PUBG Mobile's India odyssey isn't over yet

It's been a rough couple of months for PUBG Mobile. Back in September, the government of India announced that it was banning a grand total of 118 apps – PUBG Mobile among them – because of their ties to China. PUBG Mobile, as many people are aware, was published by Chinese company Tencent in India, putting it square in the government's crosshairs. While PUBG Corp said that it would look for a new way to offer PUBG Mobile in India following this announcement, the ban went into effect on October 30th, wiping out a huge market for the game in one fell swoop.

So, for a couple of weeks now, India has been without PUBG Mobile and PUBG Mobile hasn't had access to one of its most successful regions. That might be changing soon, though. After promising as much when this ban was first announced, it looks like PUBG Corp may soon be ready to make good on it and launch a new version of PUBG Mobile made specifically for India.

According to TechCrunch, this new version of the game will simply be called PUBG Mobile India. PUBG Corp is attempting to bring the game in line with Indian rules and regulations, telling TechCrunch in a statement that "privacy and security of Indian player data" are a "top priority" for the company. It'll "conduct regular audits and verifications on the storage systems holding Indian users' personally identifiable information to reinforce security and ensure that their data is safely managed."

In addition to launching a version of PUBG Mobile exclusive to India, PUBG Corp also says that it will invest $100 million in India to support the game and cultivate an esports scene around it. That investment will translate to hiring 100 employees in the country as well, so that should show you how serious PUBG Corp is about getting PUBG Mobile back on phones in India.

The big question now is whether or not the Indian government will let PUBG Mobile back in. It seems that PUBG Corp is making all the right moves to bring it back in line with India's rules and regulations, but that doesn't mean a whole lot if the government doesn't allow this relaunch. We'll see what happens from here, so stay tuned.