Battlegrounds Mobile India, better known as the wildly popular battle royale shooter BGMI, recently returned to iOS and Android platforms in India after a nearly year-long ban. Developers Krafton relaunched the mobile game on May 29 with some playtime restrictions in place. Days after it begins its second life in India, BGMI is now the centrepiece of an esports tournament. Skyesports, an esports and gaming venture, is hosting a BGMI tournament, promising a prize pool of Rs. 25 lakh.
The tournament, dubbed the Skyesports Champions Series, will begin June 9 and go on till June 18, the esports company tweeted Saturday. The BGMI tournament will begin 1:00pm IST and stream on Skyesports YouTube channel. Competitive BGMI tournaments had been halted since the game was banned in India in July 2022.
Back in August 2022, Skyesports CEO Shiva Nandy had said that the BGMI ban was only temporary, and the game would make a return.
🇮🇳 Bharat Ka Asli Dil – BGMI is back and we are as excited as you are! Presenting you the Iconic Skyesports Champions Series, this time for BGMI with a whooping Prize pool of INR 25,00,000!
It’s time to bring back memories, it’s time to relive every moment that was enjoyed.… pic.twitter.com/CX5Cpk1QKV
— Skyesports (@skyesportsindia) June 3, 2023
The relaunched version of BGMI features daily time limits to address the problem of gaming addiction. The game’s latest update also brings a new map based on a tropical island resort, new in-game events, and updates to classic maps. Restricted playtimes will be implemented based on player age — minors will be limited to three hours a day, while adults can play for up to six hours.
Last month, Krafton confirmed that the Indian government had allowed them to bring BGMI back to India, reportedly on a three-month trial basis. The game was banned last year in July over concerns about data privacy and online security. BGMI was removed from both Google Play Store and Apple’s App Store under Section 69 of the IT Act, hitting the mobile esports community hard in the country.
“We are highly grateful to the Indian authorities for allowing us to resume operations of Battlegrounds Mobile India (BGMI). We would like to extend our gratitude to our Indian gaming community for their support and patience over the past few months,” Sean Hyunil Sohn, CEO, Krafton India had said in a press release.
BGMI is now back on both iOS and Android platforms, downloadable via the App Store and Google Play Store, respectively. Developers, however, have said that playability will be staggered, and users will be able to login in phases within 48 hours.