Indus, made-in-India PUBG alternative, now available to pre-register on Google Play: All details

Indus Battle Royale by Pune-based SuperGaming is now available to pre-register on Google Play. The made-in-India game has been in the works for quite some time, and it is designed to take on existing battle royale-style titles for smartphones, such as PUBG's India iteration BGMI (Battlegrounds Mobile India), Apex Legends, and Call of Duty. On the occasion of Republic Day on January 26, the makers also released its first gameplay on YouTube. Going by the first look, Indus' in-game landscape seems to be inspired by the Apex Legends environment with tall canyons and towering cliffs.

Indus Battle Royale's official Google Play page notes that players will be dropped onto the "mysterious island of Virlok on the fabled planet, Indus." Players' mission will mainly include surviving and finding the "coveted element Cosmium." Similar to other battle royale-style games, players will likely need to escape within a time frame, and they will find weapons, gear, and consumables to survive.

The video also introduces characters that players can take, but they have uncanny resemblances to characters in Apex Legends. The main character appears to be Adam, a player similar to Apex Legend's Newcastle in terms of appearance. Players can also pick Sir-Taj, who looks similar to Pathfinder in Apex. Users have the option of choosing other humanoid characters, such as Big-Gaj and Adya.

SuperGaming is yet to share the official launch details of the Indus Battle Royale. The app will be free-to-download, but users will get the option to purchase "random items" in-game.

As mentioned, the new title will hope to rival existing battle royale-style games in India. It may also have an advantage as games such as PUBG, Garena Free Fire, and BGMI remain banned in India. Users can download Call of Duty and Apex Legends, but both action titles are heavy and require a relatively powerful smartphone to run at the highest settings.

In an interview with Moneycontrol in December, the makers of Indus, SuperGaming, told the publication that their upcoming title is "heavily inspired by Indian culture and mythology." The Pune-based company has already created an action title called MaskGun and other casual games as well. Most of the games have favourable reviews. For instance, MaskGun has over 10 million (1 lakh) downloads on Google Play.

SuperGaming cofounder Roby John told the publication that "Indus is a highly technical project. I will say making a MaskGun or a Silly Royale has been the education that is needed to build an Indus."

Indus will reportedly be released for PCs and consoles later.