PUBG’s Krafton expands in India with localized games

South Korean gaming giant Krafton Inc., renowned for its global mega-hit PlayerUnknown’s Battlegrounds (PUBG), aims to expand its market share in India, the world’s most populous country, by introducing customized games for one of the fastest-growing markets in Asia.

Krafton launched its first India-themed game Garuda Saga, a fantasy role-playing game (RPG) on Feb. 27. The game is the localized version of Angel Saga, a hero action RPG developed by South Korean game studio Alchemist Games Inc., in which Myel, an angel summoned to the underworld, escapes from the evil realm.

The main character of the India-themed mobile game is Garuda, a hero escaping from hell, who is named after the bird ridden by Vishnu, one of the main Hindu gods. Garuda Saga available as a free download on Android and iOS devices is exclusive to users in India.

“We have combined India-related elements in every aspect of the game, from storylines to characters,” said a Krafton official in Seoul.

The release comes amid the rapid growth of the Indian game market. The market was forecast to nearly double to $1.6 billion by 2027 from $868 million last year, according to game industry research firm Niko Partners LLC. The number of users was expected to grow by 45.7% to 641 million during the same period.

LOCALIZE EXISTING GAMES, PUBLISH OTHER KOREAN GAMES

Krafton actively localized the existing games for the market.

Battlegrounds Mobile India (BGMI), one of the most popular games in the country, featured Bollywood star Ranveer Singh last December.

An esports event of the game, which had been downloaded over 100 million times since its release in July 2021, was first broadcast live on TV in India attracting a total of 200 million watchers including 24 million concurrent viewers.

Krafton added India-related content to Road to Valor: Empires, its real-time player-versus-player strategy game, last year. Users compete with players around the globe while commanding mythical gods, beasts and heroes in the game.

The game’s total downloads topped 1 million since Indian civilization was added to the camp for users’ choice.

Krafton aims to publish games developed by other South Korean studios. Last month, the company signed with DevSisters Corp. to publish the mobile game Cookie Run in the South Asian country.

Krafton has invested some 200 billion won ($152.6 million) in 11 companies in India, including the country’s top sports firm and a game streaming platform since 2021. The South Korean game behemoth plans to spend $150 million there over the next two to three years.

Write to Seung-Woo Lee at leeswoo@hankyung.com
 

Jongwoo Chon edited this article.