Garena Free Fire Banned in India? PUBG rival missing from Google Play Store, App Store

New Delhi: The popular battle royale mobile game Garena Free Fire has been removed from the Google Play Store and Apple App Store. The development comes after PUBG developer Crafton filed a complaint against Garena Free Fire.

Crafton filed two separate lawsuits last month seeking to ban Garena Free Fire. The Korean developer had alleged that Garena was copying the game’s design and elements from PUBG Mobile.

In addition, Crafton filed a separate lawsuit against Google and Apple for hosting Garena Free Fire on their App Store. The PUBG developer had also named YouTube in its lawsuit for allowing streamers to stream Garena Free Fire on the video platform.

“Free Fire and Free Fire Max, individually and in combination, extensively mimic many aspects of Battlegrounds, including Battleground’s copyrighted unique game-opening ‘Airdrop’ feature, game structure and play, weapons, armor and unique includes the combination and selection of objects, locations, and an overall choice of color schemes, materials, and textures,” Crafton’s lawsuit had read.

At this point, however, it is not known whether the game has been removed from the Play Store based on lawsuits or because of some other incident. It is also not known whether users who installed the game will still be able to play the game.

Meanwhile, an improved version of Garena Free Fire – Garena Free Fire Max – is available on Google Play but missing from the Apple App Store.

Garena Free Fire gained popularity in India after the Indian government banned PUBG Mobile India in 2020 over concerns related to national security and user privacy.

IANS had reported that Garena Free Fire had emerged as the most downloaded mobile game worldwide in December 2021, with 24 million installs, representing a growth of 28.2 percent from December 2020. Read also: 50% off Amazon Prime membership for select users, check how to avail the offer

According to a report by Sensor Tower, the countries with the most app installs during this period accounted for about 26 per cent of their total downloads, India and Brazil at 12 per cent. Read also: Central Bank of India, UCO Bank FD interest rates changed, see new rates

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