The namePlayerUnknown’s Battlegroundsis near-ubiquitous within the online gaming community. Not only isPUBGone of the most popular games in the world, but it was also the breakout battle royale game that directly led to the success of games likeFortniteandCall of Duty: Warzone. Yet it seems like the times are changing and the namePlayerUnknown’s Battlegroundsno longer serves PUBG Studio’s purposes. Regardless of the reasons, PUBG Studio has officially changed the name ofPlayerUnknown’s Battlegrounds.
The new and somewhat silly name forPlayerUnknown’s BattlegroundsisPUBG Battlegrounds. That’s right, its full name is technically nowPlayerUnknown’s BattlegroundsBattlegrounds, though it’s unlikely to ever be referred to its full name ever again. The change was seemingly made overnight with no fanfare or announcement, perhaps because PUBG Studio knew that it was bound to be mocked online and withinPUBG’s playerbase.
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No explanation was provided for thePUBG Battlegroundsname change, but it should be easy to make some assumptions. The big idea is thatPUBGis a much bigger brand than it was when the battle royale first launched, with multiple different games available and in development. As such, it doesn’t make sense for the original game to be known as “the"PUBG. It’s just a part ofPUBG, withPUBG Studiodeciding thatBattlegroundscaptures the nature of the game.
PUBGis now a universe, of whichPUBG Battlegroundsis just a part.PUBG Battlegroundswill coexist with other games likePUBG Mobileand upcoming games likePUBG New Stateand other titles. There’s also an animated series being made set in thePUBGuniverse, as well as a horror game namedThe Callisto Protocolthat probably won’t include thePUBGbranding. Plus, there are all but certain to be multiple otherPUBGprojects currently in the works, includingPUBG Battlegrounds 2.
One other reason why PUBG Studio is probably moving away from thePlayerUnknown’s Battlegroundsname is the inclusion ofPlayerUnknown’s name. He may be responsible for creating the original game, but it’s grown well beyond him. He’s still recognized in the new name, the PU inPUBG, but thePUBGuniverse belongs to all of the development team.
It is somewhat of a shame that the originalPlayerUnknown’s Battlegroundshas now become just one part of thePUBGuniverse. It could have been changed to justPUBGrather thanPUBG Battlegrounds, which would have been much more respectful not to mention less silly. It just goes to show how much thePUBGbrand has grown in the years since the battle royale’s release.
PUBG Battlegroundsis available now on PC, PS4, Stadia, Xbox One, and mobile devices.
