PUBG Corp.







Update, November 13: One of gaming's worst-kept secrets has finally been confirmed: PUBG is coming to PS4 consoles. Specifically, on December 7, for $29.99. As of press time, additional digital bundles can also be preordered for $50 and $70, and these include the game's variety of confusing microtransaction currencies.

With an admission that "this probably doesn't come as a surprise" (see original report below), PUBG Corp. made a Tuesday announcement that its one-versus-99 shooting sensation will include a few PlayStation-exclusive cosmetic bonuses for all PS4 preorders: a Nathan Drake (Uncharted) outfit and an Ellie (The Last of Us) backpack.

The game will ship with "PS4 Pro support," but exactly how the Pro version will differ from PUBG on standard systems hasn't yet been announced. (All versions on PS4 will support high dynamic range.) PUBG reps did not immediately respond to questions about cross-play support, which would allow PS4 and Xbox One players to face off against each other. And a brief 30-second trailer includes gameplay footage that looks familiar and troublesome, as none of it appears to lock to a fixed 60fps or 30fps refresh. We'll find out exactly how well the PS4 version fares when it launches next month.

Original story

Nearly a year after the popular PC shooting game PlayerUnknown's Battlegrounds (PUBG) launched on Xbox One, evidence has begun popping up to suggest that the game's launch on the PS4 could be imminent.

For over two weeks, promotional PUBG images have sat unnoticed on Sony's public-facing PlayStation servers, according to a user at the Sony fan site PSNProfiles.com. (Hat tip to ResetERA forum member Taker34 for discovering the posts on Monday.) The images in question are linked to an apparent digital game ID code, and they reflect two types of logos found in the PS4's interface: the icon that appears in a user's library, and the splash screen that appears while the game is loading.

Searches for the game's unique PS4 ID code do not bring up any other information at official PlayStation sites, particularly about release dates or prices. The only other evidence pointing to a PS4 launch comes from a September filing for a PS4 PUBG game rating in South Korea, the nation where developer PUBG Corp. is headquartered.

Representatives from Sony Interactive Entertainment America did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

After a lengthy (and hugely popular) early access launch on PC, PUBG's twists on one-versus-99 "battle royale" combat arrived as an Xbox One "console exclusive" in December 2017—albeit with mixed results. PUBG's Xbox One version, which retails for $30, has regularly suffered from performance issues, even though the game continues to enjoy a substantial playerbase on that system.

That performance issue looked even worse compared to Fortnite, a free-to-play battle-royale game that has enjoyed a far more stable 60fps refresh on both Xbox One and PS4. Epic's Fortnite had famously restricted its PS4 players from playing alongside other consoles in online play, but that restriction was eventually busted apart like a Fortnite loot piñata . Should this newfound evidence be followed by a PS4 version of PUBG, we have to wonder whether the same cross-platform conversation will begin anew between XB1 and PS4 fans of the series.

Should the Xbox version's console exclusivity period have a one-year time span, that would point to a possible December 12, 2018, release date for PUBG's PS4 version. Whether a new console's version has a shot this much later—with both Fortnite and Call of Duty: Black Ops 4 racking up their own battle royale audiences—is another question entirely.

Listing image by PUBG Corp.