An Inside Look at Velocity Gaming's Entry Into BGMI

Indian esports organization Velocity Gaming (VLT) was already established as one of India’s premier esports organizations thanks to its success in Valorant with multiple LAN victories against its name. However, the organization did not initially make its way into India’s lucrative mobile esports market despite being interested in it for quite some time. Krafton’s launch of Battlegrounds Mobile India (BGMI) and the introduction of the Battlegrounds Mobile India Series (BGIS) have seemingly instigated the organization's interests once again. It finally entered mobile esports by picking up the former Team IND BGMI roster in November 2021.

In an interview with AFK Gaming, Velocity Gaming owner Manoj “Sentinel” Kashyap revealed the work that goes behind signing and enabling a BGMI roster in India. He explained Velocity Gaming’s esports-first mantra and why they signed a BGMI lineup. He also opened up about the financial aspects of operating an Indian esports team and the challenges that a Tier 1 organization faces.

Building a BGMI Roster in India

Velocity Gaming planned to dive into mobile esports a year ago, with the organization keen on acquiring a PUBG Mobile roster. However, the game’s ban in India and consequent suspension of its esports scene in 2020 halted its plans.

VLT bided its time choosing to not invest in other popular titles like Free Fire in the meanwhile. Its gamble paid off when Krafton showed its commitment towards India to create a brand new game for the region (BGMI) and made serious investments in Indian esports including a $21.8M investment in NODWIN Gaming earlier this year. The organization believed that this was a sign indicating that the publisher treats the country as one of its primary markets and hence was worth investing in.

Once the organization decided to enter the scene, the organization already had its eyes on a potential roster. Kashyap turned towards the Team IND lineup featuring Raj “Snax” Varma, Randeep “Attanki” Singh Bhullar, Daljit “Daljitsk” Singh, and Samir “Kratos” Choubey.

“I’ve known Snax for a while, and considering how consistent Team IND has been, it was an easy choice. Positioning and getting frags is important and our players are capable of that,” he said.

After they signed the roster VLT immediately started setting up a new boot camp in Hyderabad for the new roster in preparation for Battlegrounds Mobile India Series (BGIS). The players had not played together in a LAN environment in quite a while and the bootcamp is aimed to help the players get back to competing at the optimum levels. According to the org, the players will be provided the optimal devices with VLT is also actively looking for professionals who can help coach and strengthen the roster.

VLT is definitely going all out with their large investment which seems to be absolutely necessary to thrive in India’s increasingly competitive BGMI esports market.

The Indian Esports Business is Challenging

In Indian esports, no matter how big PC titles like Valorant get, mobile esports continues to be a step ahead. The sheer accessibility and popularity of mobile gaming in a developing economy like India unsurprisingly leads to a much larger audience compared to viewers who consume PC esports content. And this larger audience means that on average, a popular mobile esports streamer or pro player usually has a bigger fan following and influence. This has led to skyrocketing brand values which has in turn led to increasing costs of operating a Tier 1 team.

Tier 1 players command a large compensation thanks to their brand value and social media influence. Kashyap said, “It is definitely unsustainable for a lot of teams to invest in a new roster as social media following plays a big role in driving up the value. These days, salaries for a tier-one team would set you back by around INR 10,00,000 ($13.33K) per month.”

And that does not include the operational costs of running a bootcamp, salaries of the support staff, and more. For VLT, there was no buyout figure for the players it acquired for the BGMI roster. All four players were free agents at the time of signing.

Velocity Gaming has a very small group of individuals who form its core operational team. Kashyap revealed that aside from the players, there were just seven or eight people who looked after everything from social media to player management. The lean team behind the scenes likely helps the organization minimize its monthly operating costs.

Velocity Gaming is an "esports-first" organization

Despite content creation being one of the more lucrative sources of revenue in India, the organization wants to primarily focus on esports. Kashyap considers VLT an “esports-first” organization where players are expected to meet certain benchmarks and work towards common goals. In comparison, an organization like S8UL Esports focuses heavily on content creation and has some of the biggest names in the Indian gaming and esports scene under its banner.

“We want to deliver results and focus on winning more than content creation. We have benchmarks in place to measure our players’ performance and hold ourselves accountable for reaching our goals. I may be wrong and it may hurt me down the line but it’s something I believe in and so do my players,” explained Kashyap.

If content creation is not high on VLT’s priority list, how does the team generate its revenue?

Prize pools barely make up for any of the team’s revenue. Kashyap stated that players get the majority of the prize pool and he wants to keep it that way. According to him, it keeps the players motivated and he does not see the model changing in the future. Most of the revenue for Velocity Gaming and other esports organizations comes from sponsorships and streaming deals.

Kashyap said, “a sponsorship is the most consistent revenue source but streaming deals can be quite lucrative too. Streaming platforms often set up deals with players and it leads to both the players and their organizations earning revenue from the platforms.”

Merchandising is also something the organization is exploring. Currently, it sells t-shirts and jerseys to its fans for additional revenue. The financial model is relatively the same for other Indian esports organizations too with the only difference here being Velocity’s focus on esports over content creation.

Learning Experiences and Plans for 2022

Looking back at 2021, Velocity Gaming had its ups and downs. While the Valorant roster performed really well at local events, it fell short against Global Esports at the Valorant Conqueror’s Championship and lost its chance at making it to the APAC Last Chance Qualifier.

From a non-competitive standpoint, Velocity Gaming had also found itself in hot water after Kashyap himself had made some unsavory remarks with references to an infamous rape victim during a livestream. It led to severe backlash on social media. “It caused irreparable damage to me at a personal level and to my players and their families. The incident caught the attention of tournament organizers and Riot Games and it led to some pushback for six or seven months,” said Kashyap.

Following this, Kashyap apologized through a YouTube video but took it down eventually which raised some eyebrows. He responded by stating, “I removed the apology video because I do not want to be reminded of it. It was a tough time for me and the organization. My players were supportive during the situation and helped me through it.”

Heading into 2022, VLT is looking to expand its professional staff and is scouting for a Valorant coach experienced in working with tier one teams. With the esports scenes of both Valorant and BGMI being in their early stages of development, there are no long-term goals in place just yet. However, the team is actively working behind the scene to ensure a successful journey ahead.

The BGMI roster’s bootcamp is being set up in Hyderabad while an international bootcamp for VLT Asteria is also being brainstormed. Since the all-female Valorant roster features players from different countries, establishing an international bootcamp in Southeast Asia may be in the pipeline for Velocity Gaming.

The male Valorant roster may also go abroad to an international bootcamp to expand their repertoire to prepare for Valorant Conqueror’s Championship and other upcoming tournaments in the new season.

Velocity Gaming was created as a passion project and Kashyap feels that even if he earns just a rupee from the organization, he wants to give it back to the players. The organization has already established itself as one of the best in Valorant and it will be looking to conquer the BGMI esports scene in the region as well.

Note: An earlier version of the article incorrectly stated that the BGMI bootcamp is being set up in Mumbai. It is being set up in Hyderabad and the article has been updated to reflect the same.