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It has been a year since the first release of PUBG Mobile. The game first released in China on February 9. However, it was not available for the rest of the world on that day.
It took time and made it to the global release. Here in this article, we will see how this game has started from scratch and became a social phenomenon.
PUBG stands for Player Unknown's Battle Ground. It is named after the game designer Brendan 'Player Unknown' Greene who is the original developer of PUBG on PC with the help of PUBG Crop.
The game was originally inspired by a Japanese movie named 'Battle Royale' which was released in the year 2000. So, let us take a look at the important highlights of the first year.
PUBG Mobile launch in China (February 9, 2018)
The game first released in China on February 9 as two different versions. PUBG Army attack which was developed by Tencent's Timi Studio.
The other one was PUBG: Exhilarating battlefield which was developed by Lightspeed and Quantum Studios. While the PUBG Exhilarating battlefield was released as PUBG Mobile, PUBG Army attack could not make it to a global release.
Writer's analysis: So, all the games that we see in the store may or may not be the actual game. It takes a lot of time and effort to come up with a product that the users will like.
PUBG Mobile hits global release (March 20, 2018)
With the global release, India found its new popular game. Yes, its PUBG Mobile. It was launched with a single map - Erangel and in-game voice chat only.
Writer's analysis: From the China release to global release, it took one and a half month! So, maybe PUBG Lite (PC) BETA will have similar time frame? who knows!
The release of PUBG Emulator (May 9, 2018)
Tencent announced Tencent Gaming Buddy where people can download the emulator on PC and play PUBG Mobile! However, to maintain a fair playing ground, developers matched emulators players with emulators only and mobile players with mobile players only.
Writer's analysis: The release of PUBG Emulator really changed the scene. Emulators were there for a long time, but one emulator that can let you play a mobile game just like a PC game? Just wow!
Addition of Miramar map (May 15, 2018)
A new desert map got added in the game. The map size is almost similar in size as the first map Erangel.
Writer's analysis: Expansion had to come to keep the gamers engaged!
Royale Pass makes its debut ( June 19, 2018)
Royale pass system got added to the game to make the game more interesting for the people who can pay and play at the same time.
Writer's analysis: Royale Pass can be called as 'Gold Digger' for the developers.
The release of PUBG Mobile Lite (August 10, 2018)
PUBG Mobile was becoming heavy and not all the smartphones could run it properly, so Tencent released a lightweight version of the game for low-end smartphones and named it PUBG Mobile Lite.
Writer's analysis: More player base = more popularity!
PUBG Mobile Campus Championship 2018 (September 7, 2018)
with the growing popularity, Tencent announced its first tournament in India, making it available to school and college goers only with a huge prize pool of 50 lacs INR.
The winner was Terrifying Nightmares who were based on Mumbai.
Writer's analysis: India is a big potential market for gaming. Tencent recognized that.
PUBG Mobile hits 20 Million daily active users (September 13, 2018)
PUBG Mobile officially announced in their social media accounts that they have crossed 20 million daily active users in just six months!
Writer's analysis: On its way to becoming a social phenomenon.
PUBG Mobile announces Star Challenge Global Finals (December 1, 2018)
Top 20 teams from Europe, Asia, North America, South America, Japan, Korea and China contended for a prize pool of $400,000. Terrifying NIghtmares represented India and finished at 18th. The winner was Thailand's RRQ Athena.
Writer's analysis: India has a long way to go when competing with the global teams. Good luck!
30 Million Daily active users (December 19, 2018)
Tencent announced PUBG Mobile crossed 30 million active daily users and hits 200 million downloads.
Writer's analysis: I would not be surprised if the game hits 50 million soon.
The release of Vikendi map (December 20, 2018)
A snow map named Vikendi got added in PUBG Mobile. With this, PUBG mobile successfully brought different types of environment, from a desert to a snowy area. A new vehicle also got added with the release of Vikendi.
Writer's analysis: Diversity in the game too? Whats next? maybe a map based on the moon!
PM Modi's reaction on PUBG Mobile (January 29, 2019)
A mother complained to PM Modi about his son's addiction to online games and Modi's reaction left everyone spellbound, "PUBG wala hai kya?" (Does he play PUBG?)
Writer's analysis: Seems like PM Modi is well aware of PUBG Mobile.
After seeing the whole timeline it is evident that the developers heard the voice of the community. They could actually bring out the features that the gamers wanted to be in the game.
Maybe that is one of the key reasons for the huge success. So, that's the brief timeline for PUBG Mobile in the first year of its release. Have we missed anything? Let us know in the comments below!
