The first proper PlayerUnknown’s Battlegrounds event has finally been announced, thanks to a new partnership between Bluehole and ESL. North American gamers might be disappointed to learn the event will be part of this year’s gamescom festivities, so total cost of attendance could get a bit pricey. But esports fans in the PUBG community should be encouraged by how quickly we’re seeing the game’s competitive scene take root.
The upcoming PlayerUnknown’s Battlegrounds event will feature 80 participants, selected by Bluehole from the game’s best players and top influencers. The combatants will be tested in all three of PUBG ’s primary queues: Solo, Duo and Squads. There will also be Duos tournament limited to the first-person perspective. Tournament participants will compete in all four events. The person with the highest cumulative score on the final day of gamescom will be declared winner. Each stage of the Gamescom PUBG Invitational will be broadcast on Twitch, Mixer and other popular streaming destinations, beginning at 10 a.m. (EDT) on Thursday, Aug. 23. ESL and Bluehole have yet to release the exact payouts for each finish, but the companies have confirmed more than 300-plus thousand dollars could be on the line in Cologne, Germany.
To fund the prize pool, ESL and Bluehole are adopting the fan-funded prize model popularized by Valve’s Dota 2 events, but with a bit of twist. Fans will be able to purchase a variety of PUBG vanity items, with proceeds split between charity and the gamescom invitational prize pool, but it doesn’t sound like they’re interested in seeing that prize pool balloon to an obscene size. The prize pool for the first PUBG LAN event will be capped at $350,000, with the rest presumably going into Bluehole’s coffers. Assuming there’s any room left after all those Early Access profits .
The invitational follows a similar event, organized to benefit Gamers Outreach, which took place in May. Switching to a LAN format could have a big impact on the outcome, though. Playing from the comfort of one’s own home, without any prize money on the line, is much less stressful than playing for cash surrounded by cheering (or booing) gamescom attendees. Not that the attention will be new to everyone. PUBG influencers from Twitch and YouTube play the game in front of an audience on a daily or weekly basis. But we’ll see what kind of impact a live setting has when the Gamescom PUBG Invitational begins late next month.
PlayerUnknown’s Battlegrounds is available in Early Access. The full release is scheduled to hit Steam before the end of 2017, followed by an Xbox One release in early 2018.
Be sure to check back with Player.One and follow Scott on Twitter for more PlayerUnknown’s Battlegrounds news in 2017 and however long Bluehole supports PUBG in the years ahead.
