Pixel P&L: Krafton Doubles Down on Indian Esports with Major Tournament Expansion

Welcome to another Pixel P&L edition. This issue takes 4 minutes to read. If you only have one, here are the 5 most important things:

• Krafton India unveils ₹2 crore in prize money across major BGMI tournaments, with Global Championship slots up for grabs.

• Zupee pivots from banned real-money gaming to entertainment content with Zupee Studio.

• Red Bull partners with Street Fighter 6 for a breakdancing competition crossover event.

• NIP Group completes Bitcoin mining acquisition worth $6.73 million monthly.

• World of Tanks drops its biggest update in 15 years. 

Let's get into it.

Krafton India Unveils Major BGMI Esports Tournaments

Krafton India detailed its ambitious esports roadmap for the second half of 2025, headlined by two major Battlegrounds Mobile India (BGMI) tournaments, each carrying a ₹1 crore prize pool.

The BGMI Showdown (BMSD), launching September 18 in Hyderabad, will feature 48 top squads competing through October 12. Winners secure a direct invite to PUBG Mobile Global Championship 2025 (PMGC 2025), while the top eight teams advance to the BGMI International Cup.

The international competition, scheduled October 31-November 2, pits India's eight BMSD qualifiers against teams from Korea and Japan. The top two teams will also qualify for the PMGC 2025. With both tournaments offering direct slots to the Global Championship, Indian teams now have a well established route into international competition.

Krafton is also simultaneously launching the Campus Tour 2025-2026, targeting Tier-2 cities and colleges starting October.

Zupee Pivots to Entertainment After Online Money Gaming Ban

Online Money Gaming platform Zupee is diversifying into entertainment content following India's blanket ban on real-money games, launching Zupee Studio to offer bite-sized drama shows to its 150 million users.

The startup's new feature provides titles across drama, romance, fantasy, thriller and crime genres, with foreign-language shows dubbed for Indian audiences. While initial episodes are free, subsequent content requires a subscription, part of Zupee's strategic pivot from its traditional online money gaming model.

Zupee is simultaneously rolling out Zupee Plus, a ₹499 quarterly subscription offering ad-free games and unlimited show access. The move mirrors rival WinZO, which introduced micro dramas in August through WinZO TV.

Founder Dilsher Singh Malhi said the launch reflects the company's long-term vision of shaping India's entertainment future. The pivot comes as micro dramas gain traction across platforms including Kuku FM, Pocket FM and ShareChat.

⚡️Quick Bytes

Red Bull Partners with Street Fighter 6

Red Bull has partnered with Street Fighter 6 to feature gaming stations during its annual Red Bull BC One breakdancing competition in London's Shoreditch district. The event will showcase the fighting game as B-Boys and B-Girls compete for UK representation at the World Final in Japan this November. Grime artist D Double E will perform his song "Street Fighter" during halftime.

NIP Group Completes Bitcoin Mining Acquisition

Esports holding company NIP Group completed its acquisition of cryptocurrency mining machines from Apex Cyber Capital and Prosperity Oak Holdings, first announced in July. The machines process 3.11 exahashes per second, producing approximately 60 Bitcoins monthly, worth $6.73 million at current prices. NIP issued over 119.5 million shares and appointed two new directors to oversee operations.

Glitched Festival Returns to Sweden in 2026

Gaming festival Glitched announced its return to Jönköping, Sweden, from June 12-15, 2026, following a successful debut that attracted over 15,000 attendees. Founded by former DreamHack executives including Martin Öjes, the four-day event will expand its festival area at Elmia.

World of Tanks Launches Biggest Update in 15-Year History

Wargaming released World of Tanks 2.0, the largest update since the game's 2010 launch, featuring modernized gameplay systems, sixteen new Tier XI vehicles, and a redesigned garage interface. The free-to-play title boasts over 800 tanks from 11 nations. The anniversary update includes the game's largest-ever community rewards package to celebrate its 15th year.

⚔️Side Quest

📺 Watch: I watched this fascinating deep dive into NES emulator accuracy and I had to share it with you! YouTuber 100th Coin’s AccuracyCoin test ROM revealed so many surprising differences in Nintendo's own emulators. As someone who loves retro gaming, seeing how these inaccuracies affect speedrunning was eye-opening. 

🎮 Play: SHUTEN ORDER delivers Kodaka's signature storytelling brilliance with stunning visuals and an exceptional soundtrack. This stylish adventure VN offers unique multi-path gameplay following an explosive prologue. While the translation stumbles and pacing drags toward the finale, the crazy plot twists and phenomenal art direction make this a must-play for visual novel fans seeking something genuinely distinctive.

📚 Read: GI.biz’s feature reveals why most UGC-driven games fail: you need a hit game first, then add creation tools, not the other way around. Essential reading for developers tempted by the Minecraft/Fortnite model, with practical lessons from PUBG, Core, and others on navigating the UGC landscape.

💡Did You Know

Over 50% of games industry layoffs have occurred in California, with North America accounting for 70-75% of all cuts according to Tencent's Amir Satvat. Despite overall industry employment growth since the pandemic, AAA studios face particularly severe workforce reductions, forcing 85% of displaced game workers to seek non-gaming roles.

📜 Quote of the Day

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