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Home Gaming News A Glamorous Launch for a Banned Game? S8UL x MOBA Legends 5v5
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A Glamorous Launch for a Banned Game? S8UL x MOBA Legends 5v5

  • Musab Zaman
  • July 07, 2025 (UPDATED: July 07, 2025 10:30 IST)

Mobile Legends sparks controversy in India with a bold S8UL partnership, raising legal questions about its ban status, influencer accountability, and government oversight.

It seems Mobile Legends: Bang Bang, a game that was officially banned in India in June 2020, has re-entered a high-voltage publicity phase and this is not subtle at all. The brand partnered with India's largest gaming collective, S8UL, with faces like Mortal, Thug, Sid, Mercy, Kaashvi, Kaztro, and Ankkita C in a huge blitz where the tagline is "S8UL x MOBA55: New Start, All-Star Now!" 

The verified post on the handle @mobalegends55official is very boldly calling it a new era. But here's the issue that no one is saying: Is it actually legal?

Rewind: Why Was MLBB Banned in the First Place?

In 2020, the Indian government banned Mobile Legends under Section 69A of the Information Technology Act due to national security reasons given its affiliations to a Chinese developer (Moonton Games was acquired by ByteDance). The game disappeared from India’s app stores overnight, and has had no visible presence in either esports or casual gaming in the country, at least publicly, since then.

In contrast to Krafton’s BGMI or Garena’s Free Fire, which have gone through several rounds of compliance and negotiations to re-enter the market, MLBB has not obtained formal re-entry through an official government clearance or public localization.

So how is a full-scale campaign now launching with India’s biggest creators?

Dodging the Ban or Bending the Rules?

Sources in the esports industry communicate to us that this campaign is likely aimed at global audiences by utilising social platforms and VPN-driven traffic, which is a legal grey area. But that still doesn't explain the promotional push using Indian influencers or the lack of regulatory clarity.

There are questions that arise from S8UL being involved as well. S8UL is the most powerful brand in Indian esports and I think it has a responsibility to understand and respect the legal status of any game they endorse.

Are creators willing to risk legality for big-dollar campaigns? And more importantly, is this a soft test for reentry without regulations?
What Is the Government Doing About It?

As of this moment, we have not seen an official note from MeitY or another government organization regarding Mobile Legends coming back into the Indian market. It is unclear if the developers attempted to ask for clearance or if this campaign was in fact live without India authorities being notified. 

If the game is still banned, we could see this entire activation as a potential breach of policy and digital sovereignty.

The Real Issue: Accountability in the Creator Economy

At a time when the Indian gaming ecosystem is struggling for legitimacy, regulation, and investment, campaigns like this don't help. They send the wrong message that law is loose if your brand is big enough. 

Creators cannot plead ignorance. Neither can global publishers completely bypass due process just because the Indian market is too attractive to pass up on.

The S8UL x MOBA Legends partnership is promoted as a "new season." But action your festivities, we need answers first: Is Mobile Legends no longer classified as banned? Is Moonton or ByteDance cleared with respect to government sanction? Why are top Indian creators endorsing a game that is technically illegal to operate in the country?

Until that day, this is not a comeback story; this is law defiance in plain sight.

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