How Long Did PUBG Take to Develop?
PLAYERUNKNOWN’S BATTLEGROUNDS, also known as PUBG, is a battle royale game that has captured the attention of gamers worldwide. The game was released in 2017 by PUBG Corporation, but have you ever wondered how long it took to develop this massive game?
In this article, we’ll explore the development process of PUBG and provide insight into the time and resources that went into creating this highly successful game.
Answer to the Question
PUBG took a considerable amount of time to develop, with its early beginnings dating back to early 2016. Changhan Kim, the CEO of PUBG Corporation, made the official announcement in June 2016 that Bluehole, a Korean gaming company, would be responsible for developing the game. Initially, the game’s development was expected to be completed within a year. However, the actual time frame was much longer due to the complexity and ambition of the project.
Timeline of PUBG Development
Here’s a timeline of the PUBG development process:
- Early 2016: The initial planning and concept phase began, with a team of approximately 35 developers supporting Brenden Greene, the developer who created the game’s concept.
- June 2016: The game’s announcement was made public.
- 2017: The game’s beta test was conducted, which resulted in significant changes and iterations.
- March 2017: The game was officially released on Steam and later on Xbox and PC.
Development Stages and Challenges
PUBG’s development involved numerous stages, each presenting unique challenges. Here are a few key stages:
Concept and Planning Phase
This phase involved refining the game’s concept, researching competitors, and determining the gameplay mechanics. This took approximately 6 months.
Key Challenges: Building a team, understanding what kind of game they were aiming to create, researching and testing different game genres, and determining the art style.
Asset Creation
This stage focused on creating the game’s visuals, including characters, environments, and props. This process took around 4 months.
Key Challenges: Finding the right team with experience in creating assets of a similar scale and budget, ensuring consistency throughout, and dealing with scope creeps.
Gameplay Mechanic Development
During this stage, the developers built and refined the game’s mechanics, including shooting systems, movement, and graphics rendering. This phase lasted for approximately 2.5 months.
Key Challenges: Balancing performance with visual quality, solving memory issues, and identifying bugs and exploits.
Polishing and Balancing
The final stages focused on polishing the game and fine-tuning the balances to ensure a fun, challenging, and rewarding player experience. This took approximately 2 months.
Key Challenges: Achieving the perfect balance of variables such as damage output, character movement, and shooting accuracy, and conducting continuous playtesting and testing the game with different player groups.
Conclusion
The journey to develop PUBG spanned over a year, from concept to launch, and involved numerous stages with distinct challenges. This remarkable game took an estimated 10-14 months* to develop, and countless hours of dedication and labor went into creating it. The game’s long development period allowed the development team to refine its game-changing concept, pushing boundaries, and setting new standards in the gaming industry.