PUBG Mobile is the centre of criticism in India after a series of consecutive incidents have portrayed the popular battle royale game in a bad light. PUBG, short for PlayerUnknown's Battleground, managed to endure remarkable success on the mobile platform, earning millions of players in a short period of time. But PUBG's success didn't come without a cost.
Series of events surrounding PUBG Mobile in India have led up to this day, where there are more requests and appeals than ever to ban the game. In some cases, PUBG Mobile has already been banned from playing, but the game's fan following is keeping the spirits high for the developers.
From an 11-year-old boy strongly appealing to enforce a ban on PUBG Mobile to some educational institutes such as Vellore Institute of Technology (VIT) and primary schools in Gujarat, banning the game, PUBG Mobile is dodging unexpected obstacles in India. Recently, the Delhi Commission for Protection of Child Rights (DCPCR) marked games like PUBG, Fortnite, GTA and others are harmful, negative and affect children's brain.
While PUBG Mobile developer Tencent Games is mum about everything that's happening to criticise the game, IBTimes India had the opportunity to talk to one of India's top PUBG Mobile player Rahul Pandey aka Goldy, whose YouTube channel features Hindi commentary and live-streaming of him playing the game and has 185,000 subscribers. We touched upon various PUBG-related topics and had to ask his opinion on whether PUBG Mobile should be banned in India or not.
"Frankly speaking, you cannot stop people from playing games let it be any game, not just PUBG Mobile. It must be noted that addiction to anything is harmful to your health. As long as it is consumed for entertainment in small time durations, there should not be a problem. At the end of the day, playing games is a form of entertainment. Due time must be dedicated to other aspects such as your career and studies and ---break from the monotony could be PUBG MOBILE," Goldy told IBTimes India during an interview.
While PUBG Mobile, like any other game, could have a bad influence if done beyond a certain limit, it is important to maintain a balance between real and virtual worlds. Goldy also educates people on prioritising things in life.
"Prioritizing is key to anything. For instance, you could get low grades from playing too much cricket. It all depends on the individual and their mindset. When it comes to study time, there should be no room for games and vice versa," he said.
There's a thin line between addiction and passion when online gaming is concerned. But PUBG Mobile cannot be all bad as it is serving revenue to many streamers on YouTube, Goldy included.
"YouTube is a key source of revenue considering the number of people who view the streams. Apart from this, viewers dropping in some gifts also helps a great deal. It is a great validation to the kind of work we do," he said about how PUBG could bring monetary benefits to an individual.
