Publishers would often set the release of popular games on dates where there is no conflict with other game releases so as to maximize profit. First-person shooter game (FPS) "LawBreakers," unfortunately, got released almost the same time as the peak of battle royale title "PUBG."
If anyone were to ask gamers which they would buy during then, a majority would undoubtedly buy "PUBG" rather than "LawBreakers." While this does not seem to be an entirely new phenomenon in game sales, "LawBreakers" publisher, Nexon, explicitly stated that it was "PUBG's" rise that contributed to their sales flop.
"Our results in North America in the third quarter were below our outlook, mainly due to the sales from 'LawBreakers' being below our expectations," said Nexon in an earnings report, as per PCGames.
He continued, "We had very high expectations for its launch; however, the timing of its launch turned out to be unfortunate, specifically the blockbuster PC online game 'PlayerUnknown's Battlegrounds' came out right about the same time, making the market environment very tough for first-person shooters in general and for 'Lawbreakers.'"
Fans of shooter games may as well argue that both "LawBreakers" and "PUBG" are not exactly in the same subgenre of shooter games. While they are both in first-person, the game modes are entirely different. Nonetheless, one cannot deny how big of a player base "PUBG" has attracted and maintained throughout its early access status last year.
As for "LawBreakers" player base, Steam suggests that is still quite small. This is despite developer Boss Key putting in major efforts to boost the player count, as per GameSpot. With not much new additions the game, this will not seem to change in the near future.
"LawBreakers" was released on August 8, 2017 for the PlayStation 4 (PS4) and PC. It may not be likely for Boss Key to release the game on either the Xbox One or Nintendo Switch.
