The graphics were described as having “a benefit for mid- and low-specification phones”, but a reviewer stated that “if games with good graphics are your thing then we don’t recommend that you play Free Fire Battlegrounds. But if you like battle royale games and want to have fun with your friends, you should definitely play.”
Tais Carvalho of TechTudo commented that Free Fire “prioritizes performance, making it a great choice for any type of device. The gameplay stands out and has enough content to entertain and offer rewarding combat.” Regarding the progression of characters and skills, she said it is “a flashy add-on.”
In the Google Play annual list of “Best Apps of the Year”, Free Fire won in the “Best Popular Vote Game” category of 2019, being the most publicly voted in Brazil and in Thailand.
Garena Free Fire is one of the most popular battle royale mobile games, behind PUBG Mobile, Fortnite Battle Royale and Call of Duty: Mobile. It is particularly popular in Latin America, India and Southeast Asia. Free Fire was the fourth most downloaded game on the Google Play Store in the fourth quarter of 2018 and was the fourth most downloaded game worldwide in 2018 on iOSand the Google Play Store together.The title earned approximately 182 million downloads in 2018, making it the second most downloaded battle royale mobile game (above Fortnite Battle Royale and behind only PUBG Mobile), and grossed approximately $19.3 million in monthly revenues through December 2018, becoming a significant financial success for Garena. As of August 2021, Garena Free Fire has more than one billion downloads on the Google Play Store.
At the end of Q1 2021, Free Fire surpassed PUBG Mobile in revenues in the United States, generating $100 million in turnover as compared to PUBG Mobile’s $68 million. Free Fire‘s revenues jumped by 4.5 times as compared to the same period for the previous year.
By November 2019, Free Fire had grossed over $1 billion worldwide. It went on to become the fourth highest-grossing video game of 2020 with $2.13 billion, and then the eighth highest-grossing mobile game of 2021 with $1.2 billion, for a total of at least $4.33 billion grossed as of 2021.