Today, two of the most powerful PUBG teams in South Asia have joined forces to create a single powerhouse team.
In a recent partnership, teams GodLike Esports and Stalwart Esports have agreed to merge their rosters. Sportskeeda reports that the teams agreed to join together in preparation for the upcoming PUBG Mobile World Invitational (PMWI) 2022.
Talkesports describes Stalwart Esports as a well-known pro PUBGM group in South Asia. Their current PUBG Mobile roster has been the ace of recent tournaments. The said roster also has been winning tournaments like PMPL South Asia and the PMPL South Asian Championship.
On the other hand, GodLike Esports has been a household name in India for some time now. Recently, the team is claimed to be one of the most followed esports teams in India. In the coming PMWI 2022 in Riyadh, Stalwart Esports will be playing as Stalwart Godlike.
India's Crackdown on Chinese Apps Bans PUBG Mobile, BGMI
The joining of these two promising teams only hypes the large PUBG gaming community in India. With 16.5 active monthly users, India is one of the biggest PUBG fans in the world.
Currently, Player Unknown's Battleground (PUBG Mobile) has been under fire from the Indian government. Two years ago, the government decided to remove the game from both Android and iOS app stores citing a crackdown on Chinese-developed mobile applications.
In response to this, players from India adapted Battlegrounds Mobile India (BGMI), the rebranded version of the PUBG Mobile app from Korean game publisher Krafton as an alternative. Tournaments were still able to went through under the banner of the PUBG alternative.
Two years later, Google has again removed the battle royale game, following a court order. As reported by TechCrunch, a Krafton spokesperson had already acknowledged the delisting and it has been already confirmed that the app is now unavailable to both Android and iOS app stores.
This move by the government is motivated by their current laws that highlight data privacy. Recently, only China-based applications have been subjected to the said laws.
Also Read: Only Shooting Practice, Racing Allowed in 'PUBG Mobile' Event at 2022 Asian Games
With More Restrictions in India, GodLike Goes Global Instead
GodLike Esports is one of the esports groups affected by these latest developments. In response to tightening restrictions, the Indian PUBG group has made a decisive move to go global and attempt to grab wins in the international spotlight.
Stalwart Esports co-founder Towqeer Gilkar in an interview with Talkesports said: "With this partnership, we not only want to amalgamate the two powerhouses in Asian Esports but also to maximize the chances of being the e-sport and the Cup home." The team is set to compete in the upcoming PMWI.
According to Liquipedia, the 2022 PUBG Mobile World Invitational is a mid-season international PUBG Mobile event organized by KRAFTON and Tencent Games in collaboration with Gamers8 and ESL. The tournament features 18 league champions across different regions.
The said competition will be hosted in Riyadh this coming August 11 to 13. A prize pool of $2,000,000 USD awaits the winners of PMWI.
Related Article: 'PUBG Mobile' February Update Brings Collaboration with 'Jujutsu Kaisen,' New Team Deathmatch Map
