Despite “Battlegrounds” being an integral part of its name, Krafton envisions a much broader future for PUBG beyond its battle royale roots. The company aims to evolve PUBG into a comprehensive “gameplay platform,” akin to popular titles like Fortnite and Roblox, by integrating diverse game modes and facilitating user-generated content.
During a recent earnings call, Krafton`s chief financial officer, Dongkeun Bae, detailed this ambitious strategy. Bae stated, “In the era of PUBG 2.0, it will not simply be a battle royale game per se.” He emphasized the goal of transforming the game into a versatile platform and confirmed that a wide array of new modes are actively being developed to support this objective.
A crucial aspect of this transformation involves migrating PUBG to Unreal Engine 5. Krafton has been transparent about this technological shift since March 2024. This move to Epic Games` engine is expected to significantly facilitate the integration of user-generated content, marking a remarkable turn of events considering PUBG Corp. previously initiated, then withdrew, a lawsuit against the creators of Fortnite.
Furthermore, Krafton is actively developing several PUBG spin-offs. One such project is “PUBG: Blindspot,” previously known as Project Arc, which Krafton describes as a “5v5 team-based top-down tactical shooter.” Another title set in the PUBG universe is rumored to be an extraction shooter, tentatively named “PUBG: Black Budget.”