PMAS Proves That Indian Tournaments Need to be Managed Better

If it’s one thing we learnt from the recently concluded PMAS finals, it's the fact that Indian tournament organizers have a long way to go to be at par with the global ones. The long delays, restarts and technical difficulties made for a hellish experience, both for fans at the venue and those watching from home and are just not acceptable for a tournament of that stature. Day 1 was a disaster in many senses, with only 3 maps being played out of the scheduled 5 and almost 5-6 hours of delay. Day 2 was better, but there too were restarts and some delays. Overall, the format had to be reduced down from 10 games to 9 and maps like Miramar and Vikendi were simply unplayable and the tournament was played on Erangel and Sanhok only. 

Also read: New and Improved Fnatic win PMAS

Not the First Time

This isn’t the first time a LAN has had issues in India. The PMIT Group C finals ran into similar troubles as players threatened a walkout because of the issues. It took a great deal of effort from community members such as 8bit Thug to get the players back into the arena and get the tournament started. That tournament too was shortened and the format changed, much to the displeasure of the players. 

Also read: Players threaten to walkout at PMIT Group C Finals

Delays and changing format hurts the competitive integrity

One of the most important points about curtailing or changing the format at the last moment is the fact that it hurts competitive integrity. The two top teams were separated by 1 point going into the last match and one can only imagine how different the situation could have been if one more map had been played. With Vikendi and Miramar out of the playing field, it also affected the teams as some teams do tend to do better on those maps than the rest. It might not seem that way, but the results of the tournament could have been quite different if the actual intended format had been used. With such a huge sum of money on the line, all steps must be taken to ensure competitive integrity.

Delays too are more than just annoying as it takes a toll on the flow of the games. They also are quite detrimental to the talent and the players as fatigue begins to set in.  For viewers, countdown clocks which counted down to other countdown clocks became a frustrating experience, and it was visible that the talent and the players were also not pleased with the way things were turning out.  

Paints a bad picture of India’s Image as an Esport Nation

India is one of the biggest markets for PUBG Mobile and the rest of the world looks towards India for the booming PUBG Mobile scene. If these issues become consistent with Indian tournaments, it will definitely paint a negative image of the scene to those outside. In fact, international teams and players may even choose to boycott tournaments in India if they are unsure about events running properly. 

Image via @PUBG Mobile India

The PMAS streams have become some of the most disliked tournament streams on YouTube till date and the viewers were understandably frustrated. While the audience will forgive and forget the incident, it would have been nice to see some sort of apology or explanation coming from the official handles. People in India love the game and have given a whole lot to it and they deserve better. 2020 is going to be a big year for PUBG Mobile, and hopefully organizers have learnt their lesson and will be better prepared.