Garena is finally challenging KRAFTON in India's mobile esports race. 5 Oct 2026, 8:12 PM IST 6 min. read For the last few years, KRAFTON India has been the clear leader in Indian mobile esports. BGMI has everything a major esports needs: multi-crore tournaments, big LAN events, international slots, popular teams and massive viewership. BMPS 2026 alone reached around 729,000 peak concurrent viewers and attracted more than 12,000 fans across its Jaipur Grand Finals. For a long time, there was no real competition at that scale. Several mobile titles entered India, but none managed to seriously challenge BGMI's position. Now, however, an old rival is starting to make noise again. After staying mostly quiet in Indian esports following the 2022 Free Fire ban, Garena returned with Free Fire MAX esports in 2025, and its approach has been very different from KRAFTON's. The result? After FFMIC 2026 Fall, the Indian mobile esports market suddenly does not look as one-sided as it did before. - Advertisement - Discover more Esports news subscription Free Fire tips Esports event tickets Garena returned to Indian esports in 2025. Free Fire esports had effectively disappeared from India's official major tournament circuit following the original game's ban in 2022. That changed in 2025. Garena announced Free Fire MAX India Cup (FFMIC) 2025, marking the return of its official Indian esports circuit after roughly three years. The tournament came with a ₹1 crore overall prize pool and ended with a LAN event at Lucknow's Ekana International Indoor Stadium. That tournament now looks less like a one-off comeback and more like the start of a long-term rebuild. FFMIC returned again in 2026 with its Spring edition. Its Grand Finals were held at the Mahatma Mandir Convention and Exhibition Centre in Ahmedabad, while the Battle Royale competition carried a ₹1 crore prize pool. Then came FFMIC 2026 Fall. In a little over a year, Garena has gone from returning to Indian esports after a long absence to building a regular domestic circuit. KRAFTON and Garena are taking different approaches. This is where the comparison becomes interesting. KRAFTON's BGMI ecosystem is built around massive flagship competitions. Events such as BGIS, BMPS and BMSD run for weeks and offer large prize pools, while the biggest stages end with major LAN events. The scale remains difficult to match. BMPS 2026 recorded around 729,000 peak viewers and more than 12.7 million Hours Watched. The Jaipur finals also reportedly attracted more than 12,000 attendees across three days. Garena is not matching BGMI tournament-for-tournament on prize money or domestic viewership yet. Instead, it appears to be focusing heavily on frequency and cross-regional competition. Since its return in 2025, Indian Free Fire players have received multiple FFMIC seasons alongside the Free Fire MAX Asia Invitational series. FFMAI debuted in its current cycle in late 2025. Garena then organised FFMAI 2026 Spring in May and FFMAI 2026 Summer in June, both carrying $50,000 prize pools. FFMAI 2026 Fall is scheduled for October 16-25. Instead of waiting months for another major event, Free Fire teams have repeatedly been given another tournament to prepare for. Garena is giving Indian teams more international competition. This could be the most important part of Garena's strategy. FFMAI brings Indian and other South Asian teams against opponents from established Asian Free Fire regions. The Spring edition, for example, featured teams from India, Bangladesh, Pakistan and Nepal through its South Asia system, while the Main Event also included representation from Thailand, Indonesia and Malaysia. The upcoming Fall edition continues that model. For Indian teams, this means international competition does not have to be limited to one major global tournament every year. The pathway became even stronger in 2026. Team Apex Gaming, S8UL Esports and Total Gaming Esports represented India at the Free Fire World Cup 2026 in Paris, which featured 24 teams and a $1 million prize pool. Apex and S8UL eventually reached the Grand Finals. And India already has another global tournament ahead. For an upcoming Free Fire player, the road is becoming much clearer: perform domestically, reach FFMIC, play regional competition and potentially represent India internationally. That is how an esports ecosystem starts becoming sustainable. Free Fire MAX viewership is starting to grow. The biggest reason KRAFTON has remained far ahead is simple: BGMI has a much larger Indian esports audience. That has not suddenly changed. But Free Fire MAX is beginning to show signs of meaningful growth. Earlier Free Fire MAX tournaments in the current rebuilding phase were nowhere near BGMI's biggest viewership numbers. FFMIC 2026 Spring, for example, recorded around 128,500 peak viewers, according to Esports Charts. FFMIC 2026 Fall then produced a much bigger response, particularly around its Grand Finals. That growth matters more than simply asking whether Free Fire has already beaten BGMI. It hasn't. The important question is whether Garena can maintain the upward curve across FFWS, FFMAI Fall and its 2027 domestic circuit. One big tournament can be hype. Repeating those numbers starts becoming an ecosystem. More tournaments give organisations a reason to invest. There is another part of this competition that matters beyond viewers. Esports organisations need reasons to keep teams. If a game only has one or two meaningful tournaments each year, maintaining salaries, devices, bootcamps and staff becomes difficult. A regular calendar gives organisations more exposure and players more opportunities to earn. That is already visible in Free Fire MAX. Major Indian organisations like Team Apex Gaming, S8UL, Godlike Esports, and Nebula Esports have entered or returned to the scene, while established Free Fire brands remain active. International qualification gives them another reason to invest. And once organisations invest, the cycle can grow further. Better salaries can attract players. Better teams create better competition. Competition creates rivalries and stories. Those stories bring viewers back. BGMI is still India's mobile esports benchmark. None of this means Free Fire MAX has overtaken BGMI. It has not. BGMI currently operates at a different scale in India. BMPS 2026's nearly 730,000 peak viewers, 12.7 million Hours Watched and huge LAN attendance show just how strong the game's competitive audience remains. KRAFTON also continues to offer Indian teams routes towards international PUBG Mobile competition. So calling Free Fire MAX a "BGMI killer" would miss the real story. Garena does not need to kill BGMI to succeed. What matters is that KRAFTON may finally have serious competition for the attention of India's mobile esports audience. Competition between Garena and KRAFTON could be good for India. India has always been a mobile-first gaming market, and having only one dominant mobile esport was never the ideal situation for the industry. Now there are two publishers with very different approaches. KRAFTON has huge domestic tournaments, major prize pools, packed LANs and enormous viewership. Garena is building an aggressive calendar with repeated domestic tournaments, Asian invitationals and global qualification opportunities. That competition can benefit everyone. Publishers have more reason to improve tournaments. Organisations have more games to invest in. Players have more professional opportunities. Creators get more stories to cover. Fans get more events to watch. The real test for Garena starts now. Can it maintain the audience after FFMIC Fall? Will Indian viewers follow Apex Gaming, Resurrection and TSG Pros at FFWS? Can its next domestic tournament retain the momentum? Will more organisations enter the scene? And most importantly, will Garena continue this aggressive approach in 2027? If the answer to those questions is yes, Indian mobile esports could finally have the competition it has been missing. BGMI remains on top. But for the first time in years, the race behind it is starting to look serious. - Advertisement - Aditya Parsutkar is an experienced esports and gaming journalist and currently serves as the Mobile Gaming and Esports Editor at TalkEsport. With over four years in the industry, he has built a strong reputation for delivering timely news, detailed tournament coverage, and insightful analysis across the gaming ecosystem. Before joining TalkEsport, he contributed to prominent media outlets including SportsTiger, InsideSport, and Sportskeeda, where he covered major national and international esports events. His expertise lies in mobile esports, competitive gaming trends, and in-depth editorial coverage of the rapidly growing esports industry. As an editor, Aditya focuses on maintaining high editorial standards, accuracy, and engaging storytelling while leading comprehensive coverage of the gaming and esports space.

BGMI 4.6 Update rolls out with Vampire mode, Kiaraa, and One Punch Man collaboration. The new Midnight Hunters mode in BGMI introduces Guild Missions that give squads special objectives and higher rewards. Photo Credit: Krafton India The new modes and gameplay changes in BGMI will be rolled out progressively Highlights * BGMI 4.6 Update brings the supernatural Midnight Hunters mode * Kiaraa, an original India-first character, debuts on October 8 * World of Wonder expands with 17 new collectible Brainrot characters Battlegrounds Mobile India (BGMI) rolled out its 4.6 Update on Wednesday. It brings a new supernatural-themed mode, the return of the popular Ocean Odyssey experience, and a new India-first character called Kiaraa. Krafton India has introduced collaborations with One Punch Man, Lincoln Motor Cruize and B.DUCK, alongside new festive content planned around Diwali. Among the headline additions is a new Midnight Hunters mode, which allows eliminated players to return to the battlefield as Vampires. BGMI 4.6 Update details. Krafton India says the BGMI 4.6 Update carries several new gameplay modes, collaborations, and India-focused experiences. Midnight Hunters is a new supernatural theme mode available on Erangel from September 16 to November 16. As part of the mode, Rozhok, Mylta, Quarry, and Gatka become Vampire Takeover points, while Stalber and Sosnovka Military Base are transformed into the Nightkeeper's Hunter Guild, which is an indoor combat arena with hidden challenges. Midnight Hunters also introduces Guild Missions that give squads special objectives and higher rewards. Through the new Bloodline Awakening feature, eliminated players can return to the match as Vampires, with up to 20 Vampires active at a time. BGMI is also bringing back Ocean Odyssey, one of its earlier themed experiences that has remained popular with the game's community. The underwater-themed experience will return to Erangel on September 30. It features locations and gameplay elements including the Ocean Palace, Trident and Kraken, along with underwater exploration. A notable India-specific addition is Kiaraa. Krafton says it is an original in-game character IP created by its in-house art team. The character has been created entirely in India and is designed exclusively for Indian players. Kiaraa comes with her own origin story, location, and collection, with availability beginning October 8. The Kiaraa Nakshatra Collection, meanwhile, includes the Divine Peacock Glider, Divine Radiance SCAR-L, Divine Chariot Buggy, Arrow Rain Emote and Divine Edge Machete. Players will also be able to take part in Kiaraa Arena challenges, visit the Kiaraa Exchange Center, and collect daily login rewards. Apart from this, the 4.6 update expands BGMI's collaboration lineup. The One Punch Man collaboration begins on September 21 through a Spin and Mini Royale Pass. Players will be able to obtain One Punch Man character skins along with themed sets and Lucky Spin content. The Lincoln Motor Cruize collaboration, meanwhile, starts on September 16 and runs until November 9. It introduces two Lincoln vehicles to BGMI, the Lincoln Model L and Lincoln Navigator Black Label, with multiple colour variants. The B.DUCK collaboration adds a separate gameplay experience in which players can transform into B.DUCK and compete in turn-based collision battles across floating platforms. Other changes include the expansion of the custom creative mode World of Wonder (WOW). There are 17 new collectible Brainrot characters in the Steal Brainrot mode, inspired by Halloween, Mexico's Day of the Dead, ghosts, werewolves, and the Headless Horseman. On the other hand, a new Ghost Ship Event Mode allows players to fly onto a Ghost Ship containing a Halloween Shop and Ghost Cannonballs that can mutate and evolve Brainrot characters. Krafton has described the 4.6 season as one of BGMI's broadest updates, with content rolling out progressively over the coming weeks. Get your daily dose of tech news, reviews, and insights, in under 80 characters on Gadgets 360 Turbo. Connect with fellow tech lovers on our Forum. Follow us on X, Facebook, WhatsApp, Threads and Google News for instant updates. Catch all the action on our YouTube channel. Shaurya Tomer is a Sub Editor at Gadgets 360 with 2 years of experience across a diverse spectrum of topics. With a particular focus on smartphones, gadgets and the ever-evolving landscape of artificial intelligence... more"

Ocean Odyssey resurfaces as BGMI brings back fan-favourite theme. The Kraken is stirring again. Krafton India is bringing back Ocean Odyssey, the underwater theme mode that sent BGMI players beneath Erangel's surface, as part of the game's latest update. Ocean Odyssey will return to Battlegrounds Mobile India (BGMI) on 30 September, two weeks after the 4.6 update goes live, and will remain available on Erangel until 16 November. The comeback follows repeated requests from the BGMI community, with Krafton India reviving an experience players have continued to remember since its original run. It follows the return of other fan-requested experiences, including Erangel: Ancient Secrets. Ocean Odyssey takes players beneath Erangel to the Ocean Palace, a submerged ancient kingdom protected by a Sea Suppressor barrier. The barrier creates an underwater air pocket, allowing players to explore the palace, until it breaks and the area floods, turning exploration into an escape act. At the heart of the palace lies the Trident, a legendary weapon capable of creating water sprouts that can send opponents flying across the battlefield. Guarding it is the Kraken, while the treasure-filled Forsaken Ruins offer another hunting ground for loot. For newer players, the return offers a first dive into the Ocean Palace. Veterans, meanwhile, get another chance to revisit one of BGMI's more ambitious twists on the traditional land-based battle royale. Ocean Odyssey will be available on Erangel from 30 September to 16 November as part of the BGMI 4.6 update. Krafton India will share trailers and further details on its official YouTube and Instagram channels ahead of launch.