Garena has taken big strides in expanding the universe of the smash mobile game Free Fire. Starting with the release of How to Start a Fire, a movie following the character of Hayato Yagami, Garena has announced a commitment to building Free Fire’s lore.

Garena has been involved in a few hits on the mobile, including Arena of Valor, Call of Duty: Mobile and League of Legends, however, it is arguably Free Fire that is the biggest hitter. According to data.ai, previously App Annie, Free Fire was the most downloaded mobile game worldwide in 2019, 2020 and 2021, which is impressive considering the game released in mid-2017. Even more impressive is they achieved this with an absence of any deep lore, an omission Garena is now keen to correct.

On April 23rd, the first Animated Short in the Free Fire universe, How to Start a Fire, was released. The story follows Hayato Yahami as he navigates through life in the Free Fire universe, searching for a way to resolve his internal struggles. He does this whilst dealing with a terrible family tragedy he seeks the truth behind. Hayato must also fight against rival factions of the Horizon council to maintain his position and ensure the survival of his family’s corporation. How to Start a Fire can be viewed on the official website.

Since Free Fire launched, there has been an abundance of characters and maps added to the game, and now players can look forward to future injections of lore as Garena looks to add story to the Battle Royale. That being said, it is still a video game, so there have also been some new modes and in-game events announced to make the wait more bearable.

On April 29th, a Zombie Invasion breaks out in Bermuda with a total of five variations of zombies awaiting players, hounding everyone until there is only one left standing. Hot on the heels of this mode is the proclaimed monopoly-like web event Shootersville. There will be daily tasks to complete that reward tokens to build up the village, with upgrades generating tokens redeemable for exclusive rewards and collectables.

Fire Fire can be downloaded for free on the App Store and Google Play. For those who want an enhanced, high-def experience, Free Fire MAX is also available on the App Store and Google Play.