We take a look at last month’s biggest stories from the world of Indian esports. This includes a renewed effort to promote Riot Games titles by PFG along with the potential implications of a ban on the nation’s most popular title, PUBG Mobile.
These are the big stories for the month of July, in collaboration with AFK Gaming.
Paytm First Games partners with Riot Games to host Legends of Runeterra tournament
Indian gaming platform Paytm First Games continued its partnership with Riot Games South Asia by announcing a INR 750K (~GBP7.7K) Legends of Runeterra tournament.
The platform previously hosted a Teamfight Tactics tournament in March 2020. Riot Games’ activities in the region have ramped up in 2020, with the developer unveiling plans to launch VALORANT servers for India before the end of the year.
Megastars announces streaming partnership with Nimo TV
Indian mobile esports organisation Megastars announced a streaming partnership with Nimo TV that will see the platform get exclusive streaming rights.
Megastars is one of the top PUBG Mobile teams in the region and is currently playing in the PUBG Mobile World League: Season Zero. Nimo TV is a streaming platform owned by HUYA and has presence in South Asia, Southeast Asia, and South America.
JetSynthesys Closes GBP30.8M Investment Round
JetSynthesys, an Indian digital and technology company has announced a INR 3B (~GBP30.8M) investment from existing shareholders. The company is known for developing games such as Sachin Cricket Saga, which it has attempted to turn into an esport in the past. JetSynthesys has also invested in one of the region’s most well-recognised tournament organisers, NODWIN Gaming.
The infusion of capital will be used to “develop games with network play” and “to deepen JetSynthesys’ global presence in esports, and help the company create global IPs and forge new strategic partnerships with gaming companies across markets such as Japan, the United States, and Europe.”
PUBG Mobile comes under scrutiny amidst increasing geopolitical tensions between India and China
PUBG Mobile – which has made gaming mainstream in India and created an entire ecosystem of players, content creators, organisations, teams, and tournament organisers – has come under scrutiny from the government following a crackdown on Chinese apps which ‘violate national security and individual privacy.’
A report on the Economic Times revealed that the Government of India has made a list of 275 Chinese apps which could be banned depending upon further findings. A ban on the game threatens to jeopardise the entire Indian esports ecosystem, which is largely built on the back of the popularity of the title.
AFK Gaming is an India-based esports media and content company that aims to provide quality and consistent coverage about teams, players, tournaments and competitive video games with a primary focus on the Asian region.