Last week turned out to be in favour of hundreds of thousands of gamers in India who have waited for about a year. Krafton announced it is bringing Battlegrounds Mobile India, popularly known as BGMI, back after a year-long hiatus. A few days later, BGMI showed up again on the Google Play Store, sending anticipating gamers into a frenzy. But the game is still not playable. Also Read - BGMI is now available for download on Google Play Store, iPhone users still waiting
Even though BGMI is back on the Google Play Store, it is visible to a select few users since the rollout is incremental. Those who can see the listing, however, can download the game, but cannot play it. That is because the servers are frozen. According to the message displayed on the game’s welcome screen, the servers are yet to go live in India. Unless the servers are set up, the game will remain unplayable. Also Read - As BGMI returns, government outlines 3-month probation, conditions for Krafton
“Currently, the closed test track for BGMI is updated. Those who opted for a public test for the game before its launch are expected to get a message which takes them to the Play Store to download the game” said Krafton in a statement. “However, the link won’t work, and the game cannot be downloaded as the servers have been shut down. We also understand that some other users who had not opted for the closed test are also getting this message. This is a technical error, and we are working on resolving it.” Also Read - BGMI is coming back to app stores in India a year after ban
Some users even said that the Play Store had listed an older version of BGMI. In this case, players will not gain access to the latest features and probably the server access will remain blocked, too. Krafton has not provided any details about how or when the game will become playable. But a prompt in the game gives some assurance.
“Hello, BGMI Fan! BGMI servers will be unavailable for a while to come up with a better and bigger experience. While we are working to give you a seamless experience, your account will be safe, and your progress till now will be retained. We will keep you informed of further developments and the release date through our social media platforms,” it read.
The South Korean company last week said it has secured approval for the relaunch of BGMI from the government, which clarified that there are some conditions attached to it.
Minister of State for Electronics and IT, Rajeev Chandrasekhar has clarified that the final decision to allow Battlegrounds Mobile India (BGMI) to return to the country will only be taken after three months of a strict trial of the game. The minister said that the government will keep a close watch on other issues of “user harm, addiction, etc in the next three months before a final decision is taken”.
“This is a three-month trial approval of BGMI after it has complied with issues of server locations and data security, etc,” he said in a tweet.
