- Apex Legends Mobile might face some hurdles with its release in India.
- The mobile version of the popular EA Battle Royale is reportedly being developed by the Chinese conglomerate, Tencent.
- Considering the Indian Government's stance against apps developed in China, we may not see the game make an appearance on Indian app stores.
Apex Legends Mobile will be developed by Tencent with EA’s Respawn in a supervisory role, according to sources speaking to IGN India. This information comes to light just a week after Electronic Arts revealed in an earnings call that the game will have a soft launch in Q3 2021. Apex Legends Mobile will be a fully-featured FPS Battle Royale, playable on both iOS and Android, just like other popular mobile games like PUBG Mobile and Free Fire. Although it has not been confirmed, Apex Legends Mobile will likely be free-to-play relying on micro-transactions to generate revenue, just like the PC version of the game.
Tencent's Involvement May Cause Hurdles for Apex Legends Mobile in India
Because Apex Legends Mobile will be developed by Tencent Games, the game could potentially not release in India due to the Indian government’s stance against Chinese apps. If this is indeed the case, it will be a huge blow to eager fans hoping for the EA title to replace the void left by PUBG Mobile’s ban.
In September 2020, the Indian government banned 118 Chinese apps, including PUBG Mobile and Arena of Valor, citing that they were prejudicial to India's sovereignty and integrity. The circular announcing the ban contained allegations of the game “stealing and surreptitiously transmitting users’ data in an unauthorized manner to servers which have locations outside India.”
However, Indian fans eager to play Apex Legends Mobile might still have some hope. Call of Duty: Mobile, which was developed by TiMi Studios (a subsidiary of Tencent Games) and Activision, remains unbanned and accessible for Indian players through the App Store and the Play Store. Given that EA has a local presence in Hyderabad, India, depending on the extent of Tencent's involvement beyond developing the game it's possible that Apex Legends Mobile might release in India.
Apex Legends Mobile Minimum Requirements for Android and iOS
It looks like you will need quite a high-end phone to run Apex Legends Mobile smoothly. IGN India reports that the game will at least require an iPhone 8 and above for iOS or a Snapdragon 625 or above for Android to play Apex Legends Mobile.
For Android
- Processor: Snapdragon 625 or above.
For iOS
- Processor: A11 Bionic and above
- iPhone 8, 10.5 iPad Pro, or newer devices.
Apex Legends Mobile Release Date: When Can I Play It?
A soft launch was expected by the end of 2020. However, this plan was pushed to 2021, with the soft launch happening in the next three or four months. This means that an Alpha or Beta version of Apex Legends Mobile could be available to players in either May or June 2021.
Apex Legends Mobile will be officially released before March 2022.
Apart from Apex Legends Mobile, EA will also be releasing six new soccer games for mobile over the next two years.
