New Delhi: The deaths of three teenage sisters in Ghaziabad, Uttar Pradesh, have triggered a familiar panic in India: are online games and foreign digital cultures pushing children towards self-harm? As investigators probe the circumstances surrounding the alleged suicide, attention has turned to a Korean task-based online game the girls were reportedly obsessed with, reviving debates over gaming addiction, online safety, and the responsibility of platforms, parents, and regulators.
Preliminary investigation suggests that the minors aged 12, 14 and 16 were playing a game for the last three years, which involved a series of 50 tasks, the last being dying by suicide.
Members of the esports and online gaming community have strongly denied any direct link between gaming culture and suicide or inflicting self-harm. They argue that the games being discussed are fundamentally different in nature.
“The AI task-based or chat game is completely different from the gaming industry, where skill-based games are played,” said Biren Sharma, gaming content creator and commentator.
The ‘Korean Love game’
A search on the Google Play Store reveals several games with similar titles when looking for Korean love or romance games. Many of these games have millions of downloads, including Fantasia: Character AI Chat, K-pop Dating Game, BLACKPINK The Game, as well as applications designed to help users learn Korean easily and engagingly.
Some Korean “romance” games use online chat systems that allow users to create and role-play as Korean male or female characters while interacting with virtual partners. These games often centre on themes of love and friendship, and may also incorporate Korean language learning or romantic-style conversations.
In Fantasia: Character AI Chat, for instance, users are asked to provide basic information during the login process, such as age and gender. Players can then choose from a range of male and female AI characters and engage in conversations with them.
However, members of the gaming industry have flagged parental monitoring as the main concern.
“The issue is more about how parents monitor their children rather than Korean influence or the gaming industry itself,” said Sharma, adding that while stronger verification systems—layered login processes and ID-based authentication—are important, parental involvement in monitoring what children access online is equally necessary.
This is not the first time a game has been linked to suicides among children in India. In 2018, the country banned the Blue Whale internet challenge game after it was associated with multiple deaths in several countries.
But that has not deterred the burgeoning gaming ecosystem in India.
Over the past eight years, the Indian gaming ecosystem has grown rapidly, driven by cheap and easy internet access—evolving from niche online play to massive mobile gaming communities, esports leagues, and professional competitive scenes. South Korean developers have increasingly invested in India, responding to its expanding gaming population and mobile-first market.
“Korean games have helped develop Indian gaming culture, and games like PUBG and BGMI (Battlegrounds Mobile India) introduced accessible mobile gaming at a scale that was never available in India before,” said Dr Rushindra Sinha, founder and CEO of Global Esports.
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Accessibility and need
Korean gaming culture evolved gradually alongside the growth of the global internet and expanding mobile connectivity in the country. South Korean studios such as Krafton gained global recognition in the mid-2010s with titles like PUBG, with India emerging as one of its largest markets by 2018–2019.
After the government banned PUBG Mobile in 2020, South Korean developer Krafton launched BGMI, an India-specific version, in 2021.
“Korean developers gave Indian audiences what they wanted and needed. Unlike many Western PC or console titles, Korean games focus heavily on mobile gameplay—a major advantage in India, where the majority of gamers play on smartphones,” said Sharma.
Many of the core themes of these map-based games revolve around survival, competition, teamwork, tactical decision-making, and virtual action.
“Korean gaming culture has not only produced mobile games and generated revenue, but it has also created opportunities by professionalising gaming—through tournaments, events, and structured esports ecosystems, which have further increased its popularity,” said Sinha.
Other popular games include Call of Duty: Mobile, Free Fire, a battle royale title with more than 500 million downloads on the Play Store, and Cookie Run: Kingdom, developed by Devsisters, which has over 10 million downloads and more than one million reviews.
With the growing audience and enthusiasm for Korean games and esports in India, the South Korean gaming industry has continued to increase its investments in the country. In 2025, Krafton announced plans to invest $200 million in India.
According to a report, out of approximately 450 million Indian gamers, more than 200 million play BGMI. The company is also planning to launch three to five new titles in 2026.
(Edited by Saptak Datta)