Garena Free Fire is officially BANNED from India

Another 53 apps with links to China were banned from the country
Garena Free Fire is officially BANNED from India

Ronny Rolim

The worst fears of Free Fire players ended up being confirmed. In what appears to be a surprising twist, the government of India has banned the famous Battle Royale title. Garena's game was included in the list of 54 apps banned last Saturday. At first, the reason for his banishment from India was precisely because he had connections with China. The Indian government has banned all apps on the grounds of “national security”.

The Ministry of the Interior has recommended a ban on 54 Chinese mobile apps , including the popular game Garena Free Fire . Interestingly, Garena Free Fire is based in Singapore and the developer is not from China. The game was one of the most downloaded games in India last year and had occupied the space created by PUBG Mobile after it was also banned in September 2020 . It is worth remembering that the application has already been removed from the Google Play Store and App Store in India since last Saturday and only Free Fire Max is released so far.

India is the biggest Free Fire market

Free Fire banned from Google Play Store
Free Fire had about 53% of active users in India in January — Photo: Reproduction

Owned by Garena , Free Fire had over 40 million of its 75 million global monthly active users in India as of January 2022, according to analytics firm App Annie, accounting for around 53% of active players in the game , thus being , the largest Free Fire market. Sea , the company that owns Garena and counts Tencent among its biggest sponsors, is also quietly testing its social commerce Shopee in India.

The news of the ban came as a surprise to the Garena team in India . The game's developers were seeking deals with tournament organizations to further promote their game and attract more high-profile users and players in the country. Garena did not immediately comment on the ban.

The series of app blocks in India began in late June 2020, when the world's second-largest internet marketplace banned TikTok , Alibaba's UC Browser and Tencent's WeChat and dozens of other apps linking to China over security concerns. National security.

Google confirms the ban on Free Fire in India

Free Fire banned from India
Free Fire is banned from India after becoming the game's biggest market — Photo: Free Fire

In a statement, a Google spokesperson acknowledged the Indian government's order and said the company was complying.

“Upon receiving the government-approved interim order, following the established process, we notified the affected developers and temporarily blocked access to apps that remained available on the Play Store in India,” a Google spokesperson said on Monday.

It is worth remembering that the Free Fire and Free Fire Max applications are also banned from the Apple Store , on the iOS system. Check out the full list of apps banned by the Indian government on the 12th of February:

  • Beauty Camera: Sweet Selfie HD
  • Beauty Camera - Selfie Camera
  • equalizer
  • Music Player - Music, Mp3 Player
  • Equalizer Pro - Volume Booster & Bass Booster
  • Music Plus - MP3 Player
  • Video Player Media All Format
  • Music Player - Equalizer & MP3
  • Volume Booster - Loud Speaker & Sound Booster
  • Music Player - MP3 Player
  • CamCard for SalesForce Ent
  • Isoland 2: Ashes of Time Lit
  • Rise of Kingdoms: Lost Crusade
  • APUS Security HD
  • Parallel Space Lite 32 Support
  • Viva Video Editor - Snack Video Maker with Music
  • nice video baidu
  • Tencent Xriver
  • Onmyoji Chess
  • Onmyji Arena
  • App Lock
  • Dual Space Lite
  • Dual Space Pro - Multiple Accounts & App Cloner
  • DualSpace Lite - 32Bit Support
  • Dual Space - 32Bit Support
  • Dual Space - 64Bit Support
  • Dual Space Pro - 32Bit Support
  • Conquer Online - MMORPG Game
  • Conquer Online II
  • Live Weather & Rader - Alerts
  • Notes - Color Notepad, Notebook
  • MP3 Cutter - Ringtone Maker & Audio Cutter
  • Voice Recover & Voice Changer
  • Barcode Scanner - QR Code Scan
  • Lica Cam - selfie camera app
  • EVE Echoes
  • astracraft
  • UU Game Booster
  • extraordinary
  • Ones
  • badlanders
  • Stick Fight: The Game Mobile
  • Twilight Pioneers
  • CuteU: Match With the World
  • SmallWorld
  • CuteU Pro
  • FancyU
  • RealU:
  • moonchat
  • RealU LiteWink: Connect Now
  • FunChat Meet People Around You
  • FancyU pro -
  • Garena Free Fire - Illuminate
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