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Garena launches Free Fire India, four years after New Delhi ban
TechCrunch reports Garena launched Free Fire India on Wednesday as a localized Android and iOS game, more than four years after India banned the original title over national security concerns.
- New headline Was: “Free Fire returns to India as Garena launches localized version four years after ban”
- Our desk filed its story
Garena on Wednesday launched Free Fire India, a localized Android and iOS version of its battle royale game, more than four years after New Delhi banned the original title over national security concerns, TechCrunch reported1.
The standalone game includes India-specific content, parental controls, playtime limits and spending caps, with user data hosted on servers in India, according to the report, citing the Sea-owned studio1. Garena had announced a Free Fire India release in September 2023 and later postponed it without a public explanation of the delay, the outlet said1.
India banned Free Fire in February 2022 alongside 53 other apps over alleged links to China1. The game had gained players after India banned rival PUBG Mobile in September 20201. The ban knocked more than $16 billion off the market value of Singapore-based Sea in a day, TechCrunch said, citing Bloomberg1. Free Fire MAX, an enhanced version, was not among the banned apps and remained available1.
Vaibhav Das Mundhra, Garena's head of operations in India, told TechCrunch that Free Fire MAX would stay available alongside Free Fire India, and that players could use the same account on both, play together and join the same events1. He said Garena had worked with Indian government authorities and incorporated their feedback; he did not answer why the 2023 launch was delayed or what had changed to allow the release now1.
Krafton later introduced Battlegrounds Mobile India as a localized PUBG Mobile successor1. TechCrunch said Sensor Tower data it reviewed showed the Free Fire franchise had about 77.4 million monthly active users in India in June, compared with 20.8 million for BGMI1.
Garena kept developing India-themed games from studios in Pune and Mumbai while Free Fire was banned, the report said1. Animesh Agarwal, co-founder and CEO of S8UL Esports, told TechCrunch the return could create more opportunities for players and creators around the title1.
