PUBG Mobile, a wildly popular game in India, was among 118 Chinese apps blocked by the government earlier this year. Earlier, the Government of India had banned a total of 59 Chinese mobile apps. The move was in the interest of India’s sovereignty and integrity, defense and security, the government said in a statement. There are close to 33 million active PUBG players in India. And according to reports, almost 67% of mobile gamers has migrated from PUBG Mobile to one of its largest competitor, COD Mobile.
The rise in popularity of COD Mobile
Though PUBG Mobile was banned in early September, the game was playable for users who had already installed it. Moreover, PUBG Corp. ended the partnership with Tencent Games which terminated the service and access to PUBG Mobile in India. As of now, PUBG Mobile is not playable even through a VPN. In this post-PUBG Mobile era, other games with battle royale and multiplayer modes were bound to get popular. And out of all of them, COD Mobile has taken the lead. According to a CMR India report, surveys indicate that nearly 67% (2/3rd of the total player base) of PUBG Mobile players have now moved to one of the best FPS games on the mobile platform Call of Duty Mobile.
Right from the day it launched, Call of Duty Mobile was seen as a legitimate competitor to PUBG Mobile. This is all because of the solid reputation the Call of Duty franchise has been able to garner on consoles. And now, these numbers are evidence that COD Mobile has become an extremely popular title amongst gaming audiences in India, especially after the PUBG Mobile ban.
What does the future hold for PUBG Mobile?
PUBG Corp. has been trying several ways to unban its widely popular title in India, PUBG Mobile, including a possible partnership with Jio which ultimately did not materialize. Lately, PUBG Mobile may have been given a lifeline in the form of a tie-up with Microsoft Azure. Therefore, it remains to be seen if Call of Duty Mobile will be able to hold its position atop if PUBG Mobile makes a comeback in the near future.
What are your thoughts on this news as 67% of mobile gamers migrated to COD Mobile from PUBG Mobile after its ban in India? Let us know your opinions in the comments section below!
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