KRAFTON India has introduced a new in-game feature in Battlegrounds Mobile India (BGMI), adding a stepwell-inspired location to the virtual map. The update incorporates interactive elements such as a dive point and a photo point, and brings attention to a lesser-known aspect of India’s architectural history.
Rather than promoting the new location with a standard advertisement, KRAFTON India, in collaboration with creative agency tgthr., has launched a tourism-themed campaign titled Destination BGMI Stepwell. The campaign positions the digital stepwell as "India’s hottest tourist destination, not on any map", drawing inspiration from the real-world status of stepwells as heritage tourism sites.
India is home to over 3,000 historical stepwells, and the addition in BGMI is being presented as the country’s first digital stepwell. The campaign has been created under tgthr.'s content vertical, tgthr. Originals.
The campaign includes a series of vlog-style video episodes, featuring both gamers and influencers. The content mixes in-game exploration with references to the cultural background of stepwells, using informal commentary and player interactions.
Featured participants include gamers such as Scout, Dynamo, Punkk, Admino, LoLzZz and Zgod, alongside influencers like Naman Arora, Abhishek Jain, Shiv Thakare, Arun Mashettey, Adarsh UC and Arohi Khurana.
Srinjoy Das, Associate Director of Marketing, KRAFTON India, said, “Introducing the stepwell in BGMI is our way of blending gaming with India’s cultural heritage. BGMI has always been about discovery, and this update adds a new layer of meaning for our players. With the campaign, we are excited to see this landmark not just played but celebrated like a true cultural hotspot inside the game.”
Pragati Rana, Head of Originals, Regional Creative Officer - West and Founding Partner at tgthr., said, “Content isn’t just storytelling anymore, it’s story-living. The story really lives when it’s as authentic as possible. Content today doesn't have time for polish. It's raw. It's got dirt under its fingernails. It's real people saying real things. Unfiltered and unapologetic, not some sanitised brand-speak. Destination BGMI Stepwell is about history but it’s not a history lesson. Instead, it’s about the kind of chatter gamers actually care about; banter between friends, side-eye from frenemies, and digs between players. The beauty is packaging the message in the mess. And not making the message a mess.”
Through Destination BGMI Stepwell, KRAFTON India aims to merge cultural storytelling with gaming, drawing attention to Indian heritage in a digital format.
