Tag: PUBG Mobile

PUBG Mobile is set to make a triumphant return to mobile in India two months after being banned by the government. In September, the Indian government controversially banned PUBG Mobile and around 200 other mobile apps, including social media video app TikTok, due to their ties to China. The government said that the decision was made to protect its people’s privacy.

However, according to a report by TechCrunch, PUBG Corporation has severed ties with Chinese publisher Tencent, and agreed to migrate all player data to Microsoft’s Azure. This should bring PUBG Mobile in line with New Delhi’s strict rules on apps’ links to China. While this is exciting news, it could also be a glimmer of light for other apps looking to bypass India’s ban in the future.

Additionally, PUBG Corporation has announced $100 million of investment into jobs, infrastructure, and tournaments in India. It said in a statement: “thanks to overwhelming community enthusiasm for PUBG esports in India, the company also plans to make investments by hosting India-exclusive esports events, which will feature the biggest tournaments, the largest prize pools, and the best tournament productions.”

The company also said that India would receive a specially-created version of the game, however the ever-reliable Daniel Ahmad notes that this shares a lot of similarities with the Chinese version of PUBG Mobile.

The ironic aspect is that India banned the game for its affiliation with Tencent / China

Yet this custom ver. of the game is clearly the China version from Tencent

Green blood? Virtual training ground? Limits on playtime?

Yep, that’s the China versionhttps://t.co/uilGlbZQI5

— Daniel Ahmad (@ZhugeEX) November 12, 2020

As Ahmad notes, PUBG Mobile was the #1 grossing mobile game in India and had over 50 million monthly active users in the country, so it remains to be seen whether the ban impacts its popularity going forward, or whether players will flock back to the shores of Miramar.

With some major changes at both a publisher level and a gameplay level, as well as a promise of huge funding for Indian esports, PUBG Corporation seems intent on getting back into the market. However, these resources aren’t available to all developers, so it may be difficult for other, smaller apps to follow  PUBG Mobile’s footsteps in returning to the Indian market.

There is no release date yet for the new version of the game, but in the meantime you can check out the best mobile multiplayer games, or reacquaint yourself with the latest PUBG Mobile update while you’re here.

PUBG Mobile is getting a new map that has been designed with players on the go in mind. That comes from The Verge, which reports that the new map is called Livik and is as large as two kilometres by two kilometres. Matches on Livik support 40 players a game and are intended to last 15 minutes each.

While PUBG Mobile has primarily been designed to bring the PC experience to mobile phone users, Livik has been crafted to accommodate mobile players. That means the design facilitates quick matches you can play on your daily commute to and from work. “We want more people to enjoy PUBG Mobile in a more flexible way,” producer Rick Li explains to The Verge. “The initiative for this map is bringing more flexibility to those players who have tighter schedules and circumstances to accommodate for.”

While the map is notably smaller than others, Li reassures that there are still plenty of points of interest that help games go quicker. The Nordic-themed map features a volcano, hot spring, and a waterfall. While Li didn’t give much else away, he reckons that the current of the waterfall will mix up PUBG Mobile matches. There’s currently no word on when we’ll be able to play Livik, but apparently it’ll be “soon”.

If you’re curious as to what else is happening in the world of Tencent’s battle royale, then you can check out our PUBG Mobile update guide. If you fancy a go yourself, you can find it on iOS and Android.

We also have a list of the best mobile multiplayer games, so you have more options for games you’d like to play with your friends.

Twelve people have gotten themselves into hot water with police in China over allegedly selling hacks for the Chinese version of PUBG Mobile. As translated and reported by Abacus, the group used Bitcoin to purchase the cheats from “overseas personnel” before going on to sell them to Peacekeeper Elite players. Kunshan police say the business is worth up to $15 million, which makes me question what I’m doing with my life.

The hacks themselves are relatively standard. The cheats give players the ability to see people through walls and hit as many headshots as they please through the use of an aimbot, which is particularly brutal given it’s a mobile FPS game. The punishment is currently unclear if the group is found guilty, but people have been fined for similar offences. As Abacus further points out, two men were given a one-year prison sentence and a $2,833 fine for creating Honor of Kings hacks.

If you’re unaware, Peacekeeper Elite is Tencent’s Chinese version of PUBG Mobile. Despite initially being available in China, the battle royale game was modified and re-released under a different name to satisfy China’s censorship restrictions. Peacekeeper still looks just like PUBG Mobile, from character models to general graphic texts. In this version, though, there is no blood or gore, and words like ‘kill’ are swapped to non-violent alternatives like ‘defeat’.

It appears that PUBG Mobile hacks aren’t just limited to China, however. A glance at the game’s unofficial Subreddit page reveals several complaints from players in the last few hours alone. There’s even a specific post flare designed to report accounts of cheating.

5th time today getting killed by a cheater 🤦🏽‍♂️ so annoying from PUBGMobile

We’ve reached out for more information and will update this story if we hear back. In the meantime, though, you can check out our PUBG Mobile update guide for more up-to-date information on what’s going on. We even have a guide on the best multiplayer mobile games if you fancy something different.

Tencent Games has announced a major update for PUBG Mobile. The content drop is set for May 7 and will kick off the thirteenth season of the game, introducing a variety of new features and updates. The main highlight of this will be Mad Miramar, which will add two sections to the pre-existing map, including an oasis in the north, and ruins in the north-west. There will also be more resources spawning throughout the map.

The crowning glory of the update, however, is the new rust-punk style race track which runs through the entire area, as well as a new vehicle to race on it. The golden mirado, a one-of-a-kind golden convertible, will spawn on the map, and only be available to whoever grabs it first.

Some other quality of life changes include the addition of vending machines, which will dispense painkillers and energy drinks, with the possibility of you collecting eight at a time. The other main map update is the cheer park, an area where you and your friends can kick back and relax after a match, with shooting ranges, and an outdoor BBQ.

Full update notes haven’t been released yet, but should appear in the next few days before it rolls out on May 7. You can find more details in the trailer:

There are changes to the results screen too, which now lets you see stats such as revives, assists, distance traveled, and time survived. This, as well as a variety of weapon-based information, will be a great tool for perfecting your game.

Guns are also getting some love, with the P90 submachine gun’s  inclusion in arena mode, a new 2.7x scope for the Win97 carbine, and a new canted site for classic mode, giving you three modes of weapon fire to switch between.

All in all the changes should be a great increase to the game’s quality of life. If you want to find out more about upcoming PUBG content, check out the PUBG mobile website.