All of today’s youth are obsessed with online gaming. Free Fire Max and Pubg are two of India’s most-played internet games. Both games have brought great joy to the lives of kids and young adults in India. Online battlegrounds best describe both games. This software has the potential for use in both desktop and mobile gaming. In which players interact with one another during play.
The makers of PUBG, Krafton, have sued Garena, accusing them of ripping off their game. Not just that, but also. Both Apple and Google have been sued by Krafton for hosting and promoting Garena’s games through their own app stores. Google has been accused of facilitating the distribution of “many threads containing a full-length Chinese film that is an obviously pirated adaptation of the video game Battlegrounds.” and “numerous posts containing gameplay footage of the two Garena games at issue for Krafton” on YouTube.
For the games Garena Free Fire and Garena Free Fire Max, Krafton has filed suit against the aforementioned companies. The games may be downloaded from the App Store and the Play Store, respectively, for no upfront cost and additional in-app purchases.
Figures on Income
Since its release, PUBG smartphone has become one of the most played smartphone games in the world, bringing in billions of dollars in revenue. In fact, Sensor Tower, a data analytics company, estimates that PUBG Mobile will bring in over $2.6 billion worldwide by 2020. This is evidence of the game’s enduring appeal and the devoted fan base it has built up.
However, the creator of Garena Free Fire can also point to a long list of successes. It was the fourth highest-grossing mobile game worldwide in 2019, with a reported revenue of over $1 billion. While it’s possible that PUBG Mobile made more money than Garena Free Fire, both games were huge hits that were played by millions of people across the world.
The lawsuit’s potential long-term impact on both games’ earnings and popularity among gamers remains an open question. Whatever the outcome of the pending legal proceedings between Krafton and Garena Free Fire, one thing is certain: the two companies will remain front-page news for quite some time.
When Will India Finally Allow BGMI/PUBG Mobile? (2023)
As a gamer and someone who has been keeping tabs on the PUBG vs. Garena Free Fire case, I am always curious as to when BGMI or PUBG Mobile would be made available again in India. Regrettably, this question has not been satisfactorily answered as of yet. In September of 2020, the Indian government banned PUBG Mobile for security and privacy concerns. Since then, Krafton has been hard at work adapting the game to Indian standards so that it may be released again.
PUBG Mobile’s Indian servers will be hosted on Microsoft Azure, thanks to a deal signed by Krafton and Microsoft in November 2020. But as of August 2021, their efforts will have been in vain; the game is still prohibited in India. Supposedly, if Krafton keeps up its compliance with Indian regulations and criteria, the prohibition on the game could be lifted in 2023. Until then, Indian players will have to hold out hope for a return of their favourite battle royale title.
Other Games Have Been Accused of Stealing Ideas from PUBG
It’s not just Garena Free Fire that’s been accused of plagiarising PUBG; many other games have been, too. Several other games have also been accused of being racist. The battle royale format and several game elements from PlayerUnknown’s Battlegrounds (PUBG) have been accused of being plagiarised by Fortnite, for example.
The games Knives Out and Rules of Survival received similar criticism for being too similar to PlayerUnknown’s Battlegrounds. The maps, weapons, and even character animations have all been accused of being lifted directly from the original game. While it’s reasonable to anticipate some degree of similarity between games, designers should take care to avoid outright plagiarism.
Keeping up with the ever-evolving needs of gamers requires developers to prioritise innovation. While it may be tempting to create games that look like those that are already successful, doing so has a detrimental influence on the gaming industry as a whole since it discourages creative thinking and gives players fewer options.
Consequently, over 200 million people worldwide play Free Fire Max. Both games have become successful, and they share a visual aesthetic. PubG’s creator, Krafton, has just sued the makers of Garena Free Fire:
PUBG vs. Garena free fire
In a legal battle against Garena, Apple, and Google, PUBG’s creator, Krafton, has filed suit. It has been claimed that Garena plagiarised PlayerUnknown’s Battlegrounds by developing and distributing the battle royale titles Free Fire and Free Fire Max. Thus, Krafton is taking legal action against Apple and Google for making the games available through their app stores. Krafton reportedly paid Google to host promotional videos for the Free Fire and Free Fire Max game consoles on YouTube. It has also been reported that Krafton has taken many actions against the contentious battle royale games.
Copyright infringement case
The Verge reports that Garena, the developer of Free Fire and Free Fire Max, has been sued by Krafton for allegedly infringing upon Krafton’s copyright. The developer of PUBG has accused Garena of ripping off his popular battle royale game. After the success of two games and the widespread distribution of two Free Fire apps, Krafton said in court that Apple and Google made hundreds of millions of dollars. You may now get an app from the App Store or Google Play.
Krafton is also suing Google and Apple.
To counter Free Fire and Free Fire Max, Krafton announced legal action on December 21. In the first, Garena was requested to immediately cease utilizing Free Fire and Free Fire Max, with the apparent approval of Apple and Google being rescinded as well. Garena had a problem with that. While both app stores still feature a game listing, PUBG’s developer demanded Apple and Google stop distributing and promoting the two games on their platforms.
The offending feature-length film and several other videos were removed from YouTube per court order. Google’s video hosting service continues to host these videos.
Revenue statistics
The lawsuit also noted Garena’s 2017 sale of a game in Singapore that was said to be a clone of PUBG: Battlegrounds. Despite the allegations being settled, Krafton argues there was never a licensing agreement between the two game developers.
Player spending on Free Fire increased by 48% to $1.1 billion in 2021, citing data compiled by Sensor Tower. Krafton’s $2.98 billion in sales during the same period only represented a 7% increase from the previous year. The numbers showed that Free Fire was rapidly closing the popularity and revenue gap with PUBG.
The Case’s Repercussions for the Gaming Sector
The gaming industry has been rocked by Krafton’s lawsuit against Garena Free Fire. People are concerned about the impact this could have on the future of video game creation and whether or not it will limit originality and creativity. It is, on the one hand, crucial to safeguard creators’ work and discourage obvious plagiarism from reaching the gaming community. On the other side, some say this action will set a bad precedent because games have always stolen ideas from one another.
In addition, the reach of this litigation extends far beyond these two games. Now that one developer has been sued over a similar idea, other developers may be cautious to include it in their games. This has the potential to affect the gaming industry as a whole by reducing the variety of gameplay mechanics available to players. Those with a keen interest in the gaming industry should keep an eye on this case as it unfolds, since it could have far-reaching consequences.
Conclusion
To sum up, the gaming industry is in upheaval when PUBG creator Krafton sued Garena Free Fire for copyright infringement. There is obvious gameplay and mechanical overlap between the two games, but how this legal case pans out remains to be seen. As players, all we can do is wish for a peaceful resolution to this conflict and the continued success of both games in their respective genres. It serves as a timely warning that developers need to take precautions to prevent their games from being copied or stolen. It is up to us as consumers to encourage developers to think beyond the box and invest in innovative ideas for the games we love.
