Amid the ongoing Indo- China border tensions and the volatile relationship between the two countries, India in an act of retaliation against the Chinese aggression in the border areas banned 59 Chinese apps on June 29. The list of banned apps includes some famous applications like Tik-Tok, Mobile Legends, Shein, etc.
However, in a sigh of relief to many Indians, the world-famous game Player Unknown’s Battleground (PUBG) was not included in the list of the 59 banned apps. This has sparked various debates regarding the Government’s decision to omit the World famous ‘Chinese’ game. But, PUBG actually is not completely a Chinese game. This is just a general misconception and the originality of PUBG is like a mystery to many. Several people think that PUBG is a South Korean game while many people are of the opinion that China enjoys the money earned from the game.
PlayerUnknown’s Battlegrounds (PUBG) is an online multiplayer battle royale game where up to one hundred players parachute onto an island and scavenge for weapons and equipment to kill others while avoiding getting killed. The available safe area of the game’s map decreases in size over time, directing surviving players into tighter areas to force encounters. The last player or team standing wins the round.
The PC version of PUBG was developed and published by PUBG Corporation, a subsidiary of South Korean video game company Bluehole. The game is based on previous versions that were created by Brendan “PlayerUnknown” Greene for other games, inspired by the 2000 Japanese film Battle Royale, and expanded into a standalone game under Greene’s creative direction.
The mobile version of the game however was developed by Tencent games, which is the video games publishing division of Tencent Interactive Entertainment, a Chinese multinational company.
In 2017, citing too much violence and fearing the negative impact of the game on youngsters, the Chinese government had banned the game in the country. This opened up a window of opportunity for Tencent games as the multinational company secured the rights to distribute PUBG in China by introducing a clone app version of the game known as ‘Game for Peace.’
After that, the Chinese giant developed the mobile version of the game for the Chinese community as PUBG MOBILE. The game became an instant hit in China even though it did not get the approval of the Chinese government to monetize it. The game was later released worldwide in early 2018.
Thus, we can conclude that PUBG mobile was developed by a Chinese company and this makes it a Chinese application. However, the game does not have Chinese roots as the original game was made by Bluehole a Korean company. Tencent has a 10 percent stake in Bluehole. So it can be said that PUBG is not of Chinese origin and boycotting of the game depends on one’s personal level.
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About the author: Shauvik Sarmah is working as a content writer in Headline8. He is an Electronics & communication engineer who graduated from Panjab University.
Image Source: Internet