Brendan "PlayerUnknown" Greene is now an unhappy gamer in the battle royale game mode niche, as "PlayerUnknown's Battlegrounds'" (PUBG) popularity is being threatened by "Fornite's" new Battle Royale game mode.
"Fortnite," developed by People Can Fly and Epic Games, has now passed its 7-million-player mark, thanks in part to its Battle Royale mode, a free standalone early access mode introduced to the game following the surge in popularity of "PUBG," which popularize the game mode. To make matters worse for "PUBG," "Fortnite: Battle Royale" is also a free standalone game mode, compared to the former's paid early access structure that netted it 1.7 million concurrent players with 13 million copies sold at the time of writing.
Bluehole, Inc., the development company of "PUBG," was displeased by "Fortnite's" battle royale attempts and mentioned that they were considering "further actions" against Epic Games, even though the latter holds the license for "PUBG's" game engine.
Bluehole Vice President Chang Han Kim said in a statement regarding the matter, "We've had an ongoing relationship with Epic Games throughout PUBG's development as they are the creators of UE4, the engine we licensed for the game. After listening to the growing feedback from our community and reviewing the gameplay for ourselves, we are concerned that 'Fortnite' may be replicating the experience for which 'PUBG' is known."
It is worth noting that "Fortnite: Battle Royale" has a wider market, as it was launched for Xbox One, PlayStation 4 (PS4), and PC for free. "PUBG" is only available for PC, with an expected expansion into Xbox One and eventually PS4. Still, Game Spot's interview with video game attorney Ryan Morrison revealed that the situation will likely not need court action, though Bluehole can still plausibly build a case against Epic Games.
Polygon suggested that while "PUBG" garnered bigger profit for Bluehole than "Fornite: Battle Royale" did for Epic Games, the existence of the latter on the consoles could endanger the popularity and sales of "PUBG's" upcoming Xbox One release, as well as its ratings on PC.
"PUBG" for Xbox One has no exact release date yet but is set to arrive before 2017 ends, along with the release of the full version on the PC. "Fortnite: Battle Royale" is also available for free on Xbox One, PS4, and PC. Both are still early access titles.
