Localization Leader in Indonesia: Meet PUBG Mobile
Are you curious why PUBG Mobile Indonesia has so many enthusiasts? According to a 2019 report by Kompas.id, Indonesia has the second-highest number of PUBG Mobile players, with up to 100 million active players per month. Given this phenomenon, it is not surprising that PUBG Mobile is considered the fastest-growing mobile game in Indonesia. This game is adapted from the PC version and has achieved similar success.
The popularity of PUBG PC, which was released in 2016, inspired the creation of the mobile version. A year later, PUBG PC gained even more popularity, breaking records on Steam and winning the Game of the Year award in 2017. This battle royale game is also known as the first in its genre. After receiving numerous awards, the developers started planning the release of the mobile version.
From PC to Mobile: PUBG's Rise to Popularity
PUBG Mobile's popularity has spread even further after its release. It is not surprising that fans of this mobile game are spread all over the world, including Indonesia. It can be said that the development of PUBG Mobile in Indonesia is also getting bigger, especially in terms of popularity.
Even though PUBG Mobile also has tough competition with other battle royale style games, in terms of Google Play Store ratings, PUBG Mobile is still superior. In fact, according to the Esports Charts report in 2023, PUBG Mobile is the most watched game with a total watch time of 135.01 million hours and the highest audience of 980 thousand viewers.
Thanks to its high popularity and large number of active players, the PUBG Mobile development company has achieved huge profits. Since its launch in 2018, Tencent Games has earned a total of USD 3 billion, or around 43 trillion rupiah. According to data from NDTV, in 2020 alone, various versions of PUBG Mobile generated profits of USD 1.3 billion, or around 18.8 trillion rupiah.
PUBG Mobile Boosts Indonesian Economy in E-Sports Industry
The positive economic impact is not only felt by game developers but also by esports athletes. One of the Indonesian PUBG Mobile athletes, Made Bagas Pramudita alias Zuxxy, can earn more than USD 83 thousand or around 1.2 billion rupiah. Apart from athletes, other professionals in the esports industry such as event organizers, content creators, shoutcasters, and others also feel the economic benefits of the existence of esports in Indonesia.
During the COVID-19 pandemic, many sporting events were canceled, but esports events can continue to take place online. For example, PUBG Mobile Indonesia National Championship (PINC) 2020 and PUBG Mobile Professional League Indonesia (PMPL ID) Season 2 were successfully held online. Currently, PMPL ID Season 3 is also taking place online. All of these events continue to run normally during the pandemic, and the enthusiasm of esports fans in Indonesia is actually increasing.
The high involvement of tournament organizers also encourages large participation. For example, PINC 2020 succeeded in attracting more than 51 thousand participants from all over Indonesia. Even though it was held online, this did not reduce the public's enthusiasm for participating in the tournament.
How Has PUBG Indonesia Succeeded in Localizing Its Game?
According to Oliver Ye (Director of PUBG Mobile Southeast Asia), Indonesia is a crucial market for them. Therefore, they strive to introduce various features and content to make their game localization easily accepted by local players, including:
1. Presenting a New Map with an Indonesian Theme Called "Nusa"
Available starting September 15, 2022, PUBG Mobile Indonesia officially launched a special map inspired by Indonesian nature, namely Nusa, in the version 2.2 update. Nusa is a new map measuring 1×1 km that is located in a tropical area and provides a fast battle tempo. With abundant supplies, players can immediately jump into battle as soon as they land and get Chicken Dinner easily! Nusa is a special map, a collaboration between Tencent and the Ministry of Tourism and Creative Economy of the Republic of Indonesia. The name of the new PUBG Mobile map comes from the word Nusantara.
This map, a collaboration with the Ministry of Tourism and Creative Economy, was inspired by the beauty of the island of Bali, which is one of the leading tourism destinations in Indonesia. This map is equipped with beautiful views and interesting gameplay to play. This island will soon become a favorite hotspot for players to show off to friends. Like Bali in the real world, this map is worth visiting and exploring!
2. Introducing Locally Tournament and Themed Game Content
To attract the interest of game players in Indonesia, which is a big market for PUBG Mobile, the party continues to hold regular tournaments for players, both amateur and professional.
Apart from that, PUBG Mobile also presents various game content (in-game content) with local nuances in order to bring the game closer to its players, especially in Indonesia. This program is dedicated to creating localization in the PUBG Mobile Indonesia game, one of which is introducing local Indonesian culture to the world.
Some of the local content in this game is displayed in a series of costume collections that players can use to fight in the game, such as batik shirts, red and white clothes, typical Betawi traditional clothes (Pangsi), to ondel-ondel masks.
3. Launching the Health Reminder Feature
In PUBG Mobile Indonesia, you can find a feature called "Health Reminder." The purpose of this feature is to ensure that players take a break from PUBG Mobile and go outside for a while. As the name suggests, this feature will remind users if they play the game for more than six hours in one day. If a player exceeds this time limit, they can only login again the next day.
Players can turn on this feature through the "Others" sub-menu in the game settings, or "Settings." Then, they can enable the "Health Reminder" feature by selecting "Yes" next to the "Age 18 or above" option.
With this feature, the developers hope to reduce game addiction cases and encourage players to take a break from the battle royale game and spend time with family and friends outside the gaming world.
4. Collaborating with the Indonesian Police
To celebrate Ramadan and the Eid holiday travel season, Tencent has also partnered with the Indonesian police to create game-themed pop-up booths, or mudik posts. These posts will be set up in various areas frequently traveled by holiday goers. At this mudik post, travelers can rest and enjoy the booth atmosphere, which is full of game elements in PUBG Mobile Indonesia. Also, they can play PUBG-themed mini-games.
5. Introducing ‘Skyhigh Spectacle’
Still in the Eid atmosphere, PUBG Mobile Indonesia also presents the version 3.10 update entitled 'Skyhigh Spectacle' in the game. This version introduces various Arabian Night-style features, such as Nimbus Island and Magic Carpet, so that the community can feel the atmosphere of Ramadan while playing PUBG Mobile. This version is available until May 12, 2024, so it can still be played for free, just by updating the PUBG Mobile application to the latest version via the App Store or Google Play Store.
Conclusion
In short, PUBG Mobile's success in localizing their games for the Indonesian market shows how important it is to adapt content to meet local preferences. Various efforts have been made, starting from presenting local content, such as ondel-ondel, traditional clothes, etc., creating special maps, to collaborating with local agencies and influencers. So, for game companies that want to target markets in countries with high populations like Indonesia, localizing their games is a very sensible step, considering that the game market in Indonesia is very high in Southeast Asia. However, the success of localization depends greatly on the professionalism of the translator.
Therefore, choosing the right game localization service is very important. Digital Trans-Asia is a wise choice to ensure your game content is translated well. Don't hesitate to contact Digital Trans-Asia for your game localization needs and to improve the gaming experience for players in Indonesia!