, PUBG remains to be accessible on PC, PS4, and Xbox One. In fact, that is a separate model of the sport, developed by South Korea’s Bluehole.

In the meantime, the home-grown options to PUBG have began popping up. Bengaluru-based nCore video games that counts trade veteran Vishal Gondal amongst buyers has announced that it’s bringing a sport referred to as FAU-G with the backing of actor Akshay Kumar. FAU-G is brief for Fearless and United-Guards. The builders additionally mentioned that they’d donate 20 p.c of sport’s income to the federal government’s fund-raising initiative Bharat Ke Veer.

Ought to the federal government clarify why Chinese language apps had been banned? We mentioned this on Orbital, our weekly expertise podcast, which you’ll be able to subscribe to through Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, or RSS, download the episode, or simply hit the play button under.