One of the most played shooters on Steam is going to be free soon
PlayerUnknown’s Battlegrounds is a multiplayer shooter and was the founder of the new genre Battle Royale. So far you always had to pay money for the title because it is Buy2Play. However, that should change partially in January, as announced at the Game Awards.
When will PUBG Free2Play be? Almost 5 years after its release, the Battle Royale will switch to a Free2Play model on January 12th and be playable for free.
If you register on the official website in advance, you will receive a few cosmetic items, including a backpack and a T-shirt. There are also other bonuses for convincing friends to register (via Steam).
However, until January 12th, PUBG will still cost 29.99 euros. This means that the shooter has a bigger hurdle for new players. Similar titles like Fortnite or Apex Legends have been played for free for years.
Will the game be completely free? No. You can play the basic game, ranked matches and custom games will continue to linger behind a payment barrier, the so-called Battlegrounds Plus. For the activation you can buy a DLC in the future.
The DLC includes some cosmetic bonuses, access to the modes mentioned and costs 13 dollars. So far, the prices at PUBG have been converted 1 to 1 into euros, which is why the DLC will probably cost 13 euros.
You can watch the announcement of the switch to Free2Play here:
PUBG is the founder of the Battle Royales and is one of the top games on Steam
What kind of game is PUBG? In PUBG you fight alone or in teams. The last surviving player or team on the field wins a match. There are many different weapon models available to you that can also be found in real life. From pistols to shotguns to heavy sniper rifles, everything is included.
PUBG has high demands on realistic graphics and a realistic weapon feel. This sets it apart from other games in the genre. In addition, the game now offers 8 different maps, two of which were published this year.
In fact, the shooter even founded the new genre Battle Royale with its model. It started in Early Access on March 23, 2017 and was the first shooter that let 100 players fight each other for survival. PUBG then followed titles such as Fortnite: Battle Royale or CoD: Warzone.
How is the shooter doing? PUBG is still one of the most played games on Steam in 2021. In the last 24 hours it reached a peak of 333,090 players and thus landed at number 3 on the Steam Charts, only behind CS: GO and Dota 2 (via SteamDB).
However, the 1.5 million reviews on Steam are mixed and only 54% positive. There is criticism for problems in the optimization, cheaters and hackers, as well as the fact that it was Buy2Play so far.
PUBG can also be played away from the PC, for example on the PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X / S and on Google Stadia. There is also a separate mobile version of the Battle Royale.
If you feel like a shooter in general or a battle royale in particular, you will find it in this list:
The 15 best multiplayer shooters in 2021 for PS4, PS5, Xbox and PC
Reference-mein-mmo.de