The hit FPS title “PlayerUnknown’s Battlegrounds” (“PUBG”) has reportedly reached a new sales milestone. The game is the brainchild of Brendan Greene and published by South Korean developer Bluehole Studio Inc. It was distributed through Steam Early Access and launched back on March 23.
Its remarkable achievement stems from the fact that most games cannot accomplish the same number of sales within six months. Earlier today, the developer shared the official count and noted that they had hit 10 million sales as of September 1. Furthermore, its popularity means those numbers are not going to slow down anytime soon.
‘PlayerUnknown’s Battlegrounds’ sales growth
Analysts have gone back and reviewed the sales performance of “PlayerUnknown’s Battlegrounds” over the past few months. According to Bluehole Studio Inc., the game sold over one million units within three weeks after it became available. Three months after, it surpassed the four million mark.
The game designer, Brendan Greene, recently confirmed that just 15 days ago, “PUBG” has already gained around eight million sales in total. The numbers mentioned above were supposedly recorded before the Gamescom 2017 tech fair. Looking at their most recent 10 million sale milestone, the game will presumably become this year’s unexpected hit title.
Reason for 'PUBG’s' popularity
Game Rant reports that the game’s availability in several regions, which is currently listed at 19 countries with China and South Korea included. The latter two are known for being one of the biggest markets for online multiplayer titles. Choosing to distribute the game digitally also makes it accessible in regions where physical retail copies are difficult to come by.
Experts credit the shooter’s worldwide availability as the key to its “viral” success and stellar sales numbers.
Key factors for its success
Given that the concept of a battle royale type of shooter has been done before. However, none of those games were able to emulate “PUBG’s” success while currently being available on a single platform.
Moreover, it is impressive that a Steam Early Access build of a game can become such a hit. It seems that Brendan Greene was able to deliver .” what gamers wanted in that particular genre.
Analysts also credit live-streaming as a key factor for the success of “PlayerUnknown’s Battlegrounds.” The shooter has reportedly become so popular on Twitch that it has overshadowed games like “League of Legends,” “Overwatch,” and even “Hearthstone”. Players can expect to hear about more sales milestone in the following months.
